Compare the2024 BMW 4 Series Gran CoupeVS 2024 Volkswagen Arteon

The 4 Series Gran Coupe’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Arteon doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the 4 Series Gran Coupe are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Arteon doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The 4 Series Gran Coupe’s standard pretensioning seatbelts also sense rear collisions and remove slack from the front seatbelts to help protect the occupants from whiplash and other injuries. The Arteon doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The 4 Series Gran Coupe’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Arteon doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the 4 Series Gran Coupe and the Arteon have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The 4 Series Gran Coupe’s corrosion warranty is 5 years and unlimited miles longer than the Arteon’s (12/unlimited vs. 7/100,000).

BMW pays for scheduled maintenance on the 4 Series Gran Coupe for 1 year and 16000 miles longer than Volkswagen pays for maintenance for the Arteon (3/36,000 vs. 2/20,000).

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the 4 Series Gran Coupe’s reliability 13 points higher than the Arteon.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the 4 Series Gran Coupe third among compact premium cars in their 2023 Initial Quality Study. The Arteon isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that BMW vehicles are better in initial quality than Volkswagen vehicles. With 57 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks BMW higher than Volkswagen.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that BMW vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks BMW above average in long-term dependability. With 5 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Volkswagen is rated below average.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that BMW vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks BMW 18 places higher in reliability than Volkswagen.

The M440i Gran Coupe’s standard 3.0 turbo 6-cylinder hybrid produces 82 more horsepower (382 vs. 300) and 74 lbs.-ft. more torque (369 vs. 295) than the Arteon’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

On the EPA test cycle the 4 Series Gran Coupe gets better mileage than the Arteon:

Regenerative brakes improve the 4 Series Gran Coupe’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Arteon doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

An eight-speed automatic is standard on the BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only a seven-speed automatic is available for the Arteon.

The 4 Series Gran Coupe’s launch control uses engine electronics to hold engine RPM’s precisely in order to provide the most stable and rapid acceleration possible, using all of the available traction. The Arteon doesn’t offer launch control.

For better stopping power the M440i Gran Coupe xDrive’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Arteon:

Changing a flat tire near traffic can be dangerous and inconvenient. The run-flat tires available on the 4 Series Gran Coupe can be driven up to 50 miles without any air pressure, allowing you to drive to a service station for a repair. The Arteon doesn’t offer run-flat tires.

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the 4 Series Gran Coupe is 1.4 inches wider in the rear than the track on the Arteon.

The 4 Series Gran Coupe is 3 inches shorter than the Arteon, making the 4 Series Gran Coupe easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The 4 Series Gran Coupe has .7 inches more front headroom and .3 inches more front legroom than the Arteon.

The engine in the 4 Series Gran Coupe is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Arteon. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that BMW service is better than Volkswagen. J.D. Power ranks BMW 7th in service department satisfaction (above the industry average). With a 33% lower rating, Volkswagen is ranked 28th.

The 4 Series Gran Coupe offers an optional heads-up display that projects speed, warning and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Arteon doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

Laser headlights, optional on the 4 Series Gran Coupe, produce their light by firing blue lasers through phosphorus, a process that uses one-half the power of the Arteon’s LED headlights. Laser headlights can have double the range of LEDs with a much smaller surface area.

The 4 Series Gran Coupe’s optional Parking Assistant Plus can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. The Arteon SEL Premium’s automatic parking system requires operating the brakes and transmission to safely park.

The BMW 4 Series comes in coupe, convertible and four door hatchback bodystyles; the Volkswagen Arteon isn’t available as a coupe or convertible.

The 4 Series Gran Coupe is available in both rear-wheel drive and all-wheel drive configurations. The Arteon doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

The 4 Series Gran Coupe will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the 4 Series Gran Coupe will retain 52.7% to 54.31% of its original price after five years, while the Arteon only retains 35.76% to 36.38%.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe will be $309 to $2440 less than for the Volkswagen Arteon.

The BMW 4 Series outsold the Volkswagen Arteon by almost 22 to one during 2023.