# WhatCar? Comparison Test. Guess who wins?



## Travis Grundke (May 26, 1999)

WhatCar compares the A3, BMW 320d EfficentDynamics, Lexus IS, Mercedes CLA. 

This is probably the best comparison I've seen to date: very thorough, touching on just about all aspects most buyers will be interested in. What made this so relevant to me is that I just spent the long weekend with a 328i xDrive as a rental (yep - a rental...what's that say about BMW?). 

I'm not surprised that the A3 won the comparison - but I am a bit surprised at by just _how much_ the A3 outclassed the CLA and how closely it matched the 3-series.

http://email.listersgroup.co.uk/audi/What_Car_group_test_October_2013.pdf


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## Canthoney (Aug 5, 2012)

I am impressed. I'm a little surprised the CLA finished last. Mercedes has to learn that if they want to compete in this segment they can't get cheap with the interior. I didn't really consider the Lexus and BMW competitors in this segment since they are a size bigger. Man I can't wait to get my S3!


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## LWNY (Jul 30, 2008)

how can that be? I thought the only thing the reviewers on the other side of the pond is to go around the track at half speed and drift.


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## Dan Halen (May 16, 2002)

Canthoney said:


> I am impressed. I'm a little surprised the CLA finished last. Mercedes has to learn that if they want to compete in this segment they can't get cheap with the interior. I didn't really consider the Lexus and BMW competitors in this segment since they are a size bigger. Man I can't wait to get my S3!


I'd be counting the days if we had any idea when to expect them to arrive.

The S3 should address a lot of the complaints they had with their review car, too.


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## Travis Grundke (May 26, 1999)

Canthoney said:


> I am impressed. I'm a little surprised the CLA finished last. Mercedes has to learn that if they want to compete in this segment they can't get cheap with the interior. I didn't really consider the Lexus and BMW competitors in this segment since they are a size bigger. Man I can't wait to get my S3!


This review echoes a lot of the CLA complaints I've read over the past few months: noisy, unrefined - but good looking. The impression I'm getting of the CLA is that Merc is having a very hard time building and selling this model profitably and as such we see these severe compromises. My concern for Mercedes is that if this car is as unrefined as the reviews say that they may do some significant damage to their brand. 

On the other hand, Audi is probably beaming that the A3 is being compared to the 3-Series (no bad-pun intended). What's especially pleasant is that the cockpit for both cars is very similar. I found the 328i to be 'just about right' (ironically, it seems that all A4s I drive seem like boats even though they're similarly sized), so if the A3 comes close to matching leg+shoulder+headroom for driver and passenger I'll be very happy.


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## Travis Grundke (May 26, 1999)

Dan Halen said:


> The S3 should address a lot of the complaints they had with their review car, too.


I enjoy UK reviews not just because of the language barrier but also because they have similar road conditions to the majority of us in the US (*cough* northeast ohio roads *cough*). Again, good news on cabin noise - if the A3 is as close to the 3-series as the review states it's a good thing: the 328 I drove last week was plenty quiet with the exception being some wind noise around the pillars at 80-85mph, but it was by no means bad.

My primary criticisms of the existing A3 are with the overly brittle, non-compliant suspension. if Audi has fixed that, I'll be happy. Happier if they got 2.0TFSI only, and happier still if they give me a darned 6MT!

And no, I'm not giving up on that point. ;-)


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## ChrisFu (Jun 9, 2012)

Travis Grundke said:


> happier still if they give me a darned 6MT!
> 
> And no, I'm not giving up on that point. ;-)


Keep fighting the good fight!


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## Dan Halen (May 16, 2002)

Travis Grundke said:


> My primary criticisms of the existing A3 are with the overly brittle, non-compliant suspension.


I'm not so sure that will be the case. The review car had the non-sport option on it, according to the article. All other indications I've seen say that the sport and S suspensions are pretty jarring.


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## Travis Grundke (May 26, 1999)

Dan Halen said:


> I'm not so sure that will be the case. The review car had the non-sport option on it, according to the article. All other indications I've seen say that the sport and S suspensions are pretty jarring.


I'll have to re-read that review. I thought I saw that all A3s sold in the UK come with the sport suspension and that Audi UK gives them the no-cost option to downgrade to the standard suspension. Old age creeping up on me...

IIRC, sport is lowered and s-line suspension takes it to a whole 'nutha level. I'm very interested in what we end up getting here in the US and to compare them, if offered. I have the A3 Sport currently, but even in regular non-sport A3s I've never found the suspension to be very good at soaking up road imperfections at all.


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## Boosted 01 R (Feb 10, 2013)

"The CLA is best avoided in you're after a quite life" LOL........ the audi was pretty loud also but it running 18's. CLA did horrible, Merc brand is the only thing that will sell that car.....


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## Waterfan (Aug 9, 2012)

Dan Halen said:


> I'm not so sure that will be the case. The review car had the non-sport option on it, according to the article. All other indications I've seen say that the sport and S suspensions are pretty jarring.


18" wheels and 40-series tires are simply for looks and result in a significant trade off in ride comfort. 17" wheels and tires will actually perform better and the extra, slightly less rigid sidewall will make a huge difference in ride comfort.

With 17" wheels, you could actually get the sports suspension option and enjoy it. With lightweight, aftermarket 17" wheels you could save a few fractions of mpgs, and have more responsive handling and braking as well. 17" tires are significantly cheaper also.


