I’ve heard of a lot of different gun manufacturers. Mostly from watching movies. Companies like Walther, Glock, Beretta, Smith and Wesson, and Colt. But I don’t really know how they stack up against each other. So, if you could, put them into perspective for me by comparing them to something I am familiar with, cars.
Who’s the BMW of firearms, powerful and sporty and somewhat austere? The Honda, affordable, reliable, and ubiquitous. The Bentley, plush, overbuilt, and rarefied? Etc.
H&K and SIG would probably be the Mercedes and BMW of guns. Smith and Wesson, Colt, and Ruger would be like GM, Ford and Chrysler respectively. The Bentley of guns would be Blaser and other high-end double rifles for big-game hunting.
If handguns were cars, beggars would…no, wait. Do what now?
Purdey would be Jaguar.
The Colt 1911 would be the 1932 Ford Coupe. Iconic, and customized out the wazoo.
I would say Glock would be like Honda. Mass produced, good reliability, easy to use, not dirt-cheap but not too expensive. Last forever in city driving, but don’t take it off road or on long distance rallies as it comes out of the box, because something will break. Handling is ok but not high performance (i.e. somewhat heavy, mushy trigger)
I would put CZ perhaps as Toyota. Same level of quality as Glock/Honda, but perhaps a tad less well known / prestigious. I want to say Hyundai, but CZ quality and reliability is better than Hyundai’ image would suggest.
The .45 1911, and two companies that make higher end versions, Kimber and Springfield, I would compare to Harley Davidson. A long time loud, big & heavy American favourite now available out of the factory with all kinds of features that were previously only available on customized units. Decent reputation for quality, but legions of devoted fanatics still debate the merits of more recent changes that have only been around for a couple of decades, and on which, consequently, the jury is still out. (1911 folk are a tad conservative 
)
I would say Browning is kinda like Jaguar. Great history & quality, outstanding handling, but glory is fading and has loss popularity. Now a bit old-fashioned.
Although I know less about Ruger, I would equate it with Jeep. Been around a long time, long time American product, not fancy but simple and gets the job done. Decent reliability.
I’m kind of at a loss to describe Walther. Mini Cooper?
trupa, Kimber 1911 & Browning shooter
The Desert Eagle is basically a Hummer - huge, utterly impractical and good for making an impression.
Sphinx Systems (high quality Swiss-made CZ clones) is Koenigsegg. Heckler & Koch is the Saab of the gun world; all sorts of innovative but quirky designs. Sig-Sauer is Audi or BMW; solid and precise out of the box but kind of bland and homogeneous. Steyr is kind of a Subaru; despite high build quality and innovative designs, it always ends up being a second run. The Browning Hi-Power is kind of like the VW Type 1, 2, and 3: despite an old design, it never quite seems to go out of style, and you can end up cramming a surprising amount in it. The pistols from Russia, Serbia, Hungary, et cetera, are like Ural bikes; strange layout, odd controls, not particularly reliable, but still a classic.
Stranger
So Purdey and Browning are dodgy bits of kit that look fabulous stripped down to pieces on the gunsmith’s workbench every few rounds because something else started leaking? 
Walther = Volkswagen, uninspiring but decent and reliable.
Glock = Kia, it’ll get you there (we refer to them as UPS trucks because they run allright but they are UGLY!).
Beretta = Mercedes, classy and has the engineering of a fine watch.
Smith and Wesson = Dodge, they are allright but they rest hard on the company reputation.
Colt (revolvers)= Cadillac with the attention to detail raised to a very fine level.
Colt (1911) = Ford pick-em-up, there were so many made that they gained a HUGE following but the 1911 is made (now) much better by many other companies.
Unclviny
Glock; a Polymer-body Saturn (SL/SC/SW/L series/Ion/pre-2008 Vue), both have polymer “bodies” with structural components of steel (the Glock frame rails in the grip and the slide/barrel assembly, the hood, roof, and trunk/liftgate on the Saturns)
1911; Ford/Chevy/Dodge full-size truck
CZ-75; BMW/Porsche performance car
Ruger Mark series .22’s; Toyota Corolla/Honda Civic
and yes, the “Deagle” is definitely a civilian “Hummer”, impractical, gaudy, and merely a way to brag “look how much money I can waste on useless, frivolous crap”