So recently I have been busy looking for a daily replacement to my 2014 C300 Sport and went to every make imaginable to take closer looks. I came to the conclusion that both BMW and Benz have sort of lost their identities to the Audi model for their cars. It was extremely disappointing. I felt none of the models held an individual identity anymore. Every car looks exactly the same and looks as if they were put into a microwave and just enlarged. I never liked Audi and their S and RS lines (and the price jumps) and Benz did the exact same thing with their 43 (not really an amg) and 63 lines. The Eclass always looked distinctly different than the Cclass but now I truly can't tell them apart. The Tech boost in all the cars was great that was the real plus. Audi's residuals have always been horrible because of the constant changes they make year to year in their cars and BMW and Benz have held their values because they tend not to change anything for around 5years but that seems to be changing as well with more frequency. Do any others feel this way? I am almost ready to jump ship from the German makers and go with a Lexus IS.

 

Are you sure you want to post this on a Porsche website??

 

What are you talking about?

 

I don’t feel that way.
I think you should go with the Toyota...I mean Lexus.

 

It’s just a conversation. @OP, I agree with your points to a certain extent regarding the direction Merc and BMW seem to be going. FWIW, my journey was the opposite...Audis to Lexus cars to BMWs to Porsche cars. I found Audis well engineered, but only somewhat reliable. Lexus cars were exceedingly reliable, but boring. The BMWs I owned were generally exceptional, but I began seeing their cars becoming more main stream and almost Japanese-like, as opposed to drivers’ cars. All cliches aside, Porsche cars deliver as promised...never boring, timeless, exceptionally engineered, fantastic drivers’ cars.

 

Agreed. I feel like BMW/Benz/Audi and others all had very distinct, different cars in the 90s-00s. Now, they're all the same exact cookie-cutter car. I no longer feel/see a difference between a C class and a 3 series; an A5 and a 435; a 5 series and an E class. It's all the same.

Are you looking to keep it in the same class/size as the C? Jaguar has nice sedans that are in a similar price range and more unique. The S3 is another car I'd consider (even though we're talking smack about Audi).

 

Exactly just a convo. I love and always will love Porsche and the 911 variants. My C4S is still here. Will always keep a 911 toy in the stable. My rant was mainly focused on the big 3 (Audi, BMW, and Merc). Have owned and driven both BMW and Mercedes and rented some Audis (A4 through Silvercar and R8 through enterprise in Vegas). Great brands but their main sedans and breadwinner cars have all become the same thing. Just hate to see them all go this route.

 

I’ve owned two Audis, and I’ve been pleased with each of them. My wife’s current car is an SQ5 that we ordered to spec in 2014. It’s one of the best cars we have ever owned.

I agree with your comments on styling, and it’s not just the German cars. I would have a hard time identifying many of the Japanese brands or models too. One thing that you have to give to Toyota/Lexus is the fact that they have stepped out of the industry norms with respect to styling. I personally find the new Lexus styling with the huge grille to be hideous, but many people buy them, and obviously find them attractive.

One of the things that I’ve noticed over the years is the difference in the way German cars age vs. Japanese cars. If you sit in a clean, well-maintained German car that’s ten years old, you might feel like it is only a few years old. If you sit in a clean, well-maintained Japanese car that’s ten years old, you might feel like it’s 15 or 20 years old. Japanese cars don’t age gracefully.

 

I know I'm in the minority, but Mercedes have never really appealed to me. Sure there have been a couple of models from time to time that I could seen myself driving, but for the most part they don't float my boat. As a kid (like 1960s or 70's) I perceived it as a high end brand but by the time I was buying cars in the 80's neither the styling or lack of quality in the lower end models (I could afford) appealed to me. Kinda like I used to be really into red-heads, but I got over it, lol..

BMW's are a slightly different story... The 3 series are too low end, and I don't particularly care for the higher end models. I think they drive great but I just don't appreciate the styling.

it's all personal taste of course.. but I tend to find the styling of Audi from the entry models to the higher end models to be much more to my tastes.. Maybe it's the Porsche DNA that makes them like them more. I've had very good luck with with A4's, A6's and even an early 2000's TT.. Back in the 80's and 90's when I was a bit more frugal, I tended to really like Toyotas and then eventually Lexus, they were good cars but it was kinda like kissing your sister..

But this stuff is like religion...

 

I don't mind the tiered homogeneity as long as it makes the higher performance variants more affordable. But the reluctance of major luxury car makers to field true sports cars worries me. When the bulk of what they sell becomes hybrids, how much will they invest in full on ICE performance cars? Will they offer nothing but 5 levels of increasingly fast bland?

 

You definitely hit on some good points. I have owned 8 BMW's, 3 of them M cars, and I can with out a doubt say I will not be buying another BMW for awhile. They have lost their way in my opinion for sure. I do believe that Audi has always had a good product and loved my old RS5. I have been most impressed with what Mercedes and AMG have been doing.

No matter how you look at it, its all subjective and a good problem to have.

 

I agree with the styling comments re Audi, Mercedes, BMW, etc. There are a few exceptions as in the AMG GT series. Benz lost their way in exterior styling some time ago. Now they are looking Asian and homogenized between most models. It's all done in the name of brand identity that started, IIRC, with John De Nysschen's trend (sp).

Thank God Porsche hasn't swallowed that pill...

 

I tend to agree about BMW being a bit boring. I had an M235i and while I liked the size, I disliked too many other things about the car. I went Audi shopping and thought I would get an S3 but after a few test drives it didn't "wow" me. But the TTS did. Amazing car. And all I need a backseat for is the dog.

Out with the old. In with the new.