Comparison Tests
There are sports sedans, and then there are sports sedans. Strictly defined, only a select few cars—the BMW M5, the Porsche Panamera, the Cadillac CTS-V—deserve the italics. They deliver exalted levels of grip, power, structural rigidity, and responsiveness, all in family-friendly packages. But most sports sedans are less tightly focused; they may have evolved from luxury cars, adding performance for the sake of competitiveness or car magazines such as this one. This is what we’re dealing with here.
Competing in the tough $50,000-to-$60,000 bracket, neither the Audi A6 nor the Lexus GS350 is a track monster like the M5. They promise an all-around blend of usability, refinement, comfort, and engagement—a liberal and livable definition of the term “sports sedan.” So we dialed up an A6 and a GS wearing trim levels that placed them in the sweet spots of their respective lineups, versions with summer tires and athletic chassis but without the kind of naked aggression that causes passenger nosebleeds.
Returning to these pages is the formidable new Audi midliner, already the unofficial ruler of the group based on its performance in its first road test [October 2011], plus the achievements of its predecessor, which prevailed against much newer cars, including the latest BMW 5-series, in a pair of comparos [September 2009 and August 2010].
On the opposite side of fortune’s wheel, the 2013 GS350 is fresh from a near-death experience. After years of anemic sales stretching over three generations, Lexus was about to pull the plug on this ailing member of the tribe. But passionate supporters inside Toyota’s North American operations made a case for another chance.
Ever since 1993, the GS has struggled to walk the luxury-sports-sedan tightrope. But there’s nothing like looking into an open grave to sharpen one’s sense of purpose.
