I definitely vouch for an IS as it ticks all the boxes of quality, comfort, and fun to drive.

I'd look at the A3, but may be a little tight depending on what you need.

If you're considering a non-luxury brand, the Mazda6 also hits the mark but no heated steering I believe.

 

If you can do without the heated steering wheel (a feature, unfortunately, not offered on any U.S.-market Subaru), check out the Subaru Legacy. It's got a few negative points, like the lack of the heated wheel and a less-than-perfect NAV/voice-recognition system, but, overall, has gotten good reviews and comes with standard AWD to boot if you need to drive in bad weather. It will also (probably) cost less than most new 3-series models, although Legacy 3.6R Limited versions start near 30K and can run substantially above that with options.

 

I really enjoyed the Q50 I borrowed recently. All the tech features worked too, so it looked like the bugs with the infotainment system have been worked out.

 

the 3 series in general has higher lease price than the IS. the GS lease price is only a tad higher than IS and noticeably less than E and 5, so maybe it can get very close

 

We like very few brands and Cadillac is not one of them so that rules it out. We thought about the IS, but its backseat space is like someone mentioned less than our current 3 series. We would need to fit a rear facing carseat in the back.

I also want to clear it up that we don't want to spend as much as we did on the 3 series, so everything right now is pointing us towards the Honda Accord, the only reason we were interested in the TLX or the Q50 was because we are looking at the Accord EXL V6 and the price is closer to TLX and the Q50, We don't mind spending a little more if that will get us something nicer than the Accord.

 

Helpful info. If you don't like Caddy, how do you feel about Buick? The Regal offers a lot of features for under $40,000, including the desired heated steering wheel. The back seat is not as big as an Accord, but definitely should be workable with a rear-facing infant seat. I like the GS, but it has no spare and no run flats--so I would not consider it, but others have no problem with that set up.

If moving down to the family sedan category, I would give serious consideration to the Kia Optima.

The Q50 may be "close" to the Accord V6 EX or Touring, but you need to add packages to get a few desirable options, and the price quickly jumps.