I believe the third car in that R&T comparo was a Lexus GS430, not an Acura RL.
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There were 5 or six cars in the comparo, Acura, Lexus, Audi, Jag, BMW, Infiniti, maybe a couple others. The 545 finished 2nd.
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He's referring to the most recent R&T dated June 2005. They tested the 545i, infinity M45 and Lexus GS 430. They placed M45 number 1 and the 545 2nd with the M45 getting the nudge due to styling and not performance. The Lexus was a distant 3rd. R&T acknowledged that "As a pure sports sedan, the BMW still takes top honors. It remains the true driver's car, delivering the tightest handling, the most direct feedback and the biggest smiles." They go on to say "But, throw subjective factors like styling, ride and interior functionality into the equation, and the negatives end up chipping away at the positives."

Another quote. "Our blasts through Death Valley confirm this, the Infiniti cornering confidently with out ever losing ground to the BMW. It still lacks the 545i's trademark handling crispness and communicative steering feel, but it's by no means far behind."

Another good quote, "Even without the adaptive shocks of the GS 430 or the rear active steer of the M45 sport, the 545i still manages to school them both with well-executed chassis tuning and just a touch of its own high-tech wizardry." The wizardry being active steering and active roll stabilization. The writers actually seem to like active steering now.

Its the Bimmer for me. Who cares about the styling, its the way it drives that matters the most to me. I like the styling. Thats my opinion. Like many more here have said, its a personal opinion and I personally would not get the satisfaction out of the other cars compared to what BMW offers and I drive an e39, not an e60. I would not drive the other cars or one of the Jap cars as earier mentioned unless I did not have the means to afford the Bimmer. I am sure that one day as I am older, much, much older, I may prefer the soft luxury of the Lexus instead of the Bimmer. Nahhh! I can't wait to get my 550i.

 

I was going to say... doesnt the 545 HAVE AS??? and they still said that it had better steering than the M45 and Lexus? Well thats actually a fact. I drove the M45 and its a wonderful car but I still didnt like the Steering feel as much as the 545's Active Steering... way too much effort in parking lot situations and less road feel. EVEN at low speed.

 

I have found that at the end of the day, the owners of the Japanese luxury cars have succumbed to a practicality that they just won't admit. And they spend all of their time trying to justify their purchase without admitting that in reality, the cost and maintence issues drove their decision. Take for example, my father-in-law. A dyed-in-the-wool German car enthusiast who has owned many BMW's and MB's over the years. This year he bought an Infiniti GS35 for his wife. Hasn't shut up about how much 'better' it is than any German car (even as he still drives a CLK320). Even had the audactiy to say it should be classed the same as an E or a 5-Series, in his painfully obvious attempt to make himself feel better about his 'step down' in car choice. Then he drove my new 545i. He hasn't said much of anything about either car since then, other than how cheap his lease is. So my advice is don't even bother responding to the Japanese car touting person - they are suffering from something far deeper than car misinformation - they are in denial that they have become the luxury car equivalent of K-mart shoppers. Pity them.

 

I believe the third car in that R&T comparo was a Lexus GS430, not an Acura RL.
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There were 5 or six cars in the comparo, Acura, Lexus, Audi, Jag, BMW, Infiniti, maybe a couple others. The 545 finished 2nd.
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He's referring to the most recent R&T dated June 2005. They tested the 545i, infinity M45 and Lexus GS 430. They placed M45 number 1 and the 545 2nd with the M45 getting the nudge due to styling and not performance. The Lexus was a distant 3rd. R&T acknowledged that "As a pure sports sedan, the BMW still takes top honors. It remains the true driver's car, delivering the tightest handling, the most direct feedback and the biggest smiles." They go on to say "But, throw subjective factors like styling, ride and interior functionality into the equation, and the negatives end up chipping away at the positives."

Another quote. "Our blasts through Death Valley confirm this, the Infiniti cornering confidently with out ever losing ground to the BMW. It still lacks the 545i's trademark handling crispness and communicative steering feel, but it's by no means far behind."

Another good quote, "Even without the adaptive shocks of the GS 430 or the rear active steer of the M45 sport, the 545i still manages to school them both with well-executed chassis tuning and just a touch of its own high-tech wizardry." The wizardry being active steering and active roll stabilization. The writers actually seem to like active steering now.

Its the Bimmer for me. Who cares about the styling, its the way it drives that matters the most to me. I like the styling. Thats my opinion. Like many more here have said, its a personal opinion and I personally would not get the satisfaction out of the other cars compared to what BMW offers and I drive an e39, not an e60. I would not drive the other cars or one of the Jap cars as earier mentioned unless I did not have the means to afford the Bimmer. I am sure that one day as I am older, much, much older, I may prefer the soft luxury of the Lexus instead of the Bimmer. Nahhh! I can't wait to get my 550i.
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The Car Magazines are so inconsistent in their review process, that who cares what they write. The June issue of R & T's sister publication "Speed", reviewed the same cars (and also the Chrysler Hemi, Cadillac SVT and Audi A6 4.2) and ranked the Infiniti M45 in dead last! The BMW finished mid-pack, but ahead of both Japanese cars. How serious can you take a magazine that ranks the Cadillac and Chrysler ahead of the 545i <_< ? An interesting note - they clocked a manual 545i at 5.5 sec 0 -60mph, whereas a Steptronic 545i was timed at 5.2 seconds.

 

I own an Infiniti G35 Coupe...

The G35 is a very nice vehicle and I enjoy driving it very much. I've no regrets whatsoever about the purchase. Having said that, G35 and E60 should not even be discussed in the same conversation. They are truly that far apart. Absolutely no comparison whatsoever, period. 3 series maybe but 5 series, just say no!

 

1)
How about this, here in Europe, Japanese cars are mostly used as low end reliable cars (for women, young students, etc) Anyways all the ranking and car magazine test done in higher class cars, never include Japanese cars. Here in Europe it is always the GErman top 3 is the German top 3 (BMW, AUdi, BM).

Tell your friend do not compare uncomparable.

2)
Also one must know that ranking in car magazine does not mean anything. The criteria they used are very wide, they compare performance on one side and size of the AC button on the other side.

Also one fact: The purchase price of new BMW and new Lexxus might be the same but what about the price after 3 or 5 year???? BMW price will be twice as much higher !!!!!! What does it tell you............................................... .................. BMW

 

"BMW, AUdi, BM."

I bet Porche owners would disagree with your assement.

 

Why not pay a little more than Japanese and get Filet Mignon or Porterhouse (BMW)!?

Not that i would, but who would trade in their 545i for a new M45 not me buddy!

With BMW you never have to explain or prove yourself to anyone, it's a BMW worldwide. The M45 on the other hand is still a Nissan in other parts of the world.

 

most of the time people having this kind of comments are straight jealous <_<. nothing else. try park two cars together and see which one has a thumbs up . try go to a club with these two cars and see which one attracts more chicks . i'm not saying you have to do this and i think it's kind of immature. but i think your friend has to see some living proofs in order to shut up. oh, well, he'll probably have something else to say after .

 

twice as much??? I don't think so....