Comparison Tests
"God is in the details," said the renowned architect Mies van der Rohe.
"So is the devil," say we after five days chasing through the deserts and mountains of Arizona in seven of the sedan world's most enviable four-doors.
A perfect car is hard to find. We already knew that before ordering up this collection valued at $334,505. Still, like everyone who daydreams, we're always convinced that the next set of keys we twist will light off combustion and rapture in equal measure. Ah, the optimistic leanings of all enthusiasts.
The theme behind this adventure was appealingly straightforward. If your automotive dreams are backed up by pockets deep enough to swing something in the mid-$40-thou range, then you're up into the no-excuses zone. You deserve undiluted precision and pleasure.
For sure, there are enough choices in this class—we rounded up seven labels—so that you should be able to find a perfect fit, never mind your (or our) peculiar preferences.
Moreover, the class is as active as Italy's lava-oozing Mt. Etna. Two entries are all-new this year. Mercedes-Benz pulled the tarp off the next-generation E-class just months ago, available with an intriguing adaptive air suspension and ever more electronic interventions to protect and amaze you. The interior looks as good as the princely price, too.
From the other side of the globe, Nissan reached westward to insert its Infiniti brand into this mid-luxury slot in the form of the new M45, a cautiously retro shape with a breathtakingly potent 340-hp V-8 driving the rear wheels. You know there's at least one thing about this four-door that will bump up our boiler pressure.
Other makers have been doing their homework, upgrading their older models. Jaguar's S-type has a new six-speed automatic. To keep the price in the mid-$40K range, we had to moderate our performance urges. The test S-type has the standard 3.0 all-aluminum V-6 instead of the zesty, and pricey, V-8.
Lincoln, to perk up the LS for 2003, offers a "V-8 Premium Sport" package that supplements the newly invigorated 280-hp engine (252 last year) with a manumatic shifter, sport-tuned suspenders, and 17-inch alloy wheels wearing 235/50VR-17 Michelin HX MXM4 tires. Could this be, finally, everyone's chance at a hot-rod Lincoln?
In our comparisons of this class in recent years, Audi and BMW have duked it out for top honors. The Audi A6 Quattro with the twin-turbo, 2.7-liter V-6 is a classic, all-around performer disguised as a thing of visual beauty. This car sets a benchmark for the others, we think.
That said, the BMW 5-series is a veteran that even in its golden years (born as a 1997 model) continues to please. With the 3.0-liter in-line six and a base price of $43,070, it fits nicely in the class.
Lexus offers another veteran, the GS300, which enjoyed its last makeover in time for the 1998 model year. It, too, has 3.0-liter, six-in-line power and the associated smoothness and purring exhaust we've come to expect from that configuration.
Naturally, our price target took a few hits, one of them nuclear. We really wanted to try the Benz with the Airmatic DC (dual control) suspension. It comes in a package that includes bi-xenon headlights, 17-inch wheels and 245/45WR-17 tires, leather seats, tea-stained bird's-eye maple, and aero furbelows along the sills for a nice, round $3800. Ah, well, you only live once. The bottom line was $54,020, and we'll be off to debtors' prison before you read this.
Buyer's remorse? Not us. Still, as we end the beginning of this inquiry and work into the individual profiles of each car, we can't conceal our disappointment. We were hoping for Mozart but found a lot of Mahler. Mahler is good, some say great, but he never made the heart sing like Wolfie did.
The best this group can elicit from our hearts is a tuneful hum. Please give us a chance to explain.
