nene
August 6th, 2003, 19:22
I'm not sure if this has been posted before, but I usually wait until I'm a bit used to the car before I try to post how I 'really feel' about it. In this case, I don't think I'll ever succeed in getting used to the RS6, but after the 'G' mile mark on the odometer, it's possible that I might have something useful to share.
The Scenario:
For those of you that don't know most Northeast USA cities, they are usually in pretty bad shape. I've driven in dirt roads that were in better shape than most Boston roads. Of all the cities in the Northeast USA, Boston is most likely the worst of all when it comes to road conditions. The state basically has little to no money to fix them, since it's all going mostly towards the 'Big Dig'. Even one of the major fixes on Route 128/95, took them over 1 year to repave a stretch of about 3 miles.
Usually I would say that Boston is a perfect city for using SUVs, even though the streets aren't usually wide enough to fit two of them side-by-side. Certainly there are lots of potholes, but the worst of it all, is that hardly any pavement is evenly put together. Between the holes and the uneveness of the pavement, any car will take a beating!
The Victims:
Because of the road's conditions, normally a good riding suspension would be a regular Audi A4 (B5/B6) or even a BMW 540i (1999-2000MY).
The cars I own are as follows: 1997 BMW 540i, 2000 Audi S4, 2001 Mercedes Benz CLK 430 Convertible, 2003 Audi RS6.
The list of cars above is the ones I mostly use to run around town, in various forms of commutes. The Audi S4 now has an H&R Street Coilover setup, and the setting is about 1 inch of space between top of tire and wheel well. Pretty low, and very sporty riding. All the other cars are pretty much stock suspension. I don't remember what a stock S4 suspension even feels like anymore. Before purchasing the RS6, the BMW 540i was one of my favorites for long trips, and riding comfy around the town. Not as much of a babe magnet, but if parents are in town, that's what you need to use.
The RS6 has clearly been a God send. The ride quality does very much rival that of the 540i in comfort, believe or not. Although it's a slightly stiffer suspension, it rides those holes and uneveness of the pavement with such poise. Most importantly in the past few days, where I had to make it to the airport about 4 times, where most of the crappy pavement is noticed. Maybe the seats also have something to do with it, not sure, but the car over bumps is just great, and very solid. Unlike the tin cans (Toyota/Honda) where you feel the car crack/snap/pop, the RS6 is very solid, and I did not notice any whining or grunting over any of the stuff. I try to avoid major holes in the road, but the RS6 is a solid machine, and the suspension is the best I've been in. I'm sure that if I had to go on a road for 3 hours over continuous bumps and stuff, the RS6 wouldn't be too comfortable, but neither would be the 540i.
Arround corners the car is just plain solid and flat as you make the curves. Long sweeping curves are the best though. I know of a few roads locally that I've tested the RS6 on, and it's great. Even though the S4 is lower to the ground, and uses a decent coilover setup, you still feel less sway on the RS6, keeping speed around the same curve identical. Considering the RS6 is heavier, this suspension is just phenomenal.
The Response:
One of the Boston Audi Group members asked me this past weekend when I had intentions on lowering the car, and changing suspension. My response to him was that I was not looking to downgrade anything in the car.
The RS6 is so top notch, that changing the setup on a few things might not really yield a better outcome. The car is so complete, that I've only really contemplated very small changes. These changes would be mostly visible via a different set of rims for the Summer. Not sure how that will change the suspension and ride feel, since 19" or 20" rims would make big difference. So it could be that the combination of the different seats, and the bigger rubber on the rims could add to the goodness my tush feels when it's planted on the RS6.
The Scenario:
For those of you that don't know most Northeast USA cities, they are usually in pretty bad shape. I've driven in dirt roads that were in better shape than most Boston roads. Of all the cities in the Northeast USA, Boston is most likely the worst of all when it comes to road conditions. The state basically has little to no money to fix them, since it's all going mostly towards the 'Big Dig'. Even one of the major fixes on Route 128/95, took them over 1 year to repave a stretch of about 3 miles.
Usually I would say that Boston is a perfect city for using SUVs, even though the streets aren't usually wide enough to fit two of them side-by-side. Certainly there are lots of potholes, but the worst of it all, is that hardly any pavement is evenly put together. Between the holes and the uneveness of the pavement, any car will take a beating!
The Victims:
Because of the road's conditions, normally a good riding suspension would be a regular Audi A4 (B5/B6) or even a BMW 540i (1999-2000MY).
The cars I own are as follows: 1997 BMW 540i, 2000 Audi S4, 2001 Mercedes Benz CLK 430 Convertible, 2003 Audi RS6.
The list of cars above is the ones I mostly use to run around town, in various forms of commutes. The Audi S4 now has an H&R Street Coilover setup, and the setting is about 1 inch of space between top of tire and wheel well. Pretty low, and very sporty riding. All the other cars are pretty much stock suspension. I don't remember what a stock S4 suspension even feels like anymore. Before purchasing the RS6, the BMW 540i was one of my favorites for long trips, and riding comfy around the town. Not as much of a babe magnet, but if parents are in town, that's what you need to use.
The RS6 has clearly been a God send. The ride quality does very much rival that of the 540i in comfort, believe or not. Although it's a slightly stiffer suspension, it rides those holes and uneveness of the pavement with such poise. Most importantly in the past few days, where I had to make it to the airport about 4 times, where most of the crappy pavement is noticed. Maybe the seats also have something to do with it, not sure, but the car over bumps is just great, and very solid. Unlike the tin cans (Toyota/Honda) where you feel the car crack/snap/pop, the RS6 is very solid, and I did not notice any whining or grunting over any of the stuff. I try to avoid major holes in the road, but the RS6 is a solid machine, and the suspension is the best I've been in. I'm sure that if I had to go on a road for 3 hours over continuous bumps and stuff, the RS6 wouldn't be too comfortable, but neither would be the 540i.
Arround corners the car is just plain solid and flat as you make the curves. Long sweeping curves are the best though. I know of a few roads locally that I've tested the RS6 on, and it's great. Even though the S4 is lower to the ground, and uses a decent coilover setup, you still feel less sway on the RS6, keeping speed around the same curve identical. Considering the RS6 is heavier, this suspension is just phenomenal.
The Response:
One of the Boston Audi Group members asked me this past weekend when I had intentions on lowering the car, and changing suspension. My response to him was that I was not looking to downgrade anything in the car.
The RS6 is so top notch, that changing the setup on a few things might not really yield a better outcome. The car is so complete, that I've only really contemplated very small changes. These changes would be mostly visible via a different set of rims for the Summer. Not sure how that will change the suspension and ride feel, since 19" or 20" rims would make big difference. So it could be that the combination of the different seats, and the bigger rubber on the rims could add to the goodness my tush feels when it's planted on the RS6.