mrkwattro

My fiance and I went to the Edmunds.com test drive day at Golden Gate Fields in Albany (Close to Berkeley). We drove cars ranging from economy (Nissan Sentra SE, Ford Focus, etc), to near luxury (BMW 323, A4 2.8, IS 300,etc). We spent six hours driving on the test tracks and at some points at WOT! =)

Here are some of the highlights of the day per catagory.

The tracks are laid similarly (except for the SUV track which has a small hill climb and a chassis rigidity test. These include the acceleration, steering response (emergency lane changing), body roll (S turning), braking and ride comfort which have mini speed bumps (actually truck treads across the lane. Laid out similarly to a mini autocross track with cones.
We started out at the SUV test track which had two catagories, Mini SUV and mid-large SUV.

For the mini catagory, we drove the Subaru Forester, Honda CR-V, Toyota Rav 4. The Ford Escape, Suzuki Grand Vitara, and Nissan Xterra were available but we elected not to drive them.
The Honda and the Rav 4 lacked the punch off the line that the Forester had was more fun to drive. Surprisingly, the Forester was more nimble through the turns and through the rigidity parts of the course even though it looked as though both the Honda and the Toyota had more ground clearance. If we were to choose of the three, we would get the Forester.

In the other SUV catagory, we drove the Expedition and the Tahoe. The Explorer, 4Runner, Durango, and Pathfinder were not driven.

Aside from some being huge, they drove similar and we were not too impressed. We feel we did not have an inferiority complex enough to justify getting a vehicle that big let alone suffer with the 14/17 MPG.

Next went to the Near Luxury track. We opted for the BMW 323, Acura 3.2 TL, Lincoln LS, IS 300 to test out. The A4 2.8 was avail, but we used our A4 1.8T with sport suspension and 50 horsepower clear side markers for reference and declined the 2.8. Others not driven were the Cadilac Catera (yuck), Chrysler 300M ( My dad's family are Chrysler freaks and I think they are just garbage ), Infiniti I30 (My brother has a 2000 Maxima SE so I didnt think it would be much diff).

Overall, the best car of this bunch that we drove was the IS 300. The ride was sporty and confidence inspiring and acceleration was quick with no hint of the VVT-i kickin in. The sound of the inline 6 was beautiful and authoritative. We actually drove it SIX times each getting three turns behind the wheel. I decided to have some fun and turned off the traction control on all the vehicles permitting. This car begged to be driven fast.
The Lincoln LS was a surprise as I expected a boat of car. However, acceleration was plentiful and handling was close to the our A4 and the IS 300.
The 3.2 TL was agile but did not have the excitement as the IS 300. It was plush and had a comfortable suspension but was too plain.
The BMW 323 was not impressive to us. From its plain controls to the 'okay' ride, it just did not have the excitement of the IS 300.
Kudos to Lexus for not just building a BMW (quoted from Motor Trend or something)but beating it ( my addition to this quote =) ).
As far as the A4, I will have a better comparison when I install either a GIAC or an APR ( not particularly in that preference) chip in.

Next stop was the Economy class. We drove the Ford Focus (for kicks and laughs) and drove the Nissan SE. Other available were the Civic, Neon, Sephia, Elantra, and Protege`.
The Ford stunk literally. I wont add any more to this.
Nissan, continuing with the legacy of the SR20DE engine since 90-91 in the US is still one of underdogs in the economy world. It has a racing history in turbocharged form in other countries and has had some success in rallying. For being in the Economy class, it feels like a big kid in the little kid class. It pulled strong but had a soft suspension. I do know the potential of this car however as I had a 1996 200sx SE-R. With Intake, Header, Exhaust and ECU, that car hit the 1/4 mile in 14.8 @94 mph. And with the Ground Control coilover and GAB Struts, it had a rock solid suspension. The Sentra is the hot car of the Economy class.

