Tough times in the auto biz are giving entry-level luxury cars more relevance than ever. Among the brands that sell them, nameplates like the BMW 3 Series and Infiniti G comprise more than two-fifths of those manufacturers’ sales — and with premium brands tanking as fast as the rest of the industry, that share is likely to go up. Among this year’s crop are two redesigned mainstays, the Acura TL and Audi A4. Both offer all-wheel drive, strong V-6 engines and larger dimensions than their predecessors, but beyond that their personalities differ. Acura heads the way of brute performance and nervy styling, while Audi sticks to classic proportions and interior quality.

In our initial drives, both models earned high praise from the reviewer team — Kelsey Mays in the A4 and David Thomas in the TL. For round deux, we procured two jet-black examples: an A4 3.2 Quattro and a TL SH-AWD. Both test cars had six-cylinder engines, all-wheel drive and automatic transmissions, and as luck would have it, the prices lined up nicely. Well-equipped but not brimming with options, our A4 stickered at $40,400, while our preproduction TL came loaded to the hilt for $42,235. Editors Joe Bruzek and Kelsey Mays put both to the test in a variety of pavement and weather conditions, and they offer their impressions in a two-part series.

Styling

Styling had us split. Right away, the TL’s Roethlisbergeran dimensions dwarf its Audi rival: At 195 inches, it’s even longer than a Honda Pilot, making it easily longer, wider and taller than the A4. It looks louder, too: The shielded grille and bunker-slot headlamps make Acura’s redesigned TSX look downright quaint, and the tail simply defies description.

The A4’s lines are easier to follow, with sharp-looking LED running lights and a nicely sorted, if conservative, tail. The only major sticking point is Audi’s double-decker grille, but it’s been around long enough that we’ve grown fairly accustomed to it.

Deliberations ran hot. One editor lauded the TL’s bold road presence over Audi’s blend-into-traffic shape. The other preferred the A4’s stately lines over the TL’s left-field goings-on. Fists were thrown and Facebook hate-groups formed. In the end we agreed to disagree, calling it a tentative draw. Bah.

Winner: Tie

Performance

With our testers configured to varying levels, deciding which one better suited the sporting driver was a no-brainer. The TL with its Super-Handling All-Wheel Drive system rocks the A4’s Quattro in the corners and offers more grip on curvy on-ramps; at times it even performs with rear-wheel-drive-like balance, something we can’t say for the nose-heavy Audi. Where the A4 starts to drift wide mid-corner, the TL digs for more traction and continues to grip.

The less-powerful and slightly lighter A4, by contrast, has the right power curve and transmission gearing to walk away from the TL in a straight line — this despite the TL making 305 hp versus the Audi’s 265 hp.

For those who don’t need to tackle corners and carve on-ramps, the A4 would be a better pick, with an all-wheel-drive system that’s more at home digging through foul weather. The A4 offers a comfier driving experience, with flat-cushioned seats (the TL SH-AWD has heavily bolstered buckets) as well as easier steering and braking efforts.

Accelerator, braking and steering response are all more precise in the TL, but the tradeoff comes in more road noise. Wind noise, curiously, seems higher in the A4 than the TL. It’s worth noting that our TL SH-AWD tester is essentially the sportiest TL you can get for 2009, whereas our A4 lacked Audi’s S-line sport package. But with nearly identical as-tested prices, adding anything would surely bump the A4’s as-tested price well past the TL’s.

Winner: TL

Interior & Gadgets

If Acura dominates performance, Audi wins on the inside. The TL boasts decent materials and, characteristic of Honda/Acura, some of the best-feeling buttons in any car at any price. But the whole layout seems a bit gratuitous: The steering wheel and center dash have enough controls to pilot an Airbus. The dashboard goes overboard with oddly grained surfaces and plasticky silver trim. The glove compartment and lower door panels trade the previous TL’s soft-touch plastics for harder surfaces, and areas from the steering wheel hub to the overhead sunglass holder feel low-rent for a $40,000 car.

Some TL high points: The seats, especially in back, are roomier than Audi’s. From Pink Floyd to People Under the Stairs, the TL’s optional 10-speaker ELS surround-sound stereo trounces the A4’s 10-speaker system. No doubt Audi’s 14-speaker Bang & Olufsen option would give ELS some serious competition — we’ve experienced it elsewhere, and it’s flat-out terrific — but it would also bump up the Audi’s price by thousands of dollars.

Which brings us to the A4. It’s an exercise in buttoned-down elegance, loaded with premium materials, supportive seats and tastefully styled controls, marred only by a wriggly turn signal here or uneven window switch there. One editor found Audi’s MMI much easier to use than Acura’s knob-based interface, and the A4 won lots of consistent small points thanks to conveniences like a folding backseat without a dangling center seat belt (it’s anchored in the seatback), one-touch operation for all four windows (the TL only has one-touch windows in front), and a height-adjustable center armrest. Add it all up, and Ingolstadt took home the interior contest by a fair margin.

Winner: A4

Yesterday we introduced our latest comparison, between the redesigned Audi A4 and Acura TL. In our comparison, these competing luxury cars are similarly priced around the $40,000 mark, which made for a perfect matchup of which car offers the most for the money. Perceived value will of course be in the eye of the buyer, and both cars we tested had their own merits. In the end, though, there can be only one Highlander … er, winner.

The A4 provided an upscale interior experience with finer materials and more precise build quality. While our preproduction TL lacked such finesse, it offered more gadgets, interior room and a sportier performance for less dough, earning the value-winner nod.

Throughout our Audi A4 and Acura TL drive, we kept bringing up “what ifs” for the Audi’s somewhat lackluster driving performance compared to the sporty TL SH-AWD. What if it had the optional sportier tires, or what if it had the optional stiffer suspension, or what if it were the S-line model?

In the end, those options would have put the Audi out of the price range we targeted. On top of the performance items, the TL also gave us a navigation system with a rearview camera and smart key ignition and entry, plus it’s a larger car with more interior room. Navigation with a rearview camera on the A4 is a $2,500 option, while a smart key option is only available on the highest, Prestige trim level, which starts at $43,300 with the six-cylinder engine.

The A4’s interior may have offered less room, especially in the backseat, but the Audi had 16.9 cubic feet of trunk space, compared to the TL’s 12.5 cubic feet. The Audi also has a 60/40-split folding rear seat instead of the TL’s smaller rear pass-thru, giving the A4 more cargo versatility. In the end, though, Acura’s combination of handling prowess and value for the money outpaced the A4’s strengths. The TL wins this one.

2009 Audi A4 sedan 3.2 Quattro: $40,000
Ash Almond Beige interior: $400
Total: $40,400

2009 Acura TL SH-AWD: $38,505
Technology Package: $3,730
Total: $42,235

Overall winner: Acura TL