Battle of Sedans

Of the many sedans made by Mercedes, Lexus, and BMW the S550, LS 460L, and 750Li are what each manufacturer claims to be the best, but which one really is the best?

In terms of MSRP, the Lexus LS 460L is the cheapest at around $78,000. On the other end of the scale is the Mercedes S550 at around $93,000. In the middle is the BMW 750Li at $85,000.

In terms of size, the biggest of the three is the 750Li at 205.3 inches, beating the S550 by only 0.3 inches. The LS460L is a little more than 2 inches shorter at 202.8 inches. The 750Li is also the widest of the three at 74.9 inches. The other two cars have almost the same width, the S550 at 73.7 inches and the LS460L at 73.8 inches. Despite the 750Li being the biggest sedan of the three, it only has 14 cubic feet of cargo space. This is significantly smaller compared to the 18 cubic feet of cargo space in the LS460L. However, to make room for all this cargo space, Lexus had to make the seating area smaller. The S550 offers a nice balance with 16.3 cubic feet of cargo space.

The more you pay the better performance the car will have. The $93,000 S550 has a remarkable 5.5L V-8 engine with 382 horsepower. The Lexus may be cheaper, but it has a 4.6L V-8 engine with only 357 horsepower. The BMW is in the middle with its 4.4L V-8 engine and 400 horsepower.

Each car comes with 18 inch tires, but only the S550 and LS460L are AWD (all wheel drive). The 750Li is a RWD (rear wheel drive) which is what gives the car the extra horsepower. Because of this, if you live in an area with wintery conditions, the RWD will not be favorable. The BMW also only has 6 speed transmission, whereas the LS460L has 8 speed transmission. In the middle sits the Mercedes with 7 speed transmission.

In my opinion, the Lexus has the best looking exterior and interior. The LS460L has that nice smooth and sleek look. It is also very round and not boxy like the BMW 750Li. The Mercedes S550 would look better if it put the Mercedes logo style grill like all of the other vehicles. The Mercedes interior of the S550 looks very bare and the center console is almost empty. The 750Li seems to have everything very tightly packed and not much room. The Lexus on the other hand, seems to make good use of the center console and is not too empty or too crowded.

The following is a rating system to compare the cars above (based on my own opinion). There are 4 broad categories that will be rated on a scale from 1 to 5 (1 = lowest, 5 = highest)
Performance – Engine, horsepower, transmission, etc
Exterior – Style, Look/Feel
Interior – Style, Look/Feel, Usage of space
Value – Is what the car offers worth the price

Mercedes S550
P = 5
E = 4
I = 3
V = 4
Overall = 16/20

Lexus LS460L
P = 2
E = 4
I = 4
V = 5
Overall = 15/20

BMW 750Li
P = 5
E = 2
I = 3
V = 3
Overall = 13/20

What do you think about these three sedans? Which do you think is the best?