RS6 vs. E55 vs. M5 vs. XJR in Autocar

[MichaelJP]

OK, this test has been done a few times now by various magazines, but this one is by Steve Sutcliffe in Autocar this week.

He is never a performance Audi fan, so as you would expect, the RS6 gets poor marks for handling, in fact in this section he dismisses it with the words: "Forget the RS6 - it's way too stiff and way too clumsy to stand comparison with rivals of this quality."

I don't usually moan about performance car tests, but I do think this is unfair. I owned an M5 18 months ago and to me the RS6 stands good comparison on twisty roads, especially as I think the tiptronic box suits a "super-saloon" far better than the slightly awkward manual shift in the M5.

Mind you, Sutcliffe bought an M5 with his own money a couple of months ago:)

- MichaelJP

[Erik]

We've seen it a few times but with the S Type R but not the XJR.
Correct me if I'm wrong.

Well if a well respected magazine like EVO rated the S Type R as high as the M5 and higher than the RS 6 I'm not surprised any longer.

What's the final score? RS 6 in the last position or what?

[MichaelJP]

The RS6 was in last position, but Sutcliffe did say that they were so close that it really came down to personal taste.

For me it comes down to:

M5 - too old, soon to be replaced, manual gearchange
E55 - Merc is not really my style - interior also not up to scratch
XJR - nice aluminium spaceframe but looks just like the old one!
RS6 - Avant, tiptronic, quattro, just right:)

- MichaelJP

[Erik]

Isn't Jaguar all about preserving the Heritage? :hihi:

I'm going to a 'gourmet weekend' this week and there will be 2 E55 AMGs, 1 RS 6 a few M5's and M3's around (not sure exactly what will show up).

I hope to return with interesting photos and hopefully a test drive of the E55 as well. :)

[Snow]

And how the h*ll are you able to get yourself involved into all of those meetings? :D I think I better start meeting the "right" people... :hmm:

[Erik]

Originally posted by Snow
I think I better start meeting the "right" people... :hmm:

Get yourself an Audi first ;) It's a good start :cool2: