Car group tests

Car group tests

The UK's most popular cars head-to-head against their key rivals...

If you really want to know how a car performs against its key rivals, this is the place to find out. The Auto Express group test is an automotive institution decades in the making that gets right to the heart of the questions that car buyers want answered. 

While our in-depth reviews and long-term tests are usually done with the car in isolation, albeit by experienced journalists with detailed prior experience of hundreds of other cars, the group test puts two or three direct rivals head-to-head in the same place, on the same roads and in the same conditions. There is nowhere to hide. 

As a means of slimming down your car buying shortlist these exhaustive tests are great. We drive the cars over long distances, interrogate the control systems, load and unload the interiors, and take our own precise measurements to make comparisons easier. Sometimes there’s an obvious winner but often what emerges is a picture of two cars with qualities that would suit different kinds of buyer - a picture that only becomes clear after this kind of detailed side-by-side testing. 

Our team brings you at least one two- or three-car group test every week, building up a clear picture of the cars we rate and those that we don’t... 

Scroll down to find all our group test pages… 

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Audi A3

Audi A3

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Volkswagen Polo

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Volkswagen Tiguan

Volkswagen Tiguan

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Kia Sportage

Kia Sportage

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MG3 vs Skoda Fabia
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Can the new Volkswagen Caddy Maxi Life knock the Citroen Berlingo XL off the top step of the MPV podium?
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Car group tests
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Cupra Ateca vs Audi SQ2: twin test review
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Car group tests
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Lexus RC vs Audi A5

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Car group tests
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Audi TTS vs Alpine A110 vs Porsche 718 Cayman

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Toyota Corolla vs Volkswagen Golf vs Peugeot 308

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Car group tests
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Citroen Berlingo XL vs Vauxhall Combo Life XL vs Ford Grand Tourneo Connect
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New van-based MPVs from Citroen and Vauxhall are more practical than ever. But do they leave their seven-seater rival from Ford all at sea?
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Lexus ES vs BMW 5 Series vs Volvo S90

Can the new hybrid Lexus ES make an impression on exec saloon big-hitters such as the BMW 5 Series and Volvo S90?
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Mercedes-AMG C 63 S vs Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio

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