S4 / RS4 - I just don't get it

[liffy99]

The huge price difference that is.
For example, a 10 year old s4 might be about £6k (20% of new price ?). So 20% of the price (£40k ?) for a similar age RS4 would indicate about £8k.
But they seem to go for almost double that - why ?

A KO4'd S4 can be had for £8k - what is it that makes the Rs4 so much more ? Sure - better seats, but what else is there in comparison to a modded S4 ?

Hmmm

PS - any reason why FS adverts never seem to advertise an aprox. location ? It's really time wasting pursuing something of interest to find that it's 250 miles away !

Guess you S4 guys will be along with the answers soon . . . .

[HYFR]

rarity

[neckarsulm]

S4 looks like a TDI in comparison, RS4's wide arches mark it out as something special and while a good modded S4 may drive the same, people like cars that look special and pay more for them.
I'm not sure rarity is enough as I see loads more B7 RS4s than B7 S4s and look at that price difference!

[lengster1]

Rs4 is the daddy and cars under £10k are very rare,its a stunning looking machine in comparison to an s4,i think the price gap is a little larger than you think and for me the extra would be very well spent on the RS,if performance is high on your agenda the s4 can be tuned but expensively the rs4 is a much better place to start

[gman1001]

Hi Liffy.2 weeks ago o bought a 41k mile RS4 B5 at £21k and at first I had the same dilema WHY but after viewing a s4 & rs4 there was no comparison against the looks of both cars I'd hope to think that the rs4 b5 will become a collectors item in years to come as there is only 400- in uk, in turn holding it's depreciation long term, being as I payed 40% off it's new price of £50k 10 years ago.honestly you won't get a decent Rs for 8k I've seen catD for £11.5k.If you buy cheap in my opinion it's a false economy on it's repairs unless your handy with a spanner.

[gman1001]

Hi Liffy.2 weeks ago o bought a 41k mile RS4 B5 at £21k and at first I had the same dilema WHY but after viewing a s4 & rs4 there was no comparison against the looks of both cars I'd hope to think that the rs4 b5 will become a collectors item in years to come as there is only 400- in uk, in turn holding it's depreciation long term, being as I payed 40% off it's new price of £50k 10 years ago.honestly you won't get a decent Rs for 8k I've seen catD for £11.5k.If you buy cheap in my opinion it's a false economy on it's repairs unless your handy with a spanner.

[stumpyrs4]

Many differences between the two cars, not just external bodywork, but suspension, wheels, brakes, engine, interior. There's almost nothing the same about them.

That and the volume of cars around, means they will ALWAYS be much much more expensive than a similar age/mileage S4.

If you drive one of each both stock, you'll understand the differences. Tuned and you get a different picture again, depending on what mods have been done.

Well worth spending the extra.

[Rs4Fan]

I have both - you'd need to drive them to understand why the RS4 is just so special. Ultimately, selling price is all about what a potential buyer is willing to pay for it.

[gman1001]

As mentioned above the body styling is diffrent, the rs4 us 380bhp vs s4 at 265bhp Add to the above that the RS4 only came in avant and has RS4 specific clocks, steering wheel, gear knob, wider wheels, different suspension arms, different gearbox ratio, shaped rear doors, exhaust, engine and most ancillaries.

[liffy99]

Hmmm, perhaps I wasn't being clear.
I wasn't expecting to find an RS4 for £8k (if you read my post this was the figure I was suggesting a KO4'd S4 could be had for).
My question is why is an RS4 at, say, £16k against £8k for the modded S4 ?
The latter is likely to have the same (or even better) suspension, brakes, intercoolers etc (but admittedly not the wider shell or perhaps Recaros).
Obviously as a standard car te RS4 is going to be more but I've never known quite such a difference. A 2002 BMW 330ci might be £8k, an M3 from the same year £12k, but not £16k !

I realise a car is worth what people will pay but this just seems to be plain wrong to me.

Ah well

[Rs4Fan]

Fact is that you just don't seem to get a premium for a modded car when you sell it.

[lengster1]

The gap isnt what your suggesting on a like for like basis,ie same mileage condition etc of both examples,tuning and modding adds very little value but desireability sometimes which can turn it into a sale,my b7 has approx 5k worth of tuning/mods but i think i would be lucky to attract 1k more than a stock example,by far the best bet is return it to stock and sell off all the bits,a little awkward/expensive with a k04 s4 though

[rickoshea]

I believe rarity is the main reason. Can't remember when I last saw an RS4 B5 on the road - must have been months ago. M3's are not rare at all and therefore do not command a huge premium over the next model down - the 330Ci Sport.

On a similar vein, think back to my mid/late 80's. A good condition 3-door Sierra Cossie will set you back, say £7K. A similar mileage, similar condition RS500 will set you back around £16K. Bear in mind that both had similar levels of power out of the box ( 204 vs. 224 ), but arguably the standard 3-door was nicer to drive due to much less turbo lag. Rarity is a major factor, although only if there's people willing to pay the premium.

My 2c's worth.

Rick.

[mikeyquattro]

also, whats wrong with travelling 250+miles for the right car? I did...

[jaqsey]

i ,traveled from heathrow to aberdeen and back to collect mine in one day ,loved the drive back