CWW

Just to play devil's advocate,

Since you mentioned a 2005 E55 as an example, have you checked out what 2005 RS4's are going for? Lol...$20k's.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Cars-...=p4506.c0.m245

And the RS4's only stickered for $15k-$20k less than the E55's did, that's why people say the bang for the buck isn't there. Most E55s were in the $90k range when sold, including options, and the RS4 with any options on it was never that far behind, in the $70k's.

So, doing the math on this one, the E55's are actually winning the depreciation game vs. the RS4.

930chas

That is an S4, BIG BIG difference between that and an RS4.

OzE55

Remember the E55 isn't, really, a track car like your RS4. The airmatic suspension is adjustable from 'comfort', for us older guys, to 'sport 2' for those who want better handling at the expense of comfort. You would loose that if you went coil-over (I'm not even sure that's a readily available option).

CWW

Well, the reason I went with a 2005 audi is that he mentioned a 2005 E55.

Still, even with that said, you can get an 07 RS4 in mint condition with next to no miles on it for around $50k. A comparable '05 E55 is only what? $5k less than that. The RS4s are now a year to a year and a half old, while the '05 E55s are 3+ years old. Considering the list prices were within $20k of each other to begin with, and considering there is a 2 year age difference between the two, then the RS4's are clearly more of a depreciation sled than the E55's.

If you really want to be fair, you'd have to compare the '07 RS4 to '06 E55's, most of which have higher values than the RS4's, or to be really fair you'd have to compare it to an '07 E63, and those are $10k-$20k more than the RS4's.

Hammer Down

Hey Brad, I can vouch for the quicker steering in the 2005 & up versus my 04, I test drove a 2005 E55 wagon a few weeks ago and the steering felt quicker than the boxes from the previous two years.

evilb

My car stickered for ~$73k with the only option available.

You're picking LOW numbers for these cars, I was bringing up an average. On average, I can get a 2005 E55 for $45k. On average, you cannot get a 2007 RS4 for $50k. 2007 RS4's are now officially 2 years old, based on initial build/delivery dates. I'm assuming that now 2005 E55's are actually closer to 4 years old.

So, let's say $73k for the 2007 RS4 sticker, and $95k for the 2005 E55 sticker. After 2 years, RS4 is ~$55k on average, after 4 years, E55 is $45k on average. 2 years of depreciation on the RS4 was $18k from sticker, and 4 years on the E55 was $50k from sticker. Keep in mind, based on Autotrader.com results, the E55 actually averages considerably lower than $45k based on nationwide search results, so I'm being generous.

RS4 has shown a -24% decrease from sticker price over 2 years, and the E55 has shown a -52% decrease from sticker over 4 years (on average).

You guys can use this and fight all you want, because I really don't give a ***** The depreciation blows for most cars like this. The one thing the RS4 has going for it is more exclusivity than the E55, so one can anticipate more of a hold on value over the coming years.

B

evilb

Outstanding, thanks for the reply!

B

E55_GT3wheels

I have a 2005 E55 and recently drove a friends 2004. i do think the suspension and steering is a decent upgrade from the previos years in the 2005+ cars.

And why are we all talking about depreciatipon? WHO CARES! I bought my 2005 a year ago for $58K and now its worth $45 or so. Point is, have fun and enjoy! I am tired of reading posts saying these cars depreciate so quick. All gas guzzling cars are at this point in time. If you an afford one, stop crying and enjoy it instead. =) Just go drive it and you will know it is worth every penny!

lauer87

Get a cylinder compression test done on any E55 before you buy it, this can tell a lot about how potent your engine will be.

NMT

Funny. I have a E55 and im looking at RS4's

CWW

BS. I wasn't picking "low" numbers.

Here, let's look at some of the options out there...all of which are around the $50k range...

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Cars-...=p4506.c0.m245

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Cars-...=p4506.c0.m245

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Cars-...=p4506.c0.m245

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Cars-...=p4506.c0.m245

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Cars-...=p4506.c0.m245

Oh and here's my fav, a CPO from an audi dealer with 16k miles on it...asking $53k, which means it's probably guna sell for <$50k.

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...=&cardist=1835

Oh my! And what's this? ANOTHER CPO at an audi dealer for $53k, again meaning the actual sale price will probably be <$50k...

