2013 Audi Allroad Defeats 2013 BMW X1 and 2012 Range Rover Evoque in Motor Trend Comparison Test!

The face of war has changed. The fight no longer takes place on open ground over great expanses of land. Combat in the 21st century is fought in confined spaces, building to building. The only reasons to leave the security of the home compound are excursions to the tight constraints of strip malls, or, worse, urban combined-use properties, for artisanal cupcakes and organic frozen yogurt.

Three-ton war machines don't intimidate combatants; the winners of conflicts must be fast and agile. A three-row SUV is not so much a luxury as it is a burden. The answer is the smaller, more efficient and carlike CUV, and we invited three of the best to battle it out.

The oldest of these is Motor Trend's 2012 Sport Utility Vehicle of the Year, the Land Rover Range Rover Evoque. Despite the king-size name, the Evoque established a new benchmark in small premium CUVs. It wraps an efficient four-cylinder drivetrain in fashion-forward sheetmetal. The BMW X1 arrives hot on its heels for 2013, despite having been on sale in Europe since 2010. Smaller and sportier than the X3, it is also the first BMW SUV to be offered in rear drive. Last is the Audi Allroad, the slightly hiked-up replacement for the departed A4 Avant wagon.


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GermanNut - 12/24/2012 12:53:17 PM

-2 Boost

Almost all BMW models continue to lose comparison tests to Audi on a regular basis.

Once Audi brings the Q3, which is a more direct competitor to the BMW X1, to the U.S. market, Audi's sales in the U.S. will skyrocket.

Audi's Q3 has routinely defeated BMW's X1 in comparison tests from Auto Express and various other publications.

The Allroad is certainly a compelling package as noted by Motor Trend, but its wagon design will limit its mass appeal. Fear not, the Q3 will deliver the all-around package in true compact SUV form.

AgentOrange - 12/25/2012 1:12:21 PM

+3 Boost

So the vehicle which almost nobody buys beats the vehicle that a lot of people are buying.
Wouldn't Audi be better off it it had the vehicle which outsold the X1?

t_bone - 12/25/2012 9:47:02 AM

+1 Boost

It's basically an unfair comparison between one of the better sports sedan platforms...and CUV's. They just don't want to come out and directly say that CUV's suck...for fear of offending the ignorati.

LJ745 - 12/25/2012 11:31:38 AM

+2 Boost

So we compared a wagon to two SUV's or at least two CUV's? These vehicles are not in the same class. The BMW and Rover are close enough to each other to compare, but the Audi is a car.

Interestingly, the BMW is slight faster at passing and performed the quarter mile in the same time as the Audi while doing the figure 8 in almost exactly the same time. That is remarkable given that it is several inches taller.

The BMW also costs less, offers the same warranty, and gets better fuel economy (unless you are a motor trend driver) with fewer CO2 emissions.

Even though the Rover lost, I like it the best of the three on look alone. The other two are too wagon-like. I fear that if this is the best Audi can do in a wagon form, their SUV is going to suck hard in terms of maneuverability and handling. We'll see though. In the end, all three of these vehicles are snoozers.

iamdabest1 - 12/25/2012 4:05:31 PM

+1 Boost

evoque by far looks the best of the 3

jeffgall - 12/25/2012 7:30:32 PM

+1 Boost

X1 looks rediculous in person. It is a wagon pretending too hard to be a SUV. I would take the Allroad over it too. Evoque still is a compelling buy, but I don't think many would cross shop it with the other two.

GermanNut - 12/26/2012 9:31:54 AM

0 Boost

The Audi Q3 will likely sell extremely well in the U.S. market when it arrives in late 2013.

The Q3 looks like a proper CUV. The same can't be said for the X1, which many people reefer to as a wagon.

The Q3 also offers a much higher quality interior than the X1 and handles better.

I'm afraid in BMW's attempt to keep costs down on the X1 the missed the mark in terms of interior quality and exterior design.

NeoReaper - 12/27/2012 10:37:09 AM

+1 Boost

the a4 avant is a wagon, the allroad would be considered a CUV so i would say this comparison is fair. i do like how they point out that they like the bmw dynamically yet it loses on skidpad and figure 8 to the audi LOL. i guess you gotta throw the dog a bone. x1 weighs less and has more power but only manages to tie the allroad in acceleration, now thats what i call the ultimate drive machine ;)