# 1993 Coupe Comparison Test Gallery: Ford, Subaru, Lexus, and BMW Duke It Out
Car and Driver's 1993 coupe comparison test lined up four distinct approaches to the personal luxury car segment. The Ford Thunderbird SC brought American muscle and presence. The Subaru SVX offered Japanese engineering with a unique exterior design. The Lexus SC300 represented Toyota's upscale brand ambitions with inline-six power. The BMW 325is brought German sport-sedan DNA to the coupe category.
This era marked a transitional moment in the coupe market. American manufacturers still competed in the segment with bold styling and V8 engines, but Japanese brands were gaining ground with more refined interiors and stronger build quality. The Thunderbird SC's supercharged V8 contrasted sharply with the SC300's turbocharged inline-six and the SVX's horizontally-opposed six-cylinder design. BMW's straight-six offered proven performance and handling dynamics.
The comparison reflected shifting buyer preferences. Luxury coupes were becoming less about raw power and more about driving dynamics, interior appointments, and reliability. The SC300 presaged Lexus's rise in the premium segment. The 325is represented BMW's evolution toward sport-luxury positioning. The SVX stood out for its unconventional styling and Subaru's AWD technology, though it never gained the market traction of its competitors.
Photography from this test captures the design language of early 1990s personal luxury cars. Hood lengths, greenhouse proportions, and body side character lines all reflected the decade's aesthetic. Interior materials, seat designs, and dashboard layouts reveal the quality expectations buyers had at that price point.
These four cars represented the coupe category at a crossroads. Within a few years, American muscle coupes would fade, Japanese luxury coupes would prolif