[kaisen]

What makes a luxury marque 'luxury'?

I'm not talking about Bentleys or Maseratis. I'm talking about BMW, Mercedes, Audi, Lexus, Infiniti, Volvo, Saab, Lincoln, Cadillac, etc. So maybe more mid-luxury, depending on your view of the market.

Here's what got me thinking (and talking). An auto journalist friend of mine recently had a Hyundai Sonata 2.0T Limited as a press car. The next week he had a Mercedes-Benz E350.

As different as they seem, they have much more in common than you'd think. They are both almost the exact same size in most dimensions, none clearly larger or smaller than the other. They make about the same horsepower, E350 268, Sonata 274, both at 6000rpm. Both make similar torque with the Hyundai more 269@1750 and the E350 less 258@2400. Transmissions are similar, 6 for he Hyundai, 7 speeds for the E350. The Hyundai is front-drive, where the Benz is rear. The Benz is the heaviest at 3850, versus Hyundai's 3450. 0-60 times are similar ~6.5 secs, with the Hyundai being just a few tenths quicker. Fuel economy is 17 city / 24 freeway for the Benz, 22 city / 33 freeway for the Hyundai.

Similarly equipped means heated seats, moonroof, Bluetooth, touchscreen Nav with back-up camera, etc.

A 2011 E350 with Premium Pkg 1, metallic paint, split-folding rear seat, and rear side airbags would be $55,855.
A 2011 Hyundai Sonata 2.0T Limited with Navigation would be $29,995.

At that price, the Mercedes does NOT have real leather, it would be an additional $1,620 option. The Hyundai does NOT have memory for the driver's seat, power steering column, or power headrests. Althought the Mercedes does not have heated rear seats or keyless-go (pushbutton start or proximity key) at that price where the Hyundai does. The Hyundai also does not have wood. But feature for feature, they're pretty close otherwise.

Hyundai's warranty is 5 years or 60,000 miles, bumper to bumper, and 10 years or 100,000 miles powertrain, with 5 years unlimited roadside assistance.
Mercedes' warranty is 4 years or 50,000 miles bumper to bumper and powertrain and roadside assistance.

The Hyundai's paint quality was every bit the quality of the Mercedes, maybe better. The interior trim of the Mercedes was nicer, but the touch-points were equal. The measured and subjective sound attenuation of the two cars was similar, with the Hyundai being slightly quieter for wind and road noise, and the Mercedes being quieter for engine noise.

It sounds blasphemous to compare a Hyundai to a Mercedes. But why? They're not that different when you take your pre-conceptions about brand away from the comparison. Save $25K, pick up 6-7 mpg, and get a better warranty.

If push came to shove, Hyundai's own Genesis 3.8 with a Premium package would 'beat' the Mercedes in every appreciable quantifiable measure (dimensions, power, fuel economy, features) for $39,000.... still $16K less than the Benz.

But again, what is luxury? Why are we willing to pay the extra money? What is the difference?