The 3.6 engine makes the car fly, but as a result handling can be tricky at time. The vehicle has a lot of thoughtful touches, and nice fit and finish. Very spaciious and for the weight and engine still gives respectable mileage. Then again, most of the miles driven are highway, so I may have a skewed opinion.

the best car in this class

This was a great car.... MINE wasn't.

It was deemed a Lemon after being in the shop for 35 days.

The engine bulkhead was leaking, electric problems galore, water/mold problems everywhere....it was a nightmare.

We refer to it as "DAMIEN"

Fantastic car.  It only has 105bhp but delivers it surprisingly well.  Off the line it keeps up the best of them and even though it is a diesel it sounds pretty sweet.  The build quality is of the usual Germanic standard and will still be as tight and surefooted in years to come as it is now.  Has some pretty cool tricks and toys on it even though it is the entry level model, like:

The boot and electric windows can be operated from the remote fob which looks pretty trick when you are standing away from the car.

The handbrake is electric!  It is just a button on the dashboard so the space in between the seats is purely for the gearstick and storage compartments.  Even better, it automatically releases itself when you move away so no need to rev the nuts off it when doing hill starts.