Purchase Advice: Benz, BMW, Lexus, Audi

[allenrj]

In short my family is looking for a new 4 door sedan that is awd with hp/tq similar to our Pontiac GT (260/280). The pontiac has held up well for a superchaged car making it to 220k miles but is deciding to break every other month at this point and the cost of repair is getting to be worth more than the car itself.

Here comes where I need your guys opinions, suggestions, and personal experience. My mom has picked out four possible contenders all of which are the AWD variants:

Lexus IS 350 - 2014 and newer comes in around 30-35k
Benz C300, 2014-15 w/ 25k miles comes in around 20-25k
Audi A4 - 2016 on the lot with 9k miles, 32k
BMW 328i - Havent looked into very much

Each car has been driven and shes learning towards the Audi and Benz. We,ve researched and know all the stats and comparable prices but I would like the opinions and arguments from some fellow car people. The only issue she has with any of the contenders is maintenance and cost of repairs along with the nearest Lexus dealer being about an hour away. In addition to that she dislikes the Lexus's hump like thing next to the drivers leg.

Thanks for any feedback

Ryan

[Ryan T]

Lexus

[RhyminSimon27]

Maybe I'm just biased but... the inside of the IS is a really nice place to be. What exactly doesn't she like about the center console? Also as far as the dealership concern, while that is a bit of a drive, they've really taken care of me so far. In and out relatively quickly each time. Plus mine has free massage chairs so I can't complain haha.

[ryangreen1]

The only experience I have is with my mom's 2011 Audi A5 with the 2.0T, but i'm pretty sure that and the A4 are similar cars. The car is great to drive and we've had no problems with it but it only has 15k miles since she just drives around town. The AWD is great and has handled what little snow we get back home no problem, but to me the steering feels very heavy around town. The ride quality is excellent even on the super low profile tires it came with. Its got plenty of go with the 200 hp and awd though even in a kinda heavy car. The 8 speed auto trans is amazing, you don't even realize its there and the shifts are buttery smooth. Not great on gas though, has been averaging around 13-15 city with a 2L turbo which seems a little low. Coolest thing about this car is that it has a button in the center that ROLLS ALL 4 WINDOWS UP OR DOWN AT THE SAME TIME. Why dont all cars have this?

The only thing i can't stand about her car is the god awful infotainment system that every german car from that era has. Its not compatible with anything other than an iphone, and the iphone 5/up adapters don't work, so you have to pay $80 for a new dongle from audi.
It took me like a week to figure out how to tune to radio stations that aren't already preset, and the bluetooth doesn't support audio streaming. Then again this was 2011 and I'm sure they've gotten better by now but the AC/heat controls and heated seats can only be accessed by clicking through about 4 menus then spinning that stupid wheel below the shifter. It gets really annoying really fast, and I only have to live with it once in a while. She doesn't care though since she usually only drives it when its nice with the top down anyway.

Another thing is audi services are expensive, like really expensive but she got her first 5 years/50k mile services bundled in with the purchase. Another thing to note is if you don't use those services in a certain time period you lose them. We had the 20k and 30k services done within 2 months and 2000 miles of each other just so we didnt lose them since the 30k replaces spark plugs and some belts. We use flow audi in Greensboro, and they took 3-4 hours for an oil change and didn't seem that busy, also you have to call in ahead, but after you make your appointment to reserve a loaner car which we didn't think about the first time. We were gonna get the oil changed at a local place but there are specialized tools to take off the freaking oil filter, and a special procedure to fill the oil since there is no filler cap/dip stick and its electronically read.

This seems like a negative review but I love the car and since mom traded her 05 or 06 535i she enjoys this much more, but I think thats mostly due to the convertible. Just a few little things like the services we weren't aware of before hand are kinda annoying.

[JustinG]

So is she planning on keeping this car for the same amount of time/mileage as the GT?
Cause if so, the Lexus is the only option. Plus it is a Toyota, so just take it to a Toyota dealership for service.

