Z O O R O P A

I went to visit these dealers and check out every car under consideration. All the sales people were really great, which is nice and to be expected but not always the case.

I went to Audi first. I like Audis but 9 out of 10 people who I know who have owned them did not experience anything good from the A4 series. For 2008 Audi has some very exciting models coming out with fantastic engines and awd systems. I also like the cockpit as it is very snug. But I decided right then and there that Audi was not for me when I was told that the X-warranty is $5100.00 US I have owned a lot of Land Rovers and never paid anything like that for a warranty. I keep my cars for along time so this interests me and its a great selling point for the future

Then I went to BMW. On paper the 335xi is by the far the best performing car for fuel, power, handling, and anything related to performance. BMW also has the best customer satisfaction and the only company to stay with pre-paid services, making the buyer only have to pay for tires and insurance. But I really don't like the lines of the car and I am unfamiliar with BMW's reliability other than a few friends who had a lot of issues with 2002-2005 3 series. But they take care of their customers

MB was my final stop. Both BMW/MB x-warranty is between 12-1900$ US for 100K miles/6 years. I like the C series a lot but found some things on the interior to be a little cheap. Aesthetically MB takes the cake for me. The 350 with 270hp is plenty hp for me as there is no place near me I can open up a car without getting a ticket or being unsafe period. I never go to a track.

I'm going to go test drive them all and will report back from a noob buyer who knows how to drive and push a car but not exactly going to pick up on every single charachteristic, just the ones that are valuable to day to day performance and daily life.


comments are welcome or things to look for when driving

thx

GDawgC220

The extended warranty for the A4 should definitely not be anywhere near $5k. I would go to another dealer...An extended on a used A4 with 50k is about $2900. If I remember correctly, the option to tack it on during the buying process, it was in line with MB/BMW. Also not sure if you know but for $500, there is the maintenance package you can add on to Audis during the purchase to cover the 4 scheduled maintenances till 50k miles.

oblu

Also, keep in mind the current A4 (B7) is really just a refresh of the original platform (B6) that debuted in 2002. Next month, at the Frankfurt auto show, the new 2009 (presumably called the B8?) will debut. And if they keep to normal Audi practice, it will be available for purchase by July of 08.

I had a B6 A4 3.2, and loved it. Had a problem with a fuel pump, and that was it during the 35k miles of ownership (about the most I ever own a car). The extended warranty quote was so high because the sales guy smelled a sucker. Not sure why you'd buy an extended warranty on a car up front anyway? Are they usually cheaper that way?

I have a current style 330 (e90) and I couldn't agree with you more on the styling. I bought it because it is extremely fun to drive ... when it can be driven hard. But man is it ugly. I would suspect, since BMW have traditionally done a minor front and rear clip refresh every 2yrs of the model cycle, that it's due for a bit of a change here very soon. That might also explain why the lease incentives on 335s a phenomenal right now.

Felt the same about the C. 350 motor has more than enough power, looks ***** on the exterior, but some of the interior skimping is glaringly obvious. Almost american brand-ish.

GDawgC220

yep, it'll be the B8. The next mid-A4 engine is suppose to be a turbo (may be bi-turbo) 3.0 putting out ~330hp to go against the 335i. The 2.0T is suppose to get a bump in power as well.

oblu

There any info on leaking out about it over at audiworld? I was set on a new C, but since they seem to be shooting themselves in the foot I've resigned to waiting until Winter/Spring and waiting for the new A4. I'm a big Audi fan ... wife just bought a Q7, and I've had an A4 and an A8.

My concern is that they're going to make it look like a 4dr version the A5 which I don't like.

GDawgC220

There have only been photoshops or renditions of the B8, at least from what I've seen. I'm sure photos will soon be out. Only big thing that is rumored is the new 3.0 with turbos...hopefully it'll be like the 2.7TT engine. It'll be fun tuning that.

Leesi

Nope, it doesn't look like A5 but it still looks good. Anyone has picture of the interior?

I thought the current S4 already available against 335.

PUMes

BMW 3er - I've driven the E90/2 several times thanks to friends and dealers. Great car to drive, not bad on the eyes(IMO. It's love it or hate it styling). Wouldn't buy one simply because BMW has constructed this car with super cheap materials to cut costs(for the sake of selling more cars, getting them to market sooner than later) that will no doubt impact long term reliability/durability(something I care about).

Audi A4 - Solid product, a tad short on driving fun compared to the others. Exquisite detailing inside and out as you'd expect from Audi. Quattro is a great performance feature, especially when taking corners at speed, as well as for driving in foul weather. The A4 also seems to be reliable.

Merc C - Love it. I think tis' the best comrpomise between sport and comfort beyond a shadow of a doubt. Solid build quality that reminds a lot of the W124 190 E. I think most issues with the interior lie with design, not quality. Lack of some features known to MB is somewhat disappointing, but a cure will no doubt reveal itself within the next model year or so.

GDawgC220

The 335i is more pitted against the IS350, A4 3.2, C350, etc (entry level luxury sedans). The S4 is more towards M3 and C55 class.

Leesi

Where does the RS4 stand? against the new M3 and C63 AMG? But, this car has price of mid-luxury sedan like E-class and 5-series but the number '4' indicates it belongs the Audi entry level.

OP, if you like the C-class better than A4 and 3-series than go for it but I just want to remind you that Benz is known as passenger car which less fun to drive than the other two. But, if you are in passenger seat, the car feels really good.

GDawgC220

I guess you could pit the S/RS series against the BMW Ms and MB AMGs as well.

MBTex

saw this interesting article while surfing...

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,293437,00.html

it really belongs on the E-Class board, but it is at least a bit on point here if you are going to be doing some general comparisons between BMW and MB

i didn't write it and don't endorse it, but it should make the MB people happy and the Beamer peeps defensive

oblu

What I really found insulting was the BMW spokesperson saying, 'it was one test on one day in one car.' Uh, yeeeeeah. When it's my collision on my day in my car I'm gonna be a little pissed off that my pelvis is shattered (or my spleen ruptured, or etc etc) by an arm rest that was designed more for style than function.

There is some truth to that though. The tests are just simulated conditions and you can't simulate all real-world possibilities.

One of the things that I learned that really disturbed me was the sled they use to test offset front impact is always the same mass. So that test doesn't take into account the varying masses of other vehicles.

On the roads where I live, there's a 90% chance something hitting you is going to be a big monster 5000lb full size SUV.

GDawgC220

While the MB w211 is better at side impact protection, it is only slightly better than the 5 series.

Results for the '07 w211 were actually worse than the '06 w211.

http://www.iihs.org/ratings/summary.aspx?class=10