As regular readers already know, during October and November I took on the rather challenging task — especially for a newly established blog — of comparing all compact premium sedans available on the Bulgarian market. I began the series with the first production car featuring steer-by-wire technology with no mechanical connection between the steering wheel and the front wheels — the Infiniti Q50s AWD. After that came the great hope of Jaguar — the Jaguar XE S. Then I moved into traditional German territory with the Mercedes-Benz C200d, before finishing with the symbol of this class — the BMW 330d xDrive. The Lexus IS300h and Audi A4 were absent from the tests because their representatives rather impolitely declined participation, to put it mildly. They lose… literally 🙂
Like every comparison test, this one also needed an overall winner. The task was actually quite difficult because I genuinely liked all four cars, each with its own character and strengths. To make things easier — and to make my subjective judgement more accurate — I used my newly created vehicle evaluation matrix.
And so, here is the final ranking:
- Jaguar XE S
- BMW 330d xDrive
- Infiniti Q50s AWD
- Mercedes C200d
- Audi A4/Lexus IS300h (disqualified)
The Jaguar performed strongly in every category and came out on top in design — the combination of aggression, elegance and attention to detail clearly made the difference.
The BMW was among the very best when it came to the engine. Quite simply, this diesel is incredible — it sounds good, accelerates as if it has over 300hp and consumes fuel like a two-litre Volkswagen Passat. Superb!
The Infiniti, meanwhile, was the champion on the road. I thoroughly enjoyed driving the Q50, although I also spent the most time with it, which allowed me to explore some more interesting roads. The Q50s also shared first place with the BMW in terms of drivetrain performance — the hybrid system combines dynamics, fuel economy and refinement remarkably well.
Mercedes came first in the interior category — it looks good even in basic trim, the quality is excellent and it is both practical and comfortable. The C200d finished furthest behind its rivals in points, mainly because the test car was fitted with a rather weak engine. The issue there was that, as it was not the newest model anymore, Mercedes did not have a car available with a larger engine and a long list of extras like the other manufacturers did.
Audi and Lexus — pull yourselves together, enter the 21st century and become a little more flexible when it comes to independent tests!
