2012 Audi A7 3.0T Quattro vs. 2013 BMW 640i Gran Coupe

2012 Audi A7 3.0T Quattro vs. 2013 BMW 640i Gran Coupe 2012 Audi A7 3.0T Quattro vs. 2013 BMW 640i Gran Coupe
Comparison Tests

The Mercedes-Benz CLS, a fitted tux to the off-the-rack E-class sedan on which it’s based, is iconic, having pried open the niche for executive-class four-seaters with cut-down greenhouses and arresting good looks. Despite the CLS’s decade on the market, though, Audi and BMW have only recently let their designers loose on their own mid-size sedans.

Ingolstadt stepped up first with the Audi A7 3.0T, a slinky, hatchback take on the A6 offering athletic reflexes, an inviting aura, and a spacious cargo area. A 2012 C/D 10Best winner out of the gate, the A7 dethroned the more-powerful second-gen CLS550 in a comparison test last year [September 2011].

BMW took a little longer to turn onto Savile Row, first revealing the Concept Gran Coupe show car in 2010, which only needed light tailoring to become this stunning 2013 6-series Gran Coupe. Stitched from 5- and 6-series swatches, including the two-door 6’s snout and the 5er’s 116.9-inch wheelbase, the GC evolved from an actual coupe; it’s not just a conventional sedan that has melted in the sun. Slathered in Imola Red paint and riding on optional 20-inch wheels ($1300) with run-flat Dunlop rubber, our GC tester turned heads like few big cars can. It also has the nicest BMW interior in recent memory, as well as enough onboard technology to busy an MIT engineer.

BMW will charge you for the experience, though, as the price starts at $76,895 for this 640i with the N55 single-turbo 3.0-liter inline-six. Output is 315 horsepower and 330 pound-feet of torque, channeled to the rear wheels via the same ZF-sourced eight-speed automatic found in the A7.

The A7 is only slightly shorter and lighter than the 640i GC. But on tight, twisty roads, it feels much, much smaller and lighter.

From there, a Mini Cooper S’s worth of extras—including M Sport trim ($4200), Ivory Nappa leather ($3000), a Driver Assistance package with head-up display and blind-spot and lane-departure warnings ($3700), Adaptive Drive suspension ($2500), full LED headlights ($1900), and much more—pushed our 640i’s price to a staggering $105,695.

The A7, on the other hand, starts some $16,000 less, at $60,995, including Quattro all-wheel drive and a supercharged 310-hp, 3.0-liter V-6. Our Audi had less stuff on it than our BMW, eschewing such frills as proximity-key access, digital-readout climate control, and an adjustable suspension. Major options were limited to the mid-level $3620 Premium Plus group—navigation, seven-inch monitor with Multi Media Interface (MMI) control, 19-inch wheels, parking assist with rear camera, and heated mirrors—and the $1500 Sport package (20-inch-wheel upgrade, sport suspension, and steering-wheel-mounted shift paddles). As tested: $67,170, or about one new BMW 328i sedan less than the GC.

Does the BMW’s function succeed as well as its shapely form, and is it worth more than half again as much as the Audi? We drove through treacherous thunderstorms, endless highway miles, and twisty back roads to find out that the answer is no.