BMW is the second choice.
C300s don't age well, and even though it is a MB, it is a cheap MB and IMO you can tell when you get 50-60k on em.
Audi, NO.

[JPolen01]

I came here to say get the Lexus serviced at the local Toyota dealer. Skip the Benz. A coworker of mine got a new c300 recently and it seemed pretty cheap.

[.RJ]

Those are all fine cars, you wont go wrong with any of them. Buy the one you like the most.

[allenrj]

The lexus has a bump out next to the drivers right leg with the awd option that apparently doesnt let her straighten her leg entirely. Ideally it would be a car that we kept for quite a while. I personally feel that the lexus is the best option but have no been able to sway her. Have there been anythings about the lexus that arent so great or things that you dislike?

As far as Audi what gives it the big no? haha

[CaptainHenreh]

FPNI.

BMW for a distant second as of the four, it'll be the least maintenance headache.

VAG products are for suckers (yeah I said it) and MB...man I even like Mercedes but nah, I'm good.

[ScottyB]

lex is the best appliance and will have the best resale. benzes don't do well in the high mileages anymore and the BMW and Audi probably have better AWD systems but i doubt your parents will ever need their capability for the tradeoff in reliability.

[WRXtranceformed]

Another vote for the Lexus having owned one. Service & reliability will be far superior to the other makes. Stay away from Benz, they're hot garbage when it comes to trying to keep it out of the shop.

Does that hump go away in the RWD version? How bad does she really need AWD? A RWD Lexus with a dedicated set of snow tires / wheels if you need them would be fine in the winter. I used to (stupidly) drive my old IS300 around on balding Azenis in the worst snows up in NoVA and made it home fine every time.

[RawrImAMonster]

Lexus is the only real choice here if they want a car that will be worry free.

[D_Eclipse9916]

Lexus and don't even look at the rest.

[SlimKlim]

Lexus is the only real choice here if they want a car that will be worry free.

Truth. Take it from an owner of multiple BMW and VAG cars. Buy the Lexus and never look back.

[JustinG]

As far as Audi what gives it the big no? haha

Not just Audi, but modern German Cars in general. I have no actual data to back this up but 90% of their customers either lease for 3 years and give em back or just trade them in prior to the warranty expiring. They know this so they don't build their cars to last past say 7yrs.

The Lexus is a fancy Toyota, and this is where I think Japanese luxury cars win. Yea it may not be as fun to drive, but when the mechanical bits are all from their entry level brand that is produced in the 10s of millions, shit lasts and is cheaper to fix due to its large production numbers.

[rherold9]

Lexus.

On another note has she looked at the ATS or CTS? They've come a long way.

[JPolen01]

Lee had a newer CTS I think. I'm a big fan of the IS350 F Sport. Go with the Lexus in RWD so her leg fits. How often do you actually need AWD? Better MPGs in the RWD as well.

[Jake]

+1 for Lexus and skip the AWD, everyone thinks they need it and they really don't. The IS is the one product they make that I think is pretty alright.

I also like the ATS recommendation, although the gauge cluster makes the entire car a turnoff for me. Other than that, they look good and apparently drive very well.

[rherold9]

I agree on the AWD is pointless sentiment. Unless you live on hilly roads or mountains there isn't much point. Each car should have sport and ice/snow modes and that in itself should be plenty.

I actually find the 2013 ATS my Dad has to be very well road mannered and feels good. The interior is nice all around as well. The only thing I don't like is the lightness of the steering feel but your Mom probably won't care about that. Would probably be my go to luxo-box unless the whatever new BMW was under warranty.

[WRXtranceformed]

Lee had a newer CTS I think.

I did and it was janky. Leaky sunroof, leaky third brake light in trunk, sometimes infotainment wouldn't go off and would kill the battery, dead coil pack at 40k miles I think it was. Good looking car inside and out but that car had like automotive osteoporosis.

I will say I did test drive the ATS V6 before I got my Jag and it was a really nice car, but super small in the back seat. Like IMO almost unusable small