Does Audi have the winning plan to finally beat BMW and Mercedes-Part 1

Gotta love the underdog. Good work, however, the mid cycle change from B6 to B7 came too soon and has caused a lot of frustration among recent buyers of these models. Audi is producing some great useable cars these days

Just so everyone knows. This 'BMW' poster has been sending relentless and consistently false information in a desperate attempt to disgrace Audi.

Pretty much everyone who has read his posts has dismissed him as an immature and potentially mentally unstable person.

I hate to personally critise others in this forum, but this 'BMW' kid is a waste of everyone's time.

You have been warned.

Audi design is boring but wasn't ugly til now..new front grill is too big. Out of date design. Like to see their new Hybrids though. I know Mercedes and BMW are coming out with hybrids also finally. GM and ford is so dang slow...by the time they finally make an hybrid car..they are 8 years behind Japanese.

Audi design is boring but wasn't ugly til now..new front grill is too big. Out of date design. Like to see their new Hybrids though. I know Mercedes and BMW are coming out with hybrids also finally. GM and ford is so dang slow...by the time they finally make an hybrid car..they are 8 years behind Japanese.

I love all the Audi bashing comments so common on this site. None of you deserve to ever drive one of Audi's products much less own one. I would be willing to bet that if every automotive publication in the world gave praise to the brand you would still find something to bash. Oops, I think that's the case right now.

I work next to one of the largest BMW dealerships in the world. I occasionally go over there and sell one if I have to. Just sitting in the showroom is an amazing experience. I've never seen such rabid enthusiasm for a brand. You all are such suckers for those cars. It's like watching a bunch of women at a fake Louis Vuitton sale on the side of the road. Inferior customer service, borderline build quality, and overpriced for what you get! I sometimes think there must be a NOX bottle hidden underneath the desk somewhere. Yeah, that Chris Bangle is a great artist isn't he? Customer nodding the whole time.

Every morning the service drive opens up (three lanes mind you) with about 40 pissed off people out there chomping at the bit to take the head off of the unlucky service advisor, who doesn't care how much you spent on the car by the way, or how many times you've been there. In fact, the only reason he or she stands there and takes your abuse is because BMW's do break so often, and they make a bunch of commission on the billable hours they charge to your car. Dirty little secret: More than a few of them drive Audi's they purchased from me!

When it comes to standing by their products and admitting failure of certain parts that should be recalled, BMW expects the poor service advisor to take the heat, sometimes for months before they finally admit there is a problem with the car. Meanwhile, owners have mostly paid for the repairs themselves by the time BMW finally admits it was thier fault. Do you think BMW tells the dealer to call all of those people back and refund thier money? No way! The latest example of this is front tire wear on the new 5 series. Anyone out there getting only 8000 miles or so out of their fronts? Did the service advisor blame it on the alignment that is now out of spec because you must have hit something? Ka-ching! New alignment and new fronts; billable to about $800 thank you very much! This has been happening for months to hundreds of cars people!

Heads up to all of you "type A" personalities; The people who really have all of the money don't have anything to prove to anyone. In fact, rarely do they feel the need show off. They love our products for all of the reasons you bash them. They know it's a superior product and love the fact that very few people in the US are driving them. Most of my clients are very successful for being innovative in thier respective businesses and by not "following" the norm. Overall, they are very creative people who think for themselves and don't buy into the whole "ultimate driving machine" ad campaign. Sure, they may have a Benz lying around for out of town guests to drive, but the car they drive themselves every day is the Audi.

This trend continues through other purchases I have noticed such as watches, clothes, and shoes. Rolexes are rarely seen on the super rich. Cartier, however is as fashionable as ever. Polo, Gucci, and Louis Vuitton are all for the masses these days. Your not impressing anyone. You will never see the super rich wearing an exposed name brand anywhere. Look closely and you may find brands such as Bijon, Hermes, Kiton, and Oxford on the INSIDE collar, but most will have clothes custom tailored by someone on Sevill row, Florence Italy or in Milan. Sure, athletes and pop culture celebrites flaunt the bling better than anyone, but the people who hand them thier paychecks don't!

Stop trying so hard to convince us your missguided judgement is "holy Grail" of driving enjoyment! Get off of your cell phone, stop spilling your Starbucks all over the place and get out of the inside lane. There is probably an Audi who's driver would like to get by you!

Yeah,

Audi is finally gaining momentum in the US.

