German Car Zone

Billed as a sports sedan comparison test for $38,000.

1st Place:
BMW 328i - 227 points

Highs:
Better to drive than most sports cars, hushed refinement of a luxury car, relative light weight, best fuel economy.

Lows:
Smallish back seat, radio display disappears with polarized shades

Verdict:
BMW still makes the best sports sedan for $38,000.

Price as test: $38,825
6-Speed Manual Transmission
0-60 mph - 6.1 seconds
0-100 mph - 16.4 seconds
1/4 Mile - 14.8 @ 95 mph
5-60 mph - 6.7 seconds
30-50 mph top gear - 10.5 seconds
50-70 mph top gear - 10.2 seconds
EPA City - 18 miles per gallon
EPA Highway - 28 miles per gallon
C&D observed - 16 miles per gallon
Braking 70-0 - 161 feet
Skidpad - .90
Lane Change - 62.9

2nd Place:
Infiniti G35 Sport - 212 points

Highs:
Rocket-sled acceleration, lots of features for the price, thinks it is a Nissan 350Z.

Lows:
Gritty shifter, the coarse hum of the big V-6, lacks the finesse of the Bavarian.

Verdict:
It's all good, but the BMW is all great.

Price as test: $38,865
6-Speed Manual Transmission
0-60 mph - 5.5 seconds
0-100 mph - 13.6 seconds
1/4 Mile - 14.1 @ 102 mph
5-60 mph - 6.1 seconds
30-50 mph top gear - 9.1 seconds
50-70 mph top gear - 8.4 seconds
EPA City - 17 miles per gallon
EPA Highway - 25 miles per gallon
C&D observed - 14 miles per gallon
Braking 70-0 - 157 feet
Skidpad - .89
Lane Change - 61.8

3rd Place:
Cadillac CTS DI - 199 points

Highs:
Impeccable chassis tuning, Cadillac style inside and out, the interior GM refused for so long to build, a relatively big back seat, requires only 87 octane.

Lows:
Loutish shifter, odd clutch feel, engine groans, leaden feel, excessive weight.

Verdict:
America's sport sedan is let down by an uncouth transmission and a slight weight problem.

Price as test: $36,970
6-Speed Manual Transmission
0-60 mph - 6.1 seconds
0-100 mph - 16.5 seconds
1/4 Mile - 14.7 @ 95 mph
5-60 mph - 6.9 seconds
30-50 mph top gear - 14.0 seconds
50-70 mph top gear - 14.5 seconds
EPA City - 16 miles per gallon
EPA Highway - 25 miles per gallon
C&D observed - 13 miles per gallon
Braking 70-0 - 155 feet
Skidpad - .87
Lane Change - 64.2

4th Place:
Mercedes C300 Sport - 189 points

Highs:
Supple ride, subdued mechanicals, superb navigation and stereo systems.

Lows:
Low-grip tires, light and fast steering, intrusive stability control, floppy shifter, flat seats, unimpressive interior materials.

Verdict:
A convincing sports sedan at a sedate pace, but pushing hard reveals a luxury car impersonating a sports sedan.

Price as test: $37,410
6-Speed Manual Transmission
0-60 mph - 6.5 seconds
0-100 mph - 16.8 seconds
1/4 Mile - 14.9 @ 95 mph
5-60 mph - 7.1 seconds
30-50 mph top gear - 12.8 seconds
50-70 mph top gear - 10.7 seconds
EPA City - 18 miles per gallon
EPA Highway - 26 miles per gallon
C&D observed - 15 miles per gallon
Braking 70-0 - 174 feet
Skidpad - .83
Lane Change - 59.9

The C-class at the bottom of a list once again because of an underpowered engine.

is the engine alone doing such a big impact on the result in this test? I havent read the test so Im just wondering but when I look at the acceleration data. The times for the C300 is just as fast as 328i.

You read the lows and verdict for the Mercedes and no where in there is the acceleration times mentioned.

Naah, the comfort orientated suspension most likely contributed a whole lot too. They seem to hate the interior Wankers!

Sorry if this is a stuid question guys... but why are the 5-60mph times SLOWER than the 0-60mph times? .. wouldn't a slight rolling start actually be a little quicker rather than slower?

As for that Infiniti.. look at the 0-100mph time.. absolutely blows the other 3 to shreds! The G35 Sports is a rocket for its class!!

