Audi A3 vs Peugeot 408

What's the difference?

Can a hatchback still be a fun and fashionable way to get around when the SUV has become such a status trend?

The facelifted Audi A3 certainly makes a case for it.

The refreshed 2025 A3 is, as Audi puts it, more competitive than before when it comes to not only value but also, you might agree, style.

Last year, before the update even arrived, the A3 sold almost as well as its Volkswagen Golf corporate sibling. In fact, it’s Audi’s third most popular model behind the Q3 and Q5 SUVs.

It’s also third in its segment of ‘Small cars under $40,000’, behind only the MG4 electric car and, you guessed it, the VW Golf.

As such, it also outsells its actual closest rivals the BMW 1 Series and Mercedes-Benz A-Class, both of which are close to the A3 on price.

Now that it’s been given a bit more razzle dazzle, let’s see if the A3 can keep that momentum going.

Unveiled globally in 2022 before arriving here in late 2024 as a plug-in hybrid GT, the Peugeot 408 has been a niche player for the long-established French brand with less than 100 examples finding homes here last year.

But 2025 marked the transition to a new ‘plug-less’ mild-hybrid powertrain for the mid-size crossover-style SUV with the hope it may take a bigger swing at segment heavyweights.

We spent a week with the current 408 GT Premium Hybrid to see if its efficiency-focused petrol-electric set-up has what it takes to win a spot on your upscale five-seat SUV shopping list.