NEW BMW M240i Coupé
xDrive
List price £45,795 Target Price £44,585 Range-topping version of the latest 2 Series Coupé packs almost as much power as the RS3 and yet costs thousands less to buy
Audi RS3 Sportback
Carbon Black
List price £58,400 Target Price £57,775 One of our favourite hot hatches, because it combines fun with everyday liveability better than almost anything else on the road
Yes, we know: one's a hatchback and the other's a coupé. But aside from their different body styles, the Audi RS3 Sportback and BMW M240i (the current pinnacle of the 2 Series Coupé line-up) have an awful lot in common.
Both hail from Germany. Both have four-wheel drive. Both have almost 400bhp. Yet unlike more hardcore alternatives with this much firepower, including the Mercedes-AMG A45, both promise more than a small dose of civility.
On the face of it, the M240i would seem to be a relative performance car bargain. True, £46,000 is an awful lot of money, but it's some £8000 less than the starting price of the RS3. And if you go for the latter car in our preferred Carbon Black form, that gap grows to more than £12,000.
Brochure prices only count for so much, though. Is the M240i such great value in the long run and for the many buyers who plan to take out a finance agreement? And even if it is, does the RS3 justify its price premium?
DRIVING
Performance, ride, handling, refinement
This story is from the May 2022 edition of What Car? UK.
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This story is from the May 2022 edition of What Car? UK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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