2016 Audi Q3 vs. 2016 BMW X1, 2017 Infiniti QX30, 2016 Lexus NX200t, 2016 Mercedes-Benz GLA250

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Just as LeBron James, the Cleveland Cavalier forward, is far more likable than LeBron James, the Miami Heat forward, a hatchback called a crossover trumps a two-box vehicle by any other name. It's a matter of selling perception as much as a tangible product, and Americans have fully bought in.

With the crossover elbowing out the sedan as the vehicle of choice for the everyman, the smallest, most affordably priced premium utes now serve as the entree to *luxury-brand ownership. Simulta*neously, the perpetual upward *trajectory of vehicle sizes and prices has left a gaping hole for a class of tiny crossovers below the Audi Q5, the BMW X3, and the Lexus RX. These smallest crossovers start around $36,000, with all-wheel drive optional if not standard and a 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-four the consensus powertrain.

BMW launched this burgeoning segment in the U.S. in 2013 with the X1, then completely rethought its approach three short years later. While the current X1 is only all-wheel drive (for the time being, at least), its dubious distinction as the first BMW in the States built on a front-wheel-drive architecture riles loyalists who cringe at the inevitability of front-drive BMWs. For this class, though, where driving dynamics take a back seat to comfort, convenience features, and, well, the back seat itself, it's hard to argue with BMW's decision. Our test car was loaded with $10,125 worth of options, including a self-parking feature, a Harman/Kardon stereo, and a massive panoramic glass roof for a total of $45,920.

You might expect Audi, no stranger to selling small premium cars in the U.S., to have an advantage in this particular game. The tall and stubby crossover kin to the A3, the Q3 is not yet based on the VW Group's newest MQB platform, though. Instead, it uses the older PQ35 architecture that dates to the fifth-generation VW Golf. Our Prestige-trim tester packed a power liftgate, power-folding mirrors, LED headlights, a Bose sound system, and a sport package with upgraded seats, handy shift paddles, and selectable drive modes for $43,090.

The Lexus NX200t checks in almost 10 inches longer than the Audi and 500 pounds heavier than Mercedes' entrant, although the envelope doesn't feel significantly larger from the inside. While the NX is only Lexus's second unibody crossover, the brand is working from deep experience. The larger RX has been synonymous with luxury cross*overs for 20 years. Our NX test car came with the F Sport cosmetics-and-seating package that only serves to make the front fascia more garish. An optional summer-tire package (not fitted to our test car) is the only F Sport mechanical change. Adaptive cruise control, real leather seats, a wireless phone charger, and a postage-stamp sunroof made the NX200t the most expensive vehicle in the test at $46,550.

The Mercedes-Benz GLA250 claims the lowest as-tested price at $41,975, with optional equipment including blind-spot monitoring, 19-inch wheels, a rearview camera, panoramic sunroof, and cross-drilled front brake discs. It is the closest thing to a literal hatchback-on-stilts in this test. To create the GLA, Mercedes designers simply massaged the roofline and character creases of Europe's A-class hatch and lifted the suspension. In another nod to American tastes, the seven-speed dual-clutch transmission is controlled by a column-mounted stalk, which leaves enough prime center-console real estate for a 7-Eleven?approved cupholder?right ahead of two more cupholders.

Infiniti's QX30 is the freshest design, all-new for 2017, although maybe not quite as new as it appears. Take a look at where the A-pillar meets the hood and front fender, then check out the same stamping on the Mercedes-Benz. The QX30 is a product of a budding partnership between Daimler AG and Renault-Nissan. Built using the same platform and powertrain as the Mercedes, but assembled at Infiniti's Sunderland, England, plant with different sheetmetal, the QX30 follows the cost-conscious route into a price-sensitive category. And yet, at first glance our Premium-trim QX30 with an estimated as-tested price of $44,000 certainly seems more luxurious than the GLA in this test based on material quality alone. Options included LED headlights, the bird's-eye Around View Monitor camera system, front and rear parking *sensors, and the complete roster of active safety aids.

We attempted to include a sixth competitor, but Lincoln could only provide an MKC with the optional 2.3-liter engine and a price tag in the mid $50,000s. We passed on the MKC to keep the playing field as level as possible, then took to our 10Best route and Michigan's Old Mission Peninsula to find the most roller-coaster-like roads in the Mitten.



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