Here's a breakdown of how the cars arrived at their point totals.

BMW 328i

Vehicle
Driving Comfort - 10/10
Ergonomics - 9/10
Rear-Seat Comfort - 3/5
Rear-Seat Space - 4/5
Trunk Space - 4/5
Features/Amenities - 9/10
Fit and Finish - 9/10
Interior Styling - 9/10
Exterior Styling - 8/10
Rebates/Extras - 1/10
As-Tested Price - 19/20
Vehicle Subtotal - 85/100

Powertrain
1/4 Mile Acceleration - 17/20
Flexibility - 4/5
Fuel Economy - 5/5
Engine NVH - 10/10
Transmission - 10/10
Powertrain Subtotal - 46/50

Chassis
Performance - 19/20
Steering Feel - 5/5
Brake Feel - 5/5
Handling - 10/10
Ride - 9/10
Chassis Subtotal - 48/50

Gotta Have It Factor - 23/25
Fun To Drive - 25/25

Total - 227/250

Infiniti G35 Sport

Vehicle
Driving Comfort - 8/10
Ergonomics - 8/10
Rear-Seat Comfort - 4/5
Rear-Seat Space - 4/5
Trunk Space - 5/5
Features/Amenities - 10/10
Fit and Finish - 8/10
Interior Styling - 8/10
Exterior Styling - 8/10
Rebates/Extras - 0/10
As-Tested Price - 19/20
Vehicle Subtotal - 82/100

Powertrain
1/4 Mile Acceleration - 20/20
Flexibility - 4/5
Fuel Economy - 4/5
Engine NVH - 7/10
Transmission - 8/10
Powertrain Subtotal - 43/50

Chassis
Performance - 19/20
Steering Feel - 5/5
Brake Feel - 4/5
Handling - 9/10
Ride - 7/10
Chassis Subtotal - 44/50

Gotta Have It Factor - 20/25
Fun To Drive - 23/25

Total - 212/250

Cadillac CTS DI

Vehicle
Driving Comfort - 8/10
Ergonomics - 8/10
Rear-Seat Comfort - 5/5
Rear-Seat Space - 5/5
Trunk Space - 5/5
Features/Amenities - 7/10
Fit and Finish - 8/10
Interior Styling - 8/10
Exterior Styling - 9/10
Rebates/Extras - 0/10
As-Tested Price - 20/20
Vehicle Subtotal - 83/100

Powertrain
1/4 Mile Acceleration - 17/20
Flexibility - 3/5
Fuel Economy - 4/5
Engine NVH - 6/10
Transmission - 5/10
Powertrain Subtotal - 35/50

Chassis
Performance - 19/20
Steering Feel - 4/5
Brake Feel - 3/5
Handling - 8/10
Ride - 7/10
Chassis Subtotal - 41/50

Gotta Have It Factor - 21/25
Fun To Drive - 19/25

Total - 199/250

Mercedes C300 Sport

Vehicle
Driving Comfort - 7/10
Ergonomics - 8/10
Rear-Seat Comfort - 2/5
Rear-Seat Space - 3/5
Trunk Space - 4/5
Features/Amenities - 9/10
Fit and Finish - 7/10
Interior Styling - 7/10
Exterior Styling - 8/10
Rebates/Extras - 0/10
As-Tested Price - 20/20
Vehicle Subtotal - 75/100

Powertrain
1/4 Mile Acceleration - 16/20
Flexibility - 4/5
Fuel Economy - 5/5
Engine NVH - 9/10
Transmission - 7/10
Powertrain Subtotal - 41/50

Chassis
Performance - 15/20
Steering Feel - 3/5
Brake Feel - 4/5
Handling - 7/10
Ride - 9/10
Chassis Subtotal - 38/50

Gotta Have It Factor - 18/25
Fun To Drive - 17/25

Total - 189/250

When magazines perform 0-60 tests, they rev the engine to the best spot (before they release the clutch) to get the fastest acceleration . When you are rolling at 5mph the engine rpm is very low.

Thanks for that bmwrules... I thought that might be the case.. but was unsure whether they revved the engine or just started the clock from zero revs.

Also, thank you for the breakdown of points. Some very insightful ratings there!

Funny that the least sporty and most comfort orientated car in the test was found to offer the worst driving comfort.