24/7 Wall St. Insights

• Luxury vehicles often offer features like powerful engines, nice trim, climate control, heated seats, adaptive cruise control, and more, making them an attractive vehicle for many consumers.
• Changing market conditions have made luxury vehicles like Audi, Tesla, and Alfa Romeo more affordable. You can now buy a luxury Italian Alfa Romeo for just $88,505.
• There are a wide variety of luxury cars to fit consumer needs, ranging from SUVs and sedans to electric vehicles.
• Also: 2 Dividend Legends to Hold Forever

The average American driver drives approximately 13,476 miles each year. Assuming a driving rate of 60 mph, that’s a total of 224.6 hours in the car. So wouldn’t it be nice to drive in style? In the past, the cost of luxury vehicles like BMW or Alfa Romeo was sometimes exclusionary. But changing marketplaces mean that you too can purchase and drive a luxury vehicle. In fact, Alfa Romeo is even planning on launching the all-electric Junior Veloce hatchback in the U.S. market soon. (Here are the top 10 electriv vehicle brands right now.)

Even if you’re not searching for an Alfa Romeo Junior Veloce, there are multiple affordable luxury vehicles available to fit your needs. Luxury vehicles offer exciting features such as a high-quality engine, a nice trim, and unmatched comfort. But these vehicles remain in your price range, not feeling inaccessible.

To compile this list, 24/7 Wall St. used ratings and prices pulled from Car and Driver, Consumer Report, and similar sources. Additionally, the 24/7 Wall St. team allowed some editorial discretion used when selecting vehicles according to certain criteria. First, the car needed to be under $100,000 but still firmly a part of a historically recognized luxury brand. This was to eliminate top-trim models from non-luxury brands that are just expensive (luxury brands are an image thing at their core, and it’s important to remember that). Second, we didn’t attach any years to these models because they are always changing.

Now that you know what you’re looking at, it’s time to figure out what affordable luxury vehicle you’re not going to be able to resist. The cars are listed in alphabetical order.

Why Cars Are Our Focus Today

Cars are a necessity in America. With a lack of public transportation, most homes need one or more vehicles to enable everyone to get to work or school. However, that doesn’t mean cars have to only be for practicality. Luxury vehicles offer some pretty awesome upgrades and look nice. However, many are affordable, and far too much for the average household. The luxury cars below prove that you can have your cake and eat it too with nice vehicles not that much over a standard new car price.

Here are the best luxury cars you can afford for under $100,000: 

1. Acura Integra

• Price Range: $31,500-$51,800
• Body Style: 5-Door Liftback
• Power Used: Gas
• Horsepower: 200-300

The Luxury Branch of Honda

As the luxury branch of Honda, you expect Acura to deliver some nice upgrades to their base models. The Integra is basically a Honda Civic with some nicer features and loads of cargo space.

2. Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio

• Price Range: $81,855-$88,505
• Body Style: Sedan
• Power Used: Gas
• Horsepower: 505

A New Reintroduction

The Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio is more than just a mouthful. This is a reintroduction of the Alfa Romeo Giulia into the American market, backed with some serious power. Unfortunately, that power does come in with a bit of a steep price tag. For the brand though, owning this luxury Italian car is rather reasonable.

3. Audi A3 Premium

• Price Range: $36,495-$38,495
• Body Style: Sedan
• Power Used: Gas/Electric Hybrid
• Horsepower: 201

An Affordable Option From Audi

For a car at this price, it’s hard to imagine it being a luxury vehicle. However, it scores well on consumer review sites and it definitely feels like an Audi when driving. Its many luxury options earn it top marks.

4. Audi Q3

• Price Range: $36,000-$56,950
• Body Style: SUV
• Power Used: Gas/Electric Hybrid
• Horsepower: 184-228

Practical and Luxury

The Audi Q3 is a compact, “entry-level” SUV. However, considering the Audi logo, the Q3 offers a great mix of luxury and practical elements. With this vehicle, you don’t have to choose between a great car and a family vehicle.

5. BMW 2 Series

• Price Range: $38,000-$51,700
• Body Style: Sedan
• Power Used: Gas
• Horsepower: 241-255

One of the Most Affordable Options

The BMW 2 Series features compact vehicles. There are a few different styles to choose from, including a convertible and a gran coupe. BMW is a classic luxury brand with affordable prices, especially the 2 Series.

6. BMW M Series

• Price Range: The M2 starts at $63,200; the M3 starts at $76,000
• Body Style: Coupe, Sedan, Wagon
• Power Used: Gas
• Horsepower: Starts at 453

Another BMW

The M series has been one of BMW’s best-received models. These are performance luxury vehicles. Out of the two main versions, the M2 and the M3, the M2 is considered the sportier version while the M3 has more practical uses. Both have quite a few additional features and add-ons.