The Sub Compact class consisted of the Jetta 1.8T, Galant, Alero, and some other cars.(hehe still had the IS 300 in our minds). We drove the Jetta and the Galant. The Jetta has a lovely exterior, but the interior feels like they just ran out of funds in R&D and in Design. It seems too blah for our tastes. The Galant was similar.

The Mid class consisted of the maximas, passats and Saturn LS, and a bunch of other cars in the same class. (still had the IS 300 in our heads.)

Finally, the minivan class. Most impressive was the Oddessy and the MPV. Most weird was the autostick feature in the Caravan (yes, similar to tiptronic but on the tree shifter.)

In Conclusion, this was a great day. We, as well as everyone else, drove all the vehicles hard. And got our $15/person worth of refresments, comparative info, and hands on WOT, Knuckle Whitening, and Ear to Ear grinning for the month or so. Thanks for your ear.

Laurence and Madeleine

Aftershock

Ya I really wanted the IS300 over A4...but A4 was cheaper...

clay

I saw a few of them on the road, the silver one is very clean, very sporty, and "looks" like it wants to go fast. The size is just compact enough although the tail end is a bit funky looking... much better looking than any pics I saw, especially the instrument panel, and I don't even like Lexus (well, the truck actually drive nice since my friend has one). IS 300 sounds like you get a lot for the money, except the Quattro of course. I'm still glad I went with the 1.8T... good job Lexus, IS 300 is a worthy competition for Audi A4 and BMW 3 series...<p>2001 1.8T QMS
Silver/Onyx
Cold Weather
Bose
Premium

Meech

Great Post.. Thanks

Bonnie

I recently test drove the IS300 as a friend of mine is considering
one, and I must say that I was completely caught off guard. This
car was fun to drive, very responsive and comfortable, moreso
than the BMW 323, which I test drove a little while ago. I like
the looks of the A4 and 323 better than the IS300, both inside
and out, but the interior in the beige color was OK. The IS300
is a big surprise. I would suggest anyone test driving it before
making the decision on the RWD Bimmer.

graemus

Clear corners are good for 50 horse??? ... Cool! ;-)

DosAudis

Actually two of us went. This event was extremely well put together. I had read all the hype, but was still impressed. Knowledgeable people, the lines weren't bad, free refreshments. Very good job, Edmunds!

As for the vehicles. We drove only a couple of the SUVs. The Ford Escape actually drove nicely, but feels cheap inside. It leans a bit more than a car, but not like most SUVs, and the V6 gave it plenty of oomph compared with the Forester, CRV or RAV4.

In small sedans, I actually liked the steering and handling of the Ford Focus, but it does lack for oomph. It had a height adjustable seat (I'm quite short), and even a lumbar adjustment and an armrest. I'm glad I can have an A4, but if times were leaner, it could be a satisfying drive.

In the lower middle sedans, I liked the Jetta, which has good steering, and the 17" tire/sport suspension should fix the handling. The 1.8T makes great sounds, but the track was too short to get it going.

In the upper middle sedans, we tried the Passat, but it was unimpressive. Funny, in that I had owned a 1.8T Passat before my 2.8 A4. The difference between the two is remarkable. The Passat has very light steering, no grip tires and plenty of body roll. The Jetta drove better.

In the near-luxury class, we drove the BMW (twice), but prefer our 2.8 (non-sport) A4. The 15" wheels/tires probably didn't help it, but the 2.5L engine wasn't any better at these speeds than our 2.8. The Infiniti I30t came out very poorly. It has an engine, but that's all it's got; it had very sloppy handling and such a large turning circle, that we hit the steering stops. The Acura TL has a great navigation system, and a decent engine, but was a not as exciting to drive as the BMW, Audi and Lincoln. The Lincoln was quite a surprise. It's big, but it really held on in the curves. Considering it didn't have the sport suspension or the V8, it was the best surprise.

But in the end, getting back into our A4 for the ride home, the seats fit just right, the armrests work, the steering is still the best. Yeah, it's not the speediest or the most frugal, but it was the right choice.