Most of the rest of the world already knows what a great brand Audi is. Now it's time for the US to catch up.

Audi is a massive success internationally. this is a simple fact, and can't really be disputed.

Audi is also a huge winner in terms of luxury, reliability, value, safety and practicality. Again, these are common knowledge facts, based on real world statistics and consumer ratings.

It will take another 3 to 5 years before Audi successfully completes its campaign to finally rival BMW and Merc in the States. My bet is that Audi will take the lead in half of BMW's markets by 2010.

I'm very, very impressed with Audi.

Does this mean BMW and Merc are inferior car companies? Of course not.

Yes, BMW and Merc obviously lag behind the latest Audi cars in terms of safety, reliability, design, and luxury. But BMW and Audi are neck-and neck in the performance arena (Audi and BMW routinely leap-frog one another in comparison tests).

And despite the clumsily designed 5 and 7 Series, the 3 Series looks quite nice (IMHO) and will obviously be a huge seller. It will also probably break several sales records in its class. BMW should dominate this class until Audi releases the B8 A4 in 2008 (although several people on this board have stated a preference to the current A4 over the new 3 series).

The new 3 Series handily makes BMW the king of the compact luxury class. For now.

But the point of the article is to show that there is an unstoppable momentum from Audi. As BMW and Merc stumble here and there (BMW's design botch-ups and iDrive, Merc's plummeting reliably), Audi is steadily and methodically improving in those very areas.

This is not about Audi's past cars (although Audi has a proud 100-year history), but about Audi's even brighter future.

Audi is here to stay, and its power and dominance will only continue to grow.

Go Audi!

The A4 3.2 quattro will be released with a manual transmission this year.

A newly engineered DSG will follow next year in the A4.

The forthcoming S6 and RS6 will also get an even higher performance version of the DSG.

Manual transmissions will not be available for the regular A6 and A8 this year, but will be offered with either DSG or the newly developed Multitronic CVT (that mates with quattro) the following year.

BMW manual transmission sales in the US are less than Audi due to consumer ignorance. Audi manual transmissions are offered more widely in most of the rest of the world due to better brand awareness.

Just some facts.

To all you Audi & BMW people out there - all I have to say is AMG.

Brand Problems per 100 vehicles (2004 and up)

Subaru 8

Honda 9

Acura 10

Toyota 10

Hyundai 11

Infiniti 11

Lexus 11

Audi 12

Mini 13

Ford 15

Pontiac 15

Cadillac 16

Chevrolet 16

Chrysler 16

GMC 16

Jeep 16

Mazda 16

Saab 16

Dodge 17

Mercury 17

Volvo 17

Buick 18

Nissan 19

Saturn 19

BMW 21

Volkswagen 23

Mercedes-Benz 25

Lincoln 26

Brand Problems per 100 vehicles (2004 and up)

Subaru 8

Honda 9

Acura 10

Toyota 10

Hyundai 11

Infiniti 11

Lexus 11

Audi 12

Mini 13

Ford 15

Pontiac 15

Cadillac 16

Chevrolet 16

Chrysler 16

GMC 16

Jeep 16

Mazda 16

Saab 16

Dodge 17

Mercury 17

Volvo 17

Buick 18

Nissan 19

Saturn 19

BMW 21

Volkswagen 23

Mercedes-Benz 25

Lincoln 26

Car and Driver's May Results

Jaguar S-type 4.2 VDP Edition (8th Place)
Highs: Supple ride, smooth powertrain, elegant interior.
Lows: Not that fast, not that roomy, not that young.
The Verdict: Still a charming car for those with subtle sensibilities.


Cadillac STS V-8 (7th Place)
Highs: Punchy motor, plenty of room, friendly ergonomics.
Lows: Polarizing looks, sofa-like seating, relentless understeer.
The Verdict: Tries to pass for European, and almost makes it.

BMW 530i (6th Place)
Highs: Amazing interior space, exemplary chassis calibrations, good balance.

Lows: Weak performance, pigheaded manumatic, quirky cup holders, iDrive.

The Verdict: Still a driver's car.


Audi A6 4.2 Quattro (5th Place)
Highs: Attractive styling, detailed interior, four-wheel traction, good power.

Lows: Controversial nose, overly sensitive throttle and brake responses, a tad sterile.

The Verdict: A paragon of all-season high-performance luxury.

Mercedes-Benz E350 (4th Place)
Highs: Effortless engine torque, great roadgoing poise.

