Not to labour the A-class comparison, but there's a lot of Mercedes in the way the Q30 gets down the road. That's generally not a bad thing, particularly in terms of ride comfort. The Q30 is no magic carpet, but it's still better than the Mercedes despite the German car's recent ride improvements - thank a dash of extra suspension travel for that, and the Q30's comfortable seats also absorb some ripples from the road. We'd say it's better than any of its premium rivals in this regard.
It doesn't seem to have sacrificed too much in the way of body control either, despite the slightly raised ride height. Again, the measured ride quality helps, absorbing some bumps that might otherwise disturb the Q30's composure in a corner.
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What it doesn't feel is particularly nimble. The Q30's steering lacks the initial bite of some and you also need to wind on a little more lock for a given corner than is ideal. That the steering is also quite light and feedback is almost absent doesn't help, though you do learn to trust the grip available. Push hard and there's little joy to be had, but if you cut your speed a little and concentrate on smooth inputs, you can make swift progress.
There's not the B-road appeal you'd find in a 1-series then, but the Q30's ride quality and easy controls would soothe away the commute or a long motorway journey better than most.