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...=&cardist=2139

And this couldn't possibly be another low mile CPO at a dealer for $53k, could it?

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...=&cardist=1786

And there are 50 billion more of these all over the place online, I'm just getting sick of copying the links at this point. So your "exclusivity" comment seems kind of ridiculous. The prices speak for themselves, especially the CPO ones that are obviously going to sell for $50k or less, given the $53k asking prices.

You'd have a much harder time finding an '06 E55 CPO with similar miles for the same price as these '07 RS4's are going for, and forget about getting an '07 E63 for that price. So I guess I'm not quite sure how a cheaper car with 10,000 units produced in the less than two years it's been around can somehow have more "exclusivity"?

thegamemodo9

I don't want to get into this depreciation discussion, but from autotrader:

Average price of a 2006 E55 throughout US: $51,255 (a 46% decrease from a $95,000 price in 3 years)
Average price of a 2007 RS4 throughout US: $57,039 (a 23% decrease from a $74,000 price in 2 years)

CWW

The problem is that most 2007 RS4's probably haven't actually been in service for 2 full years yet, and autotrader will include them in the average anyway. Meanwhile, the 2006 E55's have been in service for 2+ years, owing to the model year difference between the two, so you've got nearly 3 years' worth of depreciation on the 55 and less than 2 years on the RS4's. That will skew the numbers.

If you wanted to be fair, you would compare it to a 2007 E63, since that is the same model year as the RS4. So where are those numbers?

Also, from what I've seen online, the RS4's aren't value-tracking the autotrader numbers anyway. Did you look at any of the dozen or so links I posted?

Hammer Down

Hey, they may not be as fast as the C63 but it has a 6spd which is way more fun than pushing buttons and it handles pretty good. I would love to have one as a daily driver. I test drove one last week out here in the bay area over at Luxury Motors in Oakland and I love the way thing sounds especially when you hit that little "S" button

thegamemodo9

2007 E63 - Average price = $67,024. Based on $95,000 price - 29.4% decrease

Of course, I'm just pulling numbers from autotrader, so these numbers don't really mean a whole lot. It's just what people are attempting to sell them for.

I will agree with the fact that RS4's arent value-tracking. It's actually quite poor. But, factor in the fact that a $74K RS4 is fully loaded but a $95,000 E-AMG isn't. The depreciation is probably a little worse.

The only reason I used a 2005-2006 E55 is because that is what he is looking for. But if we wanted to be truly, totally unbiased, the RS4 and E-AMG shouldn't even be compared. I'm really curious to see what a C63 will be worth in a couple years.

In the end, for me, if I could afford them, who really cares about depreciation? If it bothered you that much, you shouldn't buy cars like these. It doesn't really matter to me whether someone picks an E-AMG or an RS4, they're both fantastic cars.

DarkStar

The cars are pretty reliable, but like your RS4 things are going to break from time to time. Even little things (trim pieces for instance) are expensive. Big things are crazy expensive. You should be able to buy a warranty from a 3rd party pretty easily.

trovan

cars are not investments in general.... why are we debating over depreciation. good luck finding a e55 and sell your RS4.

evilb

Ok... this is truly beating a dead horse, but you obviously have some major hard-on for RS4's not being as "valuable" as an AMG car. So, your inferiority complex aside, what kind of logic made you think that you can equally compare an RS4 to an E63?

The RS4 is the "sport" version of the 2 cars you've mentioned. It's smaller, it handles and maneuvers better, and has a sportier interior. Those are facts. The E55 and E63 are luxury sedans, to the exact definition of the term. If they weren't, they would offer manual transmissions in them.

Again, NONE of this is anywhere remotely related to my original questions above...

Congratulations! You can post links! /me hands you a cookie

Vic55

Lets stop the arguing and get back on topic.

Thanks.

CWW

LOL! That's just not accurate...

What actually happened was, you got all snarky to MB_Forever and posted this response:

Look familiar?

Then I pointed out that, in reality, you can also buy your '07 RS4 for almost the same $45k that you threw out there in your response, and posted a bunch of links to all sorts of different RS4's for sale, showing their values have actually depreciated faster than the E55s.

I don't have an inferiority complex, and I'm not trying to say that Benz is better than Audi or vice/versa, just pointing out that your snarky remark is kind of off-base, considering the current values of the RS4's.

You seem awfully touchy over this subject...

evilb

Thank you.