Jakpro1

Just my humble....

I have actually befriended the guy in the S4 who I set out to kill (race) with my 55. You can talk performance all you want...but when we sit at a red light in his car, it's like we are in a Taurus. His comment when we are at a red light in my Benz....."Holy Crap, everyone constantly stares at us...it's enough to give you a complex"...nuff said.

Benz is Benz....

E55_POWER

Too bad I didn't see this earlier...I would have gladly did a friendly run, but I no longer have the E55 now. I'm sure I can get someone here locally to do a run. But for what it's worth, the RS6 doesn't have a chance in winning.

VinnyC

I think they are both extremely nice cars. I bought the MB because I prefer the look of the E55 better than the Audi. In addition, I was not able to find an RS6 locally to test drive or see for that matter.

vitaman

Jakpro:
You are right even though the the S4 is a different class of car.
To underline your sentiments, after taking a spirited ride in the RS6 (the owner knew some 35 mph backroads where going 100 mph could show off the quattro), we returned to where my E55 was parked. Wouldn't you know, there were three people cruising slowly around the Benz getting an eye full.

Ray J

It really depends what you are looking for.
I love a great handeling car, but once I drove the E55, the power was so incredibly addictive. No sedan really competes with the straight line speed, currently that is.

My biggest fear is that Mercedes introduce a E63 AMG that they rate at around 500 HP, in normally aspirtated form which is pretty much what E55's are unofficially rated at right now. Hence selling to the public a car that in Mercedes terms has gone up 30 or so horses, but in reality has not. What makes it worse is that a normally aspirated engine can not be tuned to the levels of performance the current E55 is at.
I know that is a bit off the topic of your question, but I just wanted to get that off my chest, anyone share these feelings?

ray

Beowulf

I'm not really concerned about a naturally-aspirated E63, even rated at 500 HP. Even with the displacement increase, it will never offer the torque of the W211 E55 without some kind of forced induction. By the time the E63 is available, the aftermarket should offer us plenty of options to blow any E63 (or M5) into the weeds.

Ray J

I hope so, and may be they can do something that will make it handle like an M5, or better yet an M3 or while we are there a 911!!, don't think that will ever happen...

JAY55

E55 all the way mate. Not used to the look of the Audi even though it's a fast *** car. :v

Pbglas

I too looked hard at the RS6 before buying the E55. It was very close. I prefered the interior of the E55 by far. On the other hand my wife prefered the RS6 interior. The RS6 handled a whole lot better but I was afraid of its bone rattleing suspension. Also we were told that the RS6 could be fitted with all weather tires and it would do well in the snow.

Ultimately we got the E55 for non-rational reasons.

But I am glad. I like the torque. I don't race, so the torque going from one speed to another which is phenomenal in the MB is great. Also it is super comfortable in long drives.

Vader13

That's a tuff one..I drove a chipped and lowerd RS6 and it was a blast, I drove a stock E55 and it was nice, but not nearly as fun as the AUDI..
The E55 has a major pimp factor, but the AUDI is much more of a drivers car.

zdkdeeier493

Aside from my bias, I don't see why there is a dilemma. I looked at an RS6 about a year or so ago and the dealer had it listed at 90k. As I sat inside I immediately felt uncomfortable. Although the interrior LOOKED nice, it felt quite the opposite. I began to pick up little things here and there - mainly little things that lacked detail. The dash, which does not include the same ~4-inch monitor that we have, however, a small digital strip the size of any normal headunit, seems too plain and something that can be found in any other car. The RS6 is a performer, no doubt. But if I am going to pay 90k, I don't want an Audi unless it's an A8L. The bottom line is, the E55 offers a sense of plush luxury that you won't be able to find in any other car. Sure the Audi handles nicer but so does the M5 and we all know who owns them :v . Ultimately I went with the E55 not only because it was hands down the best choice, but I got it for 20k less than they were asking for the RS6. Seems to me like I ripped them off...

vitaman

Vader and Eleanor Owner captured it well.
Bottom line, all Audi had to do was bring the interior and options up to 2005 level. They would have had a huge success on their hands. There's a good chance that the new M5 will not outhandle the RS6 and they would pull a number of BMW folks over who hate Bangle, Idrive and the SMG experiment. They would have taken a few MB people too who care more about tossability and steering feel than the marque's prestige.

BenzoBoi

Coming from the C5 A6, and now havin the E55, I will share my P.O.V.

I chose the E55 because, it was a newer design, the interior was alot better, and the resale was ALOT better then the audi. The only thing I miss about the Audi is the quattro. Not like you need it here in socal but it's nice to know that you have quattro for those days when you go up to Big Bear or something. One bad point on the audi was that the resale went to the dump after you bought it and took it off the lot. I have driven a chipped RS6 and I must say you don't get the in your seat action that you feel in the AMG. You don't feel the push but when you look down to see how fast you are going, you realize that you are going way faster then the legal speed limit.

What did it for me in the end was that the E class had just come out with a newer look both insdie and out. The A6 was also due for a face lift. So I decided on something that was already out. Just my 2 cents...

E55_POWER

I agree, some of your same reasons was why I sold my RS6.

If they make a new RS6 with turbos, in the current body and AWESOM?E current interior, I am def. a buyer of the new RS6...where do I sign up

2001 E55

Tough call but price difference makes the AMG a better value. The only reason to pick the audi is if weather is a daily factor.

Clyde

its a choice between automatic and tiptronic...