We put on our sensible hats to bring you the 10 best luxury cars out there. New MacBook Air with M2 available to order starting Friday, July 8 Adobe advances Metaverse with powerful new 3D and immersive experiences Second-generation Havana Gaudi2 beats Nvidia A100 CUPRA Born, the brand's first 100% electric model, achieves 5-star Euro NCAP safety rating Qatar Airways increases Berlin Daily flight services to 10 weekly starting August 12 Increasing to 11 weekly flights on September 6 Take pole position with the Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Ultra 1.4 football boot A Bank of America study reveals that 94% of women believe they will be personally responsible for their finances in Sometime Your Lives BNP Paribas presents its first “Climate Analysis and Alignment Report” and its carbon intensity reduction targets for 2025.However, the precision feel and perfect weight of the car's large-rim steering wheel are remarkable, as well as the ease with which you can place such an enormous car on the road; the tolerance it has for any pace of progress that suits your ride; the supreme refinement and flexibility of its V12 engine; and the accelerator pedal progressivity on takeoff. Of course, there is the same 6.0-liter twin-turbo W12 business card, which generates 626 bhp more bottomless torque and shoots the car at 100 km/h in comfortably less than four seconds and at a top speed of more than 200 mph. There are also versions of the Spur equipped with Bentley's lighter, freer-turning V8 and a six-cylinder hybrid powertrain.
The richest and most special car in what could be the most respected and admired limousine range in the world, the S650 is the modern standard-bearer of Daimler's super-luxury brand Maybach. Judging by appearances, one would say it was at least as much S-Class as Maybach, and that is the result of Daimler's strategic decision, taken a few years ago, to expand the reach of the Maybach brand by creating 'halo' Maybach models in some of its most normal ranges of Mercedes passenger cars. The ultra-rare 57 and 62 limousines, with Simon Cowell specifications, Maybach alone, were consigned to history at the same time. The S650's 621 bhp, 737 lb-ft twin-turbocharged petrol V12 is barely audible, and its dedication to comfort and good manners is outstanding.
Deliberately more modest and discreet in appearance than a certain key British limousine rival, the Mulsanne is a high-end four-door luxury. It feels less formal than the Rolls-Royce Phantom, and its interior ambiance is more like that of the paneled smoking room of an old gentlemen's club than the Phantom's chandelier-lamp ballroom. The quality of the material, the luster and natural appeal of its wood veneers and the tactile appeal of many of its accessories are second to none. The high-end, long-wheelbase Range Rover has come a long way as a luxury car since the genesis days of the famous SUV on which it is based.
The modern SVAutobiography, hand-finished like Land Rover does at its special operations base near Coventry, is a car that now measures 5.2 meters in length and 2.6 tons in weight at its heaviest point. It was conceived to take full advantage of the embryonic market for superexpensive SUVs and the high esteem that some hold for the Range Rover brand, and it does so quite effectively. The mechanical composition of the high-performance version of the Mercedes S-Class luxury limousine has not changed much in more than a decade. Since this car has a leviathan of a twin-turbocharged gasoline V12 that produces 621 bhp and 738 lb-ft of torque, you could argue that it hasn't needed.
It's an engine capable of sending a limousine of two and a quarter ton, 5.3 meters long and rear-wheel drive from 0 to 100 km/h in just 4.2 seconds, and that's before it has really calmed down, finds its legs and sets off, don't forget. And yet, the S65 is still a true luxury car, with uncompromising driving comfort and refinement, so it receives a mention at the foot of our super-luxury class rating. It offers onboard comfort unknown to anything else with the same level of performance, and its huge torque reserves make it so powerful to drive effortlessly that it's hard to believe how little it takes to make something so big travel so fast. However, the S65 is not a supersaloon, and its chassis prefers wide, smooth roads to testing narrower ones, which gives it a lot to think about in its air suspension and stability control.
Even so, when in their element, very few cars in existence manage to look both as mischievous and as wonderfully pleasant as this Volvo Cars starts the first over-the-air software update on the XC40 Recharge. That it is a luxury car first and 4x4 second is not to exhaust its offroad capacity one iota, however. The spacious interior radiates quality and luxury, the seats are excellent, and the driving position is top notch, making it easy to drive a car of its size. The heavy body provides excellent insulation from rough surfaces and, while it doesn't offer the driving compromise of a Porsche Cayenne, it's easy to make quick progress pleasant if the need arises; because almost any pace of progress feels special in a Range Rover.
The S-Class remains one of the most comfortable, enveloping and elegant cars in the world. But its new in-car technologies, while numerous and impressive in some respects (including an infotainment screen large enough to fit in the cabin of an A380), are not all easy to operate; not all of them integrate seamlessly into the driving experience of the car; and some of them seem to be affectations rather than improvements. While Mercedes-Maybach's more expensive S-Class customers can choose between V8 and V12 power plants, the regular limousine can be used as a -350d or -400d diesel, or as a -500 gasoline; the latter also receives mild hybrid assistance. Diesel engines are pleasantly frugal and smooth in the real world, and the S400d has all the performance a car of this type would need in any case; but the S500 offers an even faster (and yet adequate, quiet and smooth) option of 400 bhp+ if desired.
The modern luxury of the Audi brand also comes with state-of-the-art on-board technology, of course, while the public fast charging potential of 150 kW, combined with a daily range of between 200 and 250 miles on a charge, also makes the e-Tron a more usable electric car than some of its class. Right now, there is no more luxurious electric car in the world than this. The latest Audi A8 features some of the most advanced chassis, powertrain and automotive technology in the luxury class, including, when finally turned on, what promises to be the highest autonomous driving capability of any production car in the world. The car represents Audi doing the classic “vorsprung durch technik” in a properly committed way.
