Wow....very cool aritcle... I love this line... 'the rs6 is hands down the better car...." I find it funny that it is the car he ended up driving everywhere, but would opt to own the e39.... yup, wanted to make sure he said the "right" thing to the BMW crowd.
For what its worth, I have owned both. I bought my M5 new in 2000 on European Delivery. It was a great car, but because they had to use the recirculating ball steering, it had a somewhat numb drive to it. No doubt it was super fun to drive in the 6 speed, but it is no where close to the car the RS6 is.
When I first drove the RS6 in early 2003, I knew I would get one someday.... I bought my Avus Silver RS6 with 11K on the odometer in 2004... Pretty much had at least one ever since...except for a couple breaks..some might call it a few brief lapses in judgement!
One day, this car will get its due... I really think that low mileage well sorted example will start to fetch big bucks...so hold on to them folks... the party is just getting started!