2017 Audi A3 vs Honda Civic

What's the difference?

You know when you reckon you've got the room, you've got some great stories in the chamber and everyone's looking at you and then someone else walks in. That someone else has an effortless style and sophistication, doesn't try too hard, just looks great all the time?

BMW and Mercedes know that person. It's called the Audi A3. It outsells the BMW 1 Series by two to one and even beats the Mercedes A Class home (although if you add the CLA, not so much). From 2015 to 2016, market share of the segment it occupies has grown from a quarter to almost a third.

So there’s probably no point in updating it, right? Wrong. Because it’s now four years old and BMW and Mercedes have been chucking the kitchen at their cars to try and catch up, knowing Audi has something up its sleeve.

And here is - a refreshed A3 with new technology, new engines and some of the more subtle styling changes you’ll see, even for an Audi.

If you know your performance machinery, you know that Honda’s Type R badge is deservedly held in high esteem. Sure, the NSX is the pinnacle of Honda, but the Type R has long shown the company can also bring performance to the people.

After a prolonged gestation period, the Type R badge has resurfaced in Australia, affixed to the rear end of the 10th-generation Civic. Does it hold true to the values of the Type R philosophy of a ‘well engineered but exciting driving experience’, or has it morphed into something different?