This Drag Race Between Five German Cars Oozes With Unpredictability

The ‘Carwow’ team brought in five German cars to face each other on the drag strip. The contenders include the Audi RS3, the BMW M2, the Mercedes-AMG A45, the Porsche Cayman GTS, and the Volkswagen Golf R. All the cars have very different setups – some are naturally aspirated, some turbocharged; some are rear-wheel-drive, some all-wheel-drive – that make this an unpredictable race. Which car are you betting on here?

The Mercedes-AMG Is The Most Powerful, But Also The Heaviest

A seven-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox powers all four wheels.

Power is routed to the rear wheels exclusively via a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox.

All four wheels are powered by an eight-speed automatic gearbox.

This example comes with a six-speed manual gearbox that routes power to the rear wheels.

A seven-speed automatic transmission and a four-wheel-drive system complement the engine.

Here’s how much each car weighs:

Audi RS3 – 3,461 poundsBMW M2 – 3,472 pounds Mercedes-AMG A45 – 3,583 poundsPorsche Cayman GTS – 3,263 poundsVolkswagen Golf R – 3,417 pounds

Also, all the cars feature a launch control except the manual Porsche.

How Did The Races Go?

The first standing drag race witnessed the Audi and the Volkswagen get the best starts. The Mercedes was a little slow, to begin with, but it replaced the Golf R pretty soon for the second position. The RS3 was in a league of its own and went on to win the race. The Porsche and the BMW were nothing more than mere spectators, although the latter did manage to edge the Golf at the end. The results were as follows:

Results - Drag Race 1 of 2

First – Audi RS3 Second – Mercedes-AMG A45Third – BMW M2 CompetitionFourth – Volkswagen Golf RFifth – Porsche Cayman GTS

The second race was much better for the AMG A45, but not good enough to beat the RS3. At some points, it looked like it would get past the Audi, but it didn’t. On the other end of the spectrum, the Golf couldn’t capitalize on another decent start. In fact, it lost pretty bad and ended up coming last in this race. The BMW just about edged the Porsche to come third again.

Results - Drag Race 2 of 2

First – Audi RS3 – 12 secondsSecond – Mercedes-AMG A45 – 12.1 secondsThird – BMW M2 Competition – 12.5 secondsFourth – Porsche Cayman GTS – 12.5 secondsFifth – Volkswagen Golf R – 12.7 seconds

Next up was the rolling race from 50 mph in comfort mode. All the cars had a good kickdown, but the BMW just emerged out to take the lead. The Porsche also broke out of the clutter to closely follow the BMW. The other three stayed almost on par with each other for quite some time before the Golf started losing oomph. By the end of the mile, the Porsche managed to pip the BMW and get the W by a decent margin. The RS3 again defeated the A45 whereas the Golf had to settle for the fifth position.

Results - Rolling Race 1 of 2

First – Porsche Cayman GTSSecond – BMW M2 CompetitionThird – Audi RS3 Fourth – Mercedes-AMG A45Fifth – Volkswagen Golf R

The next rolling race was also from 50 mph, but in the sportiest setting and from third gear. The AMG A45 looked to have gotten a strong kickdown, but the BMW stepped out of the herd yet again. The Porsche kept inching ahead to shorten the distance with the BMW, whereas the Audi got past the AMG on the other side. At the end of the mile, the results were exactly the same as the first rolling race.

Results - Rolling Race 2 of 2

First – Porsche Cayman GTSSecond – BMW M2 CompetitionThird – Audi RS3 Fourth – Mercedes-AMG A45Fifth – Volkswagen Golf R

Lastly, there was the brake test from 70 mph to conclude the proceedings. First – Porsche Cayman GTSSecond – BMW M2 CompetitionThird – Audi RS3 Fourth – Mercedes-AMG A45Fifth – Volkswagen Golf R. The Porsche and the BMW were neck and neck at the halt, but the former got the benefit of the doubt. The Volkswagen took the longest to come to a halt.