Both of our contenders for the Best Luxury Car Over $80,000 – the defending champion, Audi’s A6 3.0-litre TDI and the updated Mercedes-Benz E-Class in E300 Hybrid guise - have all of those attributes covered in spades.
Separating their individual strengths to determine a winner was an extremely tough exercise, creating plenty of debate among the judges in regards to how much emphasis luxury car buyers place on economy over performance, tradition over style and technology over value.
Both are brilliant cars and reach maximum points all of our judging criteria from slightly different directions. The fact that, like last year, the final result was decided by a close vote is an indication of how competitive this segment is.
The Audi has won this title for the last two years on the strength of its frugal yet gutsy 3.0-litre turbo diesel V6, faultless build quality and decent equipment levels and this year we decided to assist its defence by stepping up the ladder to the even more powerful bi-turbo version of the same engine.
Its maximum power output of 230kW may seem adequate enough on paper, but the fact it delivers a V8-rivalling surge of torque – with 650Nm available between 1450-2800rpm – ensures the A6 is a sleeper when it comes to outright performance.
That wasn’t lost on the judges either.
“What an awesome engine,” said one.
“It offers the best of both worlds; the economy of a small car with the performance of a much larger car,” added another.
While most appreciated its tidal wave of torque, one wasn’t quite as convinced by its power delivery.
“Its acceleration is effortlessly brilliant when the turbos are already on-boost, but it comes on so strong, and the auto is a bit slow to react, that it feels like it takes a while to react,” said one judge.
Comments about its ride quality also varied from “nice and comfortable” to a “bit choppy over rough surfaces” while most agreed its steering felt too artificial even though it displayed safe and predictable handling attributes thanks to its all-wheel drive transmission.
None of the judges could fault its cabin in terms of luxury, space, high-tech features and its more progressive design.
But the Mercedes-Benz E300 Hybrid has stolen the A6’s crown in this contest.
While its basic underpinnings are older than the A6, the E-Class has always been at the pinnacle of its class for comfort, refinement and dynamics.
The refreshed sedan introduced this year takes it even further and finally introduces the German car maker’s first hybrid-powered vehicle to Australia and the first car to offering semi-autonomous driving functions.
And, as you’d expect from Mercedes-Benz, it has executed both aspects exceptionally well.
Teaming a 2.1-litre turbo diesel four cylinder that produces 150kW/500Nm with a 20kW/250Nm electric motor, the E300 Bluetec Hybrid (to give it its full name), can almost match the Audi for acceleration but is up to 30 percent more efficient with a claimed fuel consumption of just 4.3L/100km; an amazingly economical result for such a large car, and one that is close to achievable in everyday situations.
What is even more impressive is how it does it. Unlike other hybrids which use the electric motor to move away before the combustion engine kicks in, the Mercedes system flips it around the other way and the diesel engine drops out while cruising, meaning it uses the electric engine more often. And it does it seamlessly.
Its suite of new safety features also drew praise from the judges, particularly its autonomous lane-keeping function which uses 3D cameras to read the road and will automatically partially steer through corners while using the radar cruise control. While it works it’s not entirely perfect, but it is the first step to driverless cars of the future.
While it was difficult to separate the Benz from the Audi in terms of conventional luxury attributes, what sealed the Benz’s victory is that, at $108,900, the E300 Hybrid is more than $10,000 cheaper. Although that may not be a deal breaker for luxury car buyers – and a couple of options could easily even up the ledger – its economy benefits means it will also be more affordable to run over time too.
DCOTY 2013: Best Luxury car over $80,000
No comments:
Post a Comment