A Question of Value: VW Passat, Infiniti G35 Sedan, Audi A6 3.2 and BMW 530i

A Question of Value: VW Passat, Infiniti G35 Sedan, Audi A6 3.2 and BMW 530i

By Brooks Holden
Jan/Feb 2006, Issue #7

Similar sizes, different prices, but who’s king of the road?

While the automotive industry is what is known in business parlance as a “mature” industry—which is supposed to mean that it changes slowly—recent events don’t fit this description at all. The SUV, once the hot ticket to profits, now looks more like an albatross. General Motors, only months ago the world's largest automaker, faces serious financial problems and is likely to lose its top spot to Toyota. Little Porsche, only a few years ago thought to be at risk of acquisition, recently acquired 20 percent of Volkswagen, the world’s fifth largest car maker. And Mercedes- Benz, formerly synonymous with quality, now is buried in the depths of the J.D. Power rankings.
With all this change, born of high stakes competition, automakers are increasingly prone to break old rules and invade one another’s turf. A little more than a decade ago, the role of insurgent was played by the Japanese, most notably Lexus and Acura. Recently, Volkswagen has been auditioning for the part of the party crasher. The Phaeton is VW's least subtle move in this direction to date—it being an apparent faux pas for the People’s Car company to build a full-on hedonistic luxo-barge priced right up there with the Mercedes S Class and the BMW 7-Series. In reality, VW has been working on moving upscale for a long time, both with its own brand and the Audi brand. Nor have the Japanese stopped playing in this arena. We’re all so familiar with Lexus’ success that we’re unimpressed that Infiniti is finally making new headway at higher prices now that Carlos Ghosn has forged a resurgence within Nissan.

How are these competitive dynamics playing out in the mainstream, mid-sized sedan market? We gathered four representatives of the breed, with six-cylinder engines and similar specs. Two are genuine insurgents: the Infiniti G35 sedan and the new Volkswagen Passat. Next, we added the Audi A6, which rates as a quasi-insurgent, given that Audi would love to have BMW’s brand strength and pricing. And, of course, we brought along the standard of the class, the BMW 530i.

The obvious question is, “What do you get for your $15,000 or so when you choose the A6 or the 530i over the G35 or the Passat?” Sure, you’re getting a more exclusive nameplate, but we're interested in how the driving experience changes as you spend more. The significance of this question is magnified when you consider that the less expensive cars in this group have the most power.

Passat’s interior surprise

Starting out in the Passat, I immediately noticed a level of refinement that would be hard for the others to top. In fact, it upset my assumptions to find that the lowest priced car in this group had noise and vibration levels equal to the best of the other three. When it comes to interior materials, all four are tightly grouped as well. Once again, the Passat surprises with a classical, yet stylish interior design. The A6’s design is probably even better, balancing tradition with some fresh elements. Both cars use high quality materials, and seem to cut few corners. For example, VW put essentially the same gas and water temperature gauges in the Passat as they put the in 160,000 Bentley Continental GT (a car that has widely, if a bit too effusively, been praised as a paragon of interior design). By contrast, I didn’t find the designs by Infiniti or BMW to be as well executed. The G35 is let down by too many low cost materials, particularly in switchgear. The 530i certainly has some design flair, but the predominance of the iDrive screen and some cheap plastics made me wonder if an owner would feel some remorse down the road.
Once out on the road, I was pleasantly surprised by the ride quality of the four cars. All hew to a similar model: firm springs and dampers, but with enough compliance that expansion joints and the like are smoothed over. Still, if ride quality is important to you, I think you’d be happiest with the A6, followed by the G35. Both do an admirable job of balancing ...
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