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None of the 3 are real luxury like: MB, BMW, Audi, Lexus, Porsche (not including the super luxury Bentley, RR)
Then you have second tier luxury: Jaguar, Cadillac, Infinity, Acura, Volvo
Jaguar is equal to BMW, Mercedes or Audi. No question.
prestige really depends on the crowd you hang with. For some of my banking, real estate professional colleagues, anything other than MB, BMW & Lexus flagship sedans/coupes is simply pedestrian. For them C is for Cheap (as in C-class) and you might as well be driving a Hyundai. But for value-conscious middle-class office workers, a Euro brand like Volvo or VW would be seen as "exotic" or atypical since they're not the kind of cars you keep for 10 years without expensive maintenance. One of my Indian friends from college drives a Mini and her family considers her a high-maintenance Louis Vuitton princess with profligate spending habits.
VW dead last by a mile. Acura and Volvo similar...but "prestige" in the automotive world is a bogus concept for the meek sheep of the world who don't have the confidence to drive what they want, or need to make up for some insecurity or another.
This is just dumb. This is like saying I would never own an Aston Martin because it is just a rebadged Ford, or that I would never own a Lamborghini because it is really a VW. I own a VW and if this is truly the reason why you chose a vehicle, it is really sad.
Which Aston Martin is a re-badged Ford? I didn't know the Aston chassis was used under ANY Ford models.
I'm a VW guy, personally, I LOVE VW but that isn't the question here.
as far as prestige, I feel it's between Acura and Volvo, with the edge leading towards Acura. I know it's a high end Honda, but I like the cars more than the Volvo's (although those have started growing on me slowly).
As I said, from a driving perspective, i'd take the German cars any day of the week. I love my VW's...we have a gasser 06' Jetta and a Diesel 12' Jetta and both have been great cars. I wish the 12' was as plush as my 06' and had the same suspension setup (needed a GLI in 2012 to get the independent rear suspension) but it's still a great driving car, just not an excellent driving one like the 2006. When I purchased the 06' I felt the need to go out and drive the thing anywhere and everywhere just to have fun...the 2012 I drive it to work and back, but I've never felt the desire to take it to the twisty roads...just doesn't handle like the 06', but keeping religious track of my fuel economy is my new obsession...44 mpg average (city/highway combined) tracked over 35,xxx miles! Love that little car.
The only VW I'd consider premium is a Tourag in the higher trim. I think the CC is a viable alternative to the entry level premium brands. Except the CLA- I think its better than a CLA.
Volvos are Volvos- I really do not see them as cars that get cross shopped with true luxury brands. They are more certainly up market and I think the interiors have been great the last half decade but not a car that is bought to impress. I give them a lot of credit for having the most comfortable front seats for trips- every single model I've driven/ridden regardless of how much I liked the vehicle.
And Acura is a fading brand. I loved that mid 00s TL but every vehicle since then (with the exception of the MDX redesign) has been a giant fail. To be honest I think a loaded Accord has as much prestige since its a good car and no one questions the extra 5-10k for something that is only marginally better.
I'll also differ from some other posters in that I think only the full size sedan and SUV would be a prestige vehicle in the Lexus lineups. And even then the Toyota Land Cruiser would get the same respect.
I think a couple of the Cadilacs would now be in the premium realm again but not the baby one or the front wheel drive large sedan.
FWIW- I read an interesting auto industry review a little while ago and Cheverolet was selling more vehicles for $40,000 and above than anyone else. The sticker on those Tahoes, Suburbans and loaded trucks are really comparable with the mid-size luxury brands.
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Love that little car.
