The more reading and research I do on different vehicles, the more I wonder how each brand actually stacks up to the others. So I figured I would do some basic number crunching and do my own comparison. Once again I will be utilizing the Price Per Pony (ppp) method.
The models we will be looking at today are:
- 2016 Cadillac CTS 3.6L Luxury Edition
- 2016 Mercedes-Benz E350
- 2016 BMW 535i
- 2016 Volvo S60 T6 AWD
- 2016 Hyundai Genesis 5.0
- 2016 Audi S4
- 2016 Jaguar XF-S
The first thing I looked at was the base cost of the vehicle and the horse power you get for that amount. The vehicles break down as such:
- CTS - $53,285 @ 335 HP = $159.06/ppp
- E350 - $53,100 @ 302 HP = $175.83/ppp
- 535i - $55,850 @ 300 HP = $186.17/ppp
- S60 - $44,200 @ 325 HP = $136.00/ppp
- Genesis - $53,850 @ 420 HP = $128.21/ppp
- S4 - $49,200 @ 333 HP = $147.75/ppp
- XF-S - $63,695 @ 380 HP = $167.62/ppp
Based on the ppp score we can rate the vehicles in the following order:
- Hyundai Genesis
- Volvo S60
- Audi S4
- Cadillac CTS
- Jaguar XF-S
- Mercedes E350
- BMW 535i
Now let's take it just one step further and see what each vehicles acceleration (0-60) looks like:
- Genesis - 5.0s
- S60 - 5.4s
- S4 - 4.9s
- CTS - 5.9s
- XF-S - 5.0s
- E350 - 6.5s
- 535i - 5.3s
Obviously there is more to cars than power and speed (who woulda thunk it right?) so we do need to take that other stuff into consideration I guess. Before we do that though, we need to look at each manufacturer and what it is that they actually deliver in their vehicles.
The Genesis is Hyundai's mid level luxury performance brand. While Hyundai isn't exactly known for plush interiors, the Genesis is a luxury sedan at it's core. Volvo, to me, is more of the every-mans luxury vehicle. They tend to keep a very utilitarian air about them while keeping you comfortable behind the wheel. Audi on the other hand is a luxury vehicle through and through. Whether you are going for the entry level A4 or shooting for the Supercar level R8, the interior will keep you comfortable and never let you forget that you are in fact in a luxury vehicle. Cadillac is as luxury as you can get with a domestic vehicle so there really isn't much else to say about them. Jaguar speaks for themselves. They are, before anything else, the epitome of British luxury styling. Which brings me to Mercedes-Benz and BMW. Everyone loves to compare these two German behemoths, when in reality it is like comparing apples to pears. At first appearance they seem to be similar but the differences come when you look at the DNA ingrained in each vehicle. Mercedes is a luxury vehicle with sport added in, whereas BMW is a sports vehicle with luxury added in. When you get behind the wheel of a BMW it feels like you are sitting in a sports car and that feeling only intensifies as you drive it. Stiff throttle response and steering coupled with tight steering gives no illusions about what you are driving. Mercedes on the other hand is the exact opposite. Driving a Mercedes is as close to piloting air as you can come. It is very easy to forget that you are driving a vehicle that has a very deep history in the racing world.
That being said let's move forward.
Let's assume for a minute that money is no object, so let's just throw pricing out of the windows. If you are looking for speed off the line then the Audi S4 is going to be the way to go. If you are looking for raw power under the hood then the Jaguar XF-S is your car. IF you are going for sportiness then BMW or Genesis is the one you want. Luxury? Mercedes-Bens. So how do you decide which car is the one for you if you want everything rolled up into one? In my honest opinion, if you are looking for a vehicle that gives you power under the hood, coupled with speed off the line all while sitting inside a comfortable cockpit then I would personally go with the Genesis. It isn't the cheapest on the list, but it is definitely not the most expensive. While the 5.0 version is available as only a rear-wheel drive model, you can opt for the turbo V6 and get AWD, so you can actually drive it in the winter as well!
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