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## Dan Halen (May 16, 2002)

Waterfan said:


> 18" wheels and 40-series tires are simply for looks and result in a significant trade off in ride comfort. 17" wheels and tires will actually perform better and the extra, slightly less rigid sidewall will make a huge difference in ride comfort.
> 
> With 17" wheels, you could actually get the sports suspension option and enjoy it. With lightweight, aftermarket 17" wheels you could save a few fractions of mpgs, and have more responsive handling and braking as well. 17" tires are significantly cheaper also.


I have both 17" and 18" wheels for my GLI. While the 17" setup is a bit more cushy, it does virtually nothing to alter the feel of the suspension. I'll not have a problem with the S suspension, regardless of how stiff it may be... but for those who really can't tolerate it, a set of 17" wheels is going to do next to nothing to smooth it over.

My experience with the wheel sets on the GLI doesn't say that the taller tire handles better, but what I look for as "handling" and what someone else looks for could well vary.


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## Waterfan (Aug 9, 2012)

Dan Halen said:


> I have both 17" and 18" wheels for my GLI. While the 17" setup is a bit more cushy, it does virtually nothing to alter the feel of the suspension. I'll not have a problem with the S suspension, regardless of how stiff it may be... but for those who really can't tolerate it, a set of 17" wheels is going to do next to nothing to smooth it over.
> 
> My experience with the wheel sets on the GLI doesn't say that the taller tire handles better, but what I look for as "handling" and what someone else looks for could well vary.


"17" setup is a bit more cushy" is exactly my point. I agree with you, the suspension won't feel different but that extra quarter or half inch of sidewall cannot help but make a noticeable difference in comfort. Now, will that noticeable comfort difference be 'enough'? For some it will, and for some it won't. But it is an option to try if your heart is set on a sports suspension A3/S3 but your backside isn't


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## Rudy_H (Jul 6, 2012)

Also worth mentioning, in the performance area, the A3 still did well, with a TDI, and not even the 180hp TDI...


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## caliatenza (Dec 10, 2006)

wow, i didnt think the CLA was that bad . I was even considering one, but now, i think i'll take it off my list. 2 stars is awful, i mean even the Lexus IS did better than it. Kinda makes me sad because the C class and up are solid cars...where did Mercedes go wrong with this one??


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## Travis Grundke (May 26, 1999)

caliatenza said:


> wow, i didnt think the CLA was that bad . I was even considering one, but now, i think i'll take it off my list. 2 stars is awful, i mean even the Lexus IS did better than it. Kinda makes me sad because the C class and up are solid cars...where did Mercedes go wrong with this one??


This is pretty consistent with the other Euro reviews that have said the CLA looks great, but utterly lacks in refinement. As I mentioned before, this has the potential to be a major brand-breaking product, especially here in the US where MB is seen strictly as a premium automaker. 

I don't want to sound the hyperbole alarm, so note that I said *potential*. The market reaction is what ultimately matters and we should have a better gauge on that by the end of this year. 

Again, I think that Daimler is banking on the styling to sell this car. I also think that they are at a competitive disadvantage when it comes to manufacturing costs and pricing. Remember - Audi's A3 rides on the MQB platform, shared with what will ultimately be some 50+ models in the corporate stable. Mercedes doesn't have that same resource pool and as a result had to make some significant tradeoffs (if I had to guess). 

I don't count them as fools, so my guess is that product planning at Merecedes did what they could, and focused on the design of the car as the chief selling point.


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## caliatenza (Dec 10, 2006)

Travis Grundke said:


> This is pretty consistent with the other Euro reviews that have said the CLA looks great, but utterly lacks in refinement. As I mentioned before, this has the potential to be a major brand-breaking product, especially here in the US where MB is seen strictly as a premium automaker.
> 
> I don't want to sound the hyperbole alarm, so note that I said *potential*. The market reaction is what ultimately matters and we should have a better gauge on that by the end of this year.
> 
> ...


I am guessing most of them will be lease specials, and people will just trade up for something else after 2 years. One of the salesmen over on MercedesCLA.org had training for the car and he said it drives pretty great, but then again he has to sell the car, so i take that with a big grain of salt. I was already kind of hesitant about the car because of no push button start being offered, no standard sunroof, and all the options adding up to make it a 42k msrp car. At that price i would rather spend a bit more and get a C class. Now that the A3 is coming, i would rather wait and get it instead.


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## caliatenza (Dec 10, 2006)

Travis Grundke said:


> This is pretty consistent with the other Euro reviews that have said the CLA looks great, but utterly lacks in refinement. As I mentioned before, this has the potential to be a major brand-breaking product, especially here in the US where MB is seen strictly as a premium automaker.
> 
> I don't want to sound the hyperbole alarm, so note that I said *potential*. The market reaction is what ultimately matters and we should have a better gauge on that by the end of this year.
> 
> ...


lets hope the CLA has different suspension tuning for the US, maybe... . I am still going to drive the car and see how it shakes out, but there arent any twisty roads nearby to my dealer to see how the car would be...maybe i need to find a dealer down in southern california for the test drive then.


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## Waterfan (Aug 9, 2012)

caliatenza said:


> lets hope the CLA has different suspension tuning for the US, maybe... . I am still going to drive the car and see how it shakes out, but there arent any twisty roads nearby to my dealer to see how the car would be...maybe i need to find a dealer down in southern california for the test drive then.


Go find a giant empty parking lot and invent your own twisties


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