Lows: Overly managed chassis, resists being chucked around.

The Verdict: A good, solid, safe, rewarding car with mainstream attributes.

Lexus GS430 (3rd Place)
Highs: Exquisitely smooth mechanical interface, refined operations, excellent performance.

Lows: Too much sensory deprivation for some.

The Verdict: Almost too subtle for the talking primates who buy cars.

Acura RL (2nd Place)
Highs: Nimble handling, strong high-rpm thrust, comfy seats and ride, great value.

Lows: Not much low-end torque, wide gear-ratio stack, rear seat could be bigger.

The Verdict: A bit of everything in this artful concoction.

Infiniti M45 Sport (First Place)
Highs: Kick-ass engine, telepathic transmission, athletic chassis, voluminous interior.

Lows: Sport package gives a firm ride, interior décor lacks finesse.

The Verdict: Puts the sports back into sports sedan—with a sledgehammer
Here it is, folks: Infiniti's take-no-prisoners assault on the sports-luxoid segment. More power, more space, more right-now response to the driver's wishes. It's a heady cocktail of rumbling V-8 thrust, clawing big-tire grip, and let's-go chassis exuberance.
What's not to like? For us, hardly anything. Out here at the Lunatic Fringe Café, the customers are all looking for extreme involvement with vehicles that are fast and responsive, cars with tons of grip and tautly cinched ride motions. That's not to say the M45 is incapable of conveying sensitive passengers into town for tea, or whatever, because it can. The 335-hp V-8 has ample torque and abundant civility and will rumble about politely running chores. The five-speed automatic plays along, too, slurring smoothly from one ratio to another as needed.

Car and Driver's May Results

Jaguar S-type 4.2 VDP Edition (8th Place)
Highs: Supple ride, smooth powertrain, elegant interior.
Lows: Not that fast, not that roomy, not that young.
The Verdict: Still a charming car for those with subtle sensibilities.


Cadillac STS V-8 (7th Place)
Highs: Punchy motor, plenty of room, friendly ergonomics.
Lows: Polarizing looks, sofa-like seating, relentless understeer.
The Verdict: Tries to pass for European, and almost makes it.

BMW 530i (6th Place)
Highs: Amazing interior space, exemplary chassis calibrations, good balance.

Lows: Weak performance, pigheaded manumatic, quirky cup holders, iDrive.

The Verdict: Still a driver's car.


Audi A6 4.2 Quattro (5th Place)
Highs: Attractive styling, detailed interior, four-wheel traction, good power.

Lows: Controversial nose, overly sensitive throttle and brake responses, a tad sterile.

The Verdict: A paragon of all-season high-performance luxury.

Mercedes-Benz E350 (4th Place)
Highs: Effortless engine torque, great roadgoing poise.

Lows: Overly managed chassis, resists being chucked around.

The Verdict: A good, solid, safe, rewarding car with mainstream attributes.

Lexus GS430 (3rd Place)
Highs: Exquisitely smooth mechanical interface, refined operations, excellent performance.

Lows: Too much sensory deprivation for some.

The Verdict: Almost too subtle for the talking primates who buy cars.

Acura RL (2nd Place)
Highs: Nimble handling, strong high-rpm thrust, comfy seats and ride, great value.

Lows: Not much low-end torque, wide gear-ratio stack, rear seat could be bigger.

The Verdict: A bit of everything in this artful concoction.

Infiniti M45 Sport (First Place)
Highs: Kick-ass engine, telepathic transmission, athletic chassis, voluminous interior.

Lows: Sport package gives a firm ride, interior décor lacks finesse.

The Verdict: Puts the sports back into sports sedan—with a sledgehammer
Here it is, folks: Infiniti's take-no-prisoners assault on the sports-luxoid segment. More power, more space, more right-now response to the driver's wishes. It's a heady cocktail of rumbling V-8 thrust, clawing big-tire grip, and let's-go chassis exuberance.
What's not to like? For us, hardly anything. Out here at the Lunatic Fringe Café, the customers are all looking for extreme involvement with vehicles that are fast and responsive, cars with tons of grip and tautly cinched ride motions. That's not to say the M45 is incapable of conveying sensitive passengers into town for tea, or whatever, because it can. The 335-hp V-8 has ample torque and abundant civility and will rumble about politely running chores. The five-speed automatic plays along, too, slurring smoothly from one ratio to another as needed.