7. BMW X2

• Price Range: $36,600-$56,950
• Body Style: SUV
• Power Used: Gas/Hybrid
• Horsepower: 241 to 312

Compact With Great Performance

The BMW brand is no stranger to affordable luxury options. The X2 is just another solid example. This compact design with luxury comforts and great performance competes with the Mercedez-Benz GLA in terms of price.

8. Cadillac CT4

• Price Range: $34,000-$61,495
• Body Style: Sedan
• Power Used: Gas
• Horsepower: 237-310

American Made

Cadillac is an American brand. The CT4 model is a sedan made to replace the ATS but with a lot more power, engine upgrades, and reliability. It’s a direct competitor as well to the A3 and 2 Series.

9. Hyundai Genesis G80

• Price Range: $54,400-$64,250
• Body Style: Sedan
• Power Used: Gas or Electric
• Horsepower: 300 to 375

Surprisingly Nice

When you think of luxury vehicles, Hyundai likely isn’t the first one to pop into your head. It was originally made to be an affordable brand for the general consumer. However, with the Genesis vehicles, Hyundai managed to branch out and reach both target consumers.

10. Kia Stinger

• Price Range: $36,690-$54,090
• Body Style: Sedan
• Power Used: Gas
• Horsepower: 300-358

Premium vs. Luxury

It’s debatable whether the Kia Stinger should be considered a luxury or a premium vehicle. It does offer some great performance stats (a 2.5-liter turbocharger V4 with 300-hp, or a 3.3-liter twin-turbo V6 with 358-hp) that keep it competitive with other luxury vehicles. It even has some nice trim and interior to make it feel more luxurious but for a much lower price. Unfortunately, you might not want to buy one of these cars unless you want them to be stolen.

11. Lexus UX

• Price Range: $36,490-$43,920
• Body Style: SUV
• Power Used: Hybrid
• Horsepower: 181-196

Reliable and High Quality

This established luxury brand has earned its reputation for having amazing quality and reliability. The Lexus UX is a hybrid that has exceptional reliability and value as well as a very vocal customer base.

12. Lincoln Corsair

• Price Range: $38,730-$53,925
• Body Style: SUV
• Power Used: Gas
• Horsepower: 250

Ford’s Luxury Crossover

The Lincoln Corsair is a stylish American-made model while still keeping comfort as a main feature. This car is a direct competitor to the Q3, X2, and GLA. Though Lincoln doesn’t want to admit it, it’s basically the luxury version of the Ford Escape. If you’re looking for a few extra features and don’t mind a higher price, the Navigator is also a good option.

13. Mercedes-Benz GLA

• Price Range: $36,400-$56,950
• Body Style: SUV
• Power Used: Gas/Electric Hybrid
• Horsepower: 221-302

A Popular Design

The compact SUV body type is a popular model in the United States and the Mercedes-Benz GLA is one example of a luxury car offering this style. It’s the smallest SUV offered by Mercedes and works as basically an SUV version of the A-Class. To make the vehicle feel even more luxurious, there are some additional touches in the car, such as dual-zone climate control and power-adjustable seats.

14. Porsche 718 Cayman

• Price Range: Starting at $69,950
• Body Style: Coupe
• Power Used: Gas
• Horsepower: 300

Surprisingly Reasonable

It’s rare to find a Porsche in such a reasonable price range. With such a reasonable price, you could even splurge for an upgrade and get one of the S or GTS editions and still spend less than $100k while getting loads of extra power and performance. Car and Driver ranks the 718 Cayman a 10/10, and it probably deserves it. Keep in mind that this is a performance vehicle and not the best for shoving a car seat into.

15. Tesla Model 3 Performance

• Price Range: $53,240-$64,190
• Body Style: Sedan
• Power Used: Electric
• Horsepower: 271-510

Electric Luxury

Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA)  isn’t all luxury. However, the Model 3 Performance should be right up there with the Model S and X. They are easily able to outperform other vehicles on this list and have some major quality-of-life improvements in the newest models, such as lane assist, autopilot, and a quiet cabin.

16. Volvo XC40

• Price Range: $36,400-$56,950
• Body Style: SUV
• Power Used: Gas or Electric
• Horsepower: 247

Number One Subcompact Luxury

The reason the Volvo XC40 is a winner is due to its mix of practicality and luxury, along with its reasonable price. When it comes to rankings, this Volvo exceeds the needs of the subcompact luxury SUV category while still being a premium vehicle.

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