Need an estate - E55 or RS6 advice please

[simon1966]

Hi Guys - I am new to this forum and am after a little advice / recommendations.

I currently have a Jag S-Type R (may be a swear word on this forum but...) anyway I have had my car for 4 years and it has been great! Understated, rare, supercharged V8, good performance etc, etc, but I really need an estate, which brings the question as what to go for. There are not really many alternatives that give me what I already have / more with an estate body and practicality. I can only really think of the 2 options above.

The thing is I have heard some horror stories about the RS6 and to some extent the E55 about actually running these cars. I am not concerned with fuel economy as obviously I am used to running my car which will be similar, but more about things that can go wrong and servicing. Obviously these cars give great performance but was thinking would be similar generally in running to my car. Maybe I have just been lucky but the Jag has not been too bad other than pretty poor mpg in town, brakes and rear tyres!!.

I have had a look at an RS6 and an E55, both obviously quick cars, but RS6 not much more so over my Jag, the E55 was probably a step ahead in a straight line, but not ridiculously so, didn't get a chance on a test drive at the twisty stuff!! Either way both were quick enough! Both were around the £20K mark for 2003 / 04 models. I have to say I didn't walk away from either massively impressed, but I think it was mainly due to that I think they were not the best examples around and my car was in better condition than the examples I saw. That said I liked both, albeit they had totally different characters, and they would give me the extra practicality I need - but when I think about it, it is the RS6 I have always hankered after. Both are pretty rare although there seems to be a lot more RS6's advertised than E55's, so finding a good RS6 may be easier?

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Cheers

[HYFR]

have u seen the buyers guide?sticky

[simon1966]

have u seen the buyers guide?sticky

Hi,

Yes I had a good read through that some time ago, very useful and gave me a good general insight. The thing in there I find hard to realise is that it says it is likely to cost a minimum of 30% of buying price to run car in first year! Basing that on a £18 - £20K car that is around £6K plus! Can that really be the case or am I missing the point somewhere? I suppose if I assume say 10K miles a year the fuel will be £2.5 - £3K alone but I still can't see how it will up to £6K plus?

[HYFR]

if u buy a good one, with a good warranty (see audi) then all you will pay for is fuel & service assuming the brakes and tyres have enough wear left for the year

if something breaks thats not under warranty then thats jus bad luck and will be the same whether its a merc,bmw or audi

the key is finding a good one, as if you buy even a slightly not good one, your wallet will know all about it

[simon1966]

if u buy a good one, with a good warranty (see audi) then all you will pay for is fuel & service assuming the brakes and tyres have enough wear left for the year

if something breaks thats not under warranty then thats jus bad luck and will be the same whether its a merc,bmw or audi

the key is finding a good one, as if you buy even a slightly not good one, your wallet will know all about it

Understood!! Like anything then just need to bide my time and find the right car. I'm a fussy git anyway and can usually spot a wrong-un!

The Audi warranty looks like a must have, and reading through some appear to be extendable, although I'm not sure if this is always the case?

[HYFR]

audi warranty is extendable for ~£2k! but not if the car is over 100k at time of renewal...they're very rare though

[Sims]

audi warranty is extendable for ~£2k! but not if the car is over 100k at time of renewal...they're very rare though

Here's one with a warranty, and it's a RS6+

http://www.rs246.com/index.php?name=PNp ... torder=asc

[Golffather]

audi warranty is extendable for ~£2k! but not if the car is over 100k at time of renewal...they're very rare though

Here's one with a warranty, and it's a RS6+

http://www.rs246.com/index.php?name=PNp ... torder=asc

Love that car! If I didn't have one it'd be on my drive

[simon1966]

audi warranty is extendable for ~£2k! but not if the car is over 100k at time of renewal...they're very rare though

Here's one with a warranty, and it's a RS6+

http://www.rs246.com/index.php?name=PNp ... torder=asc

Looked at that car on here before. It does look the part, a bit out of my price range though unfortunately.

[AndyIPB]

Back to the actual comparison, although I have to admit I've not fallen for my RS6 (+) as much as I thought I would, one thing I can vouch for is the sure footedness over the Merc given by the Audi's 4WD system.

My only Merc experience is with a C230K and even with only 200BHP the back end was wayward as soon as the weather deteriorated. The RS6 simply gets on with without fuss - my wife drives it with no problems and it was even pretty good in the recent snow..

[Golffather]

E55 is amazing but spins it's ass off in the wet by which time the '6 will be away.

Get yourself a Plus for exclusivity and relatively little depreciation.