Audi RS3 vs Land Rover Defender

What's the difference?

Five-cylinder fury is still kicking!

Audi has just launched the mid-life updated version of its RS3 hatch and sedan in Australia.

With new looks inside and out, the German carmaker has also made a number of subtle tweaks under the skin via software updates. Thankfully, however, the five-cylinder beast lurking under the bonnet remains untouched.

As the viability of pure internal combustion engines in the hot hatch segment dwindles in the age of ever-tightening emissions regulations, will this be the last hurrah for the five-banger RS3?

Read along to see how this latest version stacks up.

This feels wrong to say this, but it’s so refreshing not to be driving an electric vehicle. There I said it.

After testing so many EVs lately reviewing a car that has an actual engine is a nice change. And this car definitely has an internal combustion engine - it's the Land Rover Defender Octa Black with a twin-turbo petrol V8.

The Defender Octa is the ultimate form of the 110 Defender. It’s wilder looking, more powerful and more capable, while the Black edition adds darkened elements inside and out for even more visual appeal.

While the Defender Octa Black is special, it’s not alone in a world of high-performance luxury SUVs and its head-to-head rival would be Mercedes-AMG’s G63.

I had the Defender Octa Black for a week and while I didn’t take this beast off-road where it is superbly capable, I put it to the test on some challenging tarmac as well as some challenging real-world family duties.