Two very different cars so it’s kinda difficult to compare given the age of the RS4.
Transmission
I’ve been very sceptical of automatics from the outset, I’ve always preferred having my left foot and left hand doing something and not letting the car decide which gear I should be in and when.
By the time I made my way through Edinburgh (visiting sister) and then onwards to Ikea, I was converted – probably more out of convenience.
Given a choice I would still pick manual if there was an option.
Technology
The amount of tech and driver aids in the Mercedes is unreal, a lot of it is centred around driver safety and assistance but non of it is particularly intrusive in any way.
The B7 comes nowhere near but don’t forget it’s also 7-8 years older, perhaps a fairer like for like comparison when it comes to tech would be the B8?
Tech doesn’t really excite me that much as to be a deal breaker with a car but certainly a nice to have when it’s available!
The Mercedes Comand system is far superior to the old RNS-E as I have full control of my iPod but again, not a fair comparison as I’m sure whatever is fitted to the B8 is comparable.
Exclusivity
There’s always an argument about the rarity of the RS badge which a few years ago would be true. Audi however seem to now be churning out an RS badged everything nowadays – RS3, RS4, RS5, RS6 and RS7. The RS1 can’t be far away?
I guess given competition from BMW’s M division and Mercedes AMG, Audi have to move with them so as to not lose any customers.
On the way there and back I spotted 4 B7’s and 2 B8’s. I also spotted about 4 C63’s (although none of these were the Edition 507).
Didn’t even bother counting the number of M3’s…..
I also parked up at the furthest end of the car park when we are at Ikea.
As we were running late the entire day, we decided to have lunch first before shopping and ended up sitting at one of those raised tables overlooking the carpark.
Mrs Pie pointed out a number of people returning to their cars and taking a keen interest in the AMG; taking photos with their phones.
Not sure if this is a good or bad thing. The RS certainly didn’t attract this type of attention.
Drive
In the dry, you can really push the Mercedes and it’ll stick to the tarmac. Slightest hint of moisture and you do have to be a bit wary about what the arse end is up to.
The quattro however just fills you with confidence all the time, regardless of road conditions but I guess this is to be expected when going from 4x4 to RWD.
Ride is a little firmer than the RS but this could well be because it’s a brand new car.
The amount of torque is breathtaking; on the way back to Aberdeen I spotted a Shell station somewhere between Perth and Dundee on the motorway. I easily had enough fuel to get me to the BP at Dundee but all I had in my mind was the chance for a static start and getting up to speed v quickly on a motorway so I ducked in here to fill up.
I set her to manual when we left and sat stationary at the exit, gap appeared so I hit the loud pedal…. Acceleration is phenomenal. Speedo swept clockwise effortlessly and rapidly!
Power delivery is relentless all the way up to the redline and same again when you change gear.
The RS I found was fairly smooth to begin with then became a monster at higher revs but the Mercedes is a monster all the time.
The exhaust note is something else.
All you have to do is go onto YouTube and do a search for C63 AMG Exhaust and you’re inundated with videos with view counts hitting 5 and 6 figures – and this is from a standard exhaust!
Downshifting in manual mode is also a lot of fun.
You get a nice throttle blip (and if recently driven hard) this is followed with some nice cracks and pops out the exhaust.
Visually the AMG seats don’t come anywhere near the RS buckets with the sticky out ‘ears’ and the two apertures for a racing harness, surprisingly they are just as effective at holding you in snuggly.
I do miss the visual impact of the RS buckets when viewing from outside though.
Fuel
The RS is without doubt far more palatable when it comes to consumption and thats saying something!
Saturday morning whilst still in Aberdeen (with less than 100 miles on the clock) she was averaging 11mpg since leaving the factory.
On the motorway she was averaging 21.5mpg.
My morning commute to work – approx. 7 miles I’m doing 18mpg.
Overall
The RS (to me) was getting a little, dare I say, bland. Maybe it was more to do with 4 years ownership?
I’m currently probably going through the same emotions with the Merc as I did with the RS when I got her back in 2010 (Write up here http://www.pistonheads.com/members/show ... rId=135499)
I’m certainly not regretting my decision to move but I will miss the camaraderie that comes with RS4, wee flash and wave as another fellow owner passes by; don’t seem to get that with the C63.
I’ll still drop in here from time to time and if anyone is organising a national meet this year, I’ll pop along as I’ve certainly made a lot of good friends on this board.