The A8's quality interior looks like it was built to survive civilization itself, though it lacks the sense of occasion of the class-leading Range Rover. The ride is smooth and the car is easy to drive, though it's not as padded and luxurious as its key German rival, and it's not quite the same as Mercedes in the ways that matter most. Save money with new Audi A8 offers from What Car? Whether Mercedes invented the modern hybrid vehicle body style that, for a time, received the amusing nickname “coupon” (a four-door saloon crossover with a more conical silhouette and a sloping roof line similar to a coupe) or whether it was Maserati with the fifth-generation Quattroporte is a matter of discussion. Either way, it's fair to remember that the original 2004 Mercedes CLS was one of the creators of what still seems like a fairly new type of vehicle; moreover, that type of vehicle has become an important part of the modern luxury car landscape; and that Mercedes has probably done more than any other manufacturer of cars to popularize it.
Now, in its third generation of models, the CLS has always proven to be significantly better than most 2+2 in terms of practicality, reaching a climax with the Shooting Brake version, a favorite derivative of CLS in Autocar Towers that Mercedes unfortunately decided would be discontinued with the current third model. generation version of the car. The engine range includes turbocharged four-cylinder and six-cylinder petrol and a pair of six-cylinder turbo diesel engines, with the CLS 53 high-performance four-wheel drive hybrid that has replaced the old CLS 63 with a V8 engine in the top of the stack, and brings an attractive different flavor to the AMG armory. The chassis juggles between involvement and insulation, although versions with larger tires equipped with anti-puncture tires can suffer from dubious tread refinement and are certainly worth testing before buying.
Save money with new Mercedes CLS offers from What Car? Since its launch in 1977, the 7 Series has been in the shadow of the Mercedes S-Class, but this latest version is BMW's most committed attempt to fully break through the luxury salon market. The car combines optional adaptive air suspension with pioneering infotainment and comfort features, and offers the choice between two wheelbase lengths and rear-wheel drive or four-wheel drive. The inner molding evokes a sense of space, integrity and ease of use, although the fascia is perhaps a little too similar to that of smaller BMW sedans and lacks luxurious material. The engines are quiet, powerful and efficient, the range opens with the well-known six-cylinder turbodiesel option, but also with the most Bik-Tax-compatible plug-in hybrid option in the limousine class in the form of the 745e, and culminates with one of the few remaining twelve-cylinder limousines options on the M760Li; and both are impressive engineering works.
The handling is more balanced and precise than that of the rivals, although the driving is not as isolated. Save Money with New What Car? Series 7 Deals Don't think of this as an expanded BMW X5, says Munich, but rather as an elevated 7-Series that has been prepared for limited off-road work. That description doesn't explain much of the fact that the X7 is a seven-seat, two-box passenger car with an extended roof line, of course, but it does inform you of the priorities that BMW designers and engineers had when refining and tuning the car. The car comes with the option of one turbo diesel (the 40d) and two turbo petrol engines (the entry-level 40i and the higher-end M50i) in the UK.
The 'M50d' version of the car used to deliver a full 394 bhp and more than 500 lb ft of torque, but it has since been reduced, while the 'M50i' V8 petrol winds the performance dial to 523 bhp. On the road, the X7 handles its size and volume well, making it surprisingly precise and athletic when cornering. Even the car's diesel engine is smooth and refined, and develops enough torque to move the car with ease, while its driving is comfortable without losing control. The car handles its mass better than the big rivals of luxury SUVs, and feels more intuitive to drive.
A slightly normal cabin, light touches of special materials and differentiation from smaller BMW SUVs, and that controversial front style are the car's biggest disappointments. With that oversized grille, some would call the X7 ugly, but few would deny its competence or its integrity as a luxury car. Save Money on New X7 Deals from What Car? Many modern car enthusiasts have opposed the preference of modern luxury car buyers for the SUV, but when driving a car like the Audi Q8, it's easy to appreciate why they like it so much. This designer version of a Q7 has more visual presence and curbside appeal than its weaker, boxy relationship, but the same attractive interior, with a bright, rich and solid feel.
Comfort and refinement are top notch. The driving experience is light and filtered, with stable and safe handling that is delivered like in a less advanced family car with four-wheel drive. And the car's engine range is wide. You can have six cylinders of petrol or diesel; you can choose between two emission-saving plug-in gasoline hybrid engines, one with up to 457 bhp; and then there are the SQ8 and RS Q8 performance models, which allow you to mix as much urgency into the Q8 driving experience as anyone could want.
SUV or not, the Q8 is without a doubt one of the best luxury vehicles that Audi makes right now. Save money with new Audi Q8 offers from What Car? Dynamically, the LS is less convincing as a luxury item. The 3.5-liter hybrid V6 has to work hard to cope with the car's 2420 kg weight, and although the car's handling is quite impressive, its noisy and slightly abrupt ride in flat shoes is quite the opposite. Against the latest S-Class, Series 7 and A8, the LS is an interesting alternative, but it is not yet the most credible of its rivals.
Save Money with New Lexus LS Deals from What Car? Maserati offers V6 and V8 petrol engines for the car, the latter is available with up to 572 bhp if desired. But even with him, the Quattroporte no longer has much of a sporting soul. It has become a car to laze around gently, and probably be driven rather than driving yourself, with skewed right-hand drive control ergonomics that ruins the impression of quality the car conveys a little. The car has had a major style overhaul, and the interior feels modern and luxurious in an unconventional way.
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