VW Golf R And Mercedes-AMG A45 S Engage In A Drift Battle

[cawimmer430]

VW Golf R And Mercedes-AMG A45 S Engage In A Drift Battle

The Mercedes-AMG A45 S and VW Golf R are two of the most potent hot hatches on the market and Rory Reid from AutoTrader recently had the opportunity to put the duo through their paces on a racetrack.

While many other hot hatches on the market continue to stick with the tried and tested front-wheel drive layout, the Golf R and A45 S are all-wheel drive. As such, they offer up much better traction and are superior in straight line acceleration.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlGM318E6mo

Both the Golf R and A45 S have 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engines but the Merc has a significant power advantage with 415 hp and 369 lb-ft (500 Nm) compared to the 315 hp and 310 lb-ft (420 Nm) of the VW. It's hardly a surprise then that when the two are lined up for a drag race, it is the Mercedes that takes an easy victory.

Two of the coolest features of both the Golf R and A45 S are their Drift modes. The Ford Focus RS pioneered the use of a Drift mode and in the VW, up to 50 per cent of power can be distributed to the rear wheels when it is enabled. By comparison, there is no limit to how much power the A45 S can send to the rear wheels, so it feels much more rear-biased than the VW, as Reid notes.



Link: https://www.carscoops.com/2021/06/vw-golf-r-and-mercedes-amg-a45-s-engage-in-a-drift-battle/

[SJ_GTI]

I don't find the new Golf R's AWD system that impressive. It is more or less the same as the old one. The main difference, as far as I can tell, is that when it is in drift mode it can send 100% of the torque on a given axle to one wheel or the other, which allows it to drift. The ability to send 50% of the power to the rear has been there for a couple of generations across many haldex based AWD vehicles. I think what really made the Focus RS special is that it could send >50% to the rear, which can be fun even without a specific drift mode. Sounds like the MB has something along that line as well, which is a pretty nice achievement.

[cawimmer430]

I don't find the new Golf R's AWD system that impressive. It is more or less the same as the old one. The main difference, as far as I can tell, is that when it is in drift mode it can send 100% of the torque on a given axle to one wheel or the other, which allows it to drift. The ability to send 50% of the power to the rear has been there for a couple of generations across many haldex based AWD vehicles. I think what really made the Focus RS special is that it could send >50% to the rear, which can be fun even without a specific drift mode. Sounds like the MB has something along that line as well, which is a pretty nice achievement.

I have no experience with the A35 or A45 AMGs, but from my "humble" A250 I can confirm that for a FWD car it drives pretty nicely and handles pretty well. It's still rather "soft" compared to my ex-BMW, but you can have fun with it on windy roads. Biggest problem with it is attempting a launch from a standstill with Sport Mode activated: TORQUE STEER.