Not finding love with my RS6

[QuattroDave]

Evening all, bit of a weird one this. A month ago I bought a V10 RS6 avant. Always loved them and always wanted one. Since selling my URquattro and moving to a 530d as a daily I wanted to give an every car for every occasion a go, so thus the planets aligned and I bought a mugello blue RS6 avant with a heady 700bhp under the bonnet.

1,100 miles later and I'm all just a bit 'meh' about it. Sure it's pretty much the fastest thing on the roads and should I choose to mash the loud pedal I've got around 4 seconds of joy before numbers start resembling jail time. On paper it ticks all the boxes:

Practical (space/luggage wise)
The sound (at least on start up and gearchange under load)
Disgustingly fast
Well screwed together & reliable
Toys a-plenty

Yet I've not really built an affinity with it. I always knew fuel consumption was going to be 'strong' but I wasn't expecting 11.1mpg as an average for a week (I brim it each sunday) even considering my commute is only 3.5 miles of heavy traffic I think below 15 is a tad harsh so that's clearly not helping, although on a run I seem to get between 21-26mpg so my 1,100 mile average is 19. Not helped by also buying an Alfa 147 ducati corse last week too and chucking that round is proper fun and regardless of how I drove, it refused to show LESS than 40mpg :S

I know a large part of the not clicking is my accountant brain whirring around in the background!

Economy aside there's just something else that's not quite clicked. Quite probably it's that it's TOO fast to properly enjoy on our congested and camera strewn roads, or perhaps it's that the sound insulation and exhaust are a little too refined to enjoy the engine note. I'm fairly sure it's a little too understated for what I'm used to, having come from a urquattro where I'd get nods/waves/honks acknowledging the car to a car that unless you knew what the silver wing mirrors and little red badge meant you would just think it's a 2.0tdi repmobile (sounds very vain of me but really I'm not vain!) Whatever the reasons I find myself after a month whether it's the all things car I really want or not.

Which brings me onto alternatives.

I think the following will help:
More road presence;
similar practicality/size
more economical (even mid 20's as an average would be 50% better!)
Sounds good

So far I've only really thought of a couple of cars, namely the newest shape XJ (3.0tdi with some tuning would be good but loses out on sound), erm, actually no I'm not overly sure of any other cars, even the XJ!

If I dump out of RS6 ownership now I'll likely not lose many pennies but if I keep it a little longer I may bond more (unlikely but still possible!).

Thoughts welcome!

Dave

[Lefty]

I had exactly the same thing, bought an MRC-tuned RS6 avant last September and persevered with it until about May and then flogged it.

Awesome thing but I really didn't "bond" with it.

[Lefty]

I did pretty much a straight swap with an e92 m3 looking for something with a semblance of practicality but still fun...but it's turned out to be pretty dull too! Better than the e46 though.

I just bought a £7500 s1 Elise and am going to flog the m3 and put some of the cash towards a 4x4 of some sort for all the practical duties.

[Ozzie Osmond]

I've never seen the point of a saloon/estate with an engine the size of a planet. Perfect for one-upmanship in the executive car park or for the pub boaster but at the end of the day it's just an expensive version of the base model. For a truly different driving experience you need a different starting point.

Most particularly, for the price of the darned things you can usually buy a base model of the same car AND a decent sportscar as well!

[QuattroDave]

Lefty said:

I did pretty much a straight swap with an e92 m3 looking for something with a semblance of practicality but still fun...but it's turned out to be pretty dull too! Better than the e46 though.

I just bought a £7500 s1 Elise and am going to flog the m3 and put some of the cash towards a 4x4 of some sort for all the practical duties.

Funny I tried an e92 m3 with remus exhaust before I plumped for the RS6 (also MRC tuned) as I realise I'm more of a turbo fan than high revving NA (although the m3 with remus sounded much nicer than the rs6). Thought it was a nice car but again not 'great' In my quest for a one for all car I may have cemented the need for two! I've kept my wifes other (120bhp lusso) 147 in case I need another car whilst I transition. Thing is the now 'spare' 147 we have is such a hoot to drive and is worth £1,500 tops and has been well maintained during the three years we've had it but I want more luxury (and fewer squeaks!) from the interior!

[anonymous-user]

QuattroDave said:

Yet I've not really built an affinity with it. I always knew fuel consumption was going to be 'strong' but I wasn't expecting 11.1mpg as an average for a week (I brim it each sunday) even considering my commute is only 3.5 miles of heavy traffic I think below 15 is a tad harsh so that's clearly not helping, although on a run I seem to get between 21-26mpg so my 1,100 mile average is 19.

...

I think the following will help:

more economical (even mid 20's as an average would be 50% better!)
...

If your commute is 3.5 miles frankly why do you care about fuel economy? Your commuting miles aren't going to rack up to anything very meaningful, and quite frankly any car is going to get rubbish economy sitting in traffic on a short journey.

Mid 20s on a 3.5 mile commute is a pipedream unless you're eyeing up a Focus or similar.

[treetops]

3.5 mile commute. Will kill that engine. You don't need that car for that job.

[anonymous-user]

try one of these:



Proper V8 with bags of supercharged tuning potential.

[threadlock]

QuattroDave said:

Evening all, bit of a weird one this.
...
1,100 miles later and I'm all just a bit 'meh' about it.

• Really* interesting, this.

My wife is starting to make rumbling noises about selling the XKR and buying something more practical that our growing kids will fit into for long journeys. I've considered the RS6 (C6) as something that'll replace the XKR's performance, noise and excitement while keeping her happy.
But I had a 2010 C6 A6 Avant from new for three years (a TDI S-Line, I know I know) and decided not to keep it in the end because it was just so unengaging. Its handling was heavy-feeling, stodgy, and inert and it was too stiffly-sprung. I'm worried that even the RS6 will feel the same: competent and undoubtedly quick, but soul-less and uninvolving with no sense of occasion.
And yet people rave about them.
I can believe they're good cars in the general sense, but is technical competence enough? My XKR has rough edges but it just such a lovely car to own and drive and it has totally delighted me. Could I go back to an Audi and bond in the same way? I'm not sure I could.

[anonymous-user]

Have you ever considered a push bike for that 3.5 mile commute?

[markcoznottz]

You won't bond, big saloons aren't known for their character. Much like the amg mercs of similar vintage, apart from the interesting numbers under the bonnet, there just isn't that 'X' factor.

[anonymous-user]

280E said:

Have you ever considered a push bike for that 3.5 mile commute?

Or one of these: http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

Loving Saabs at the moment. They feature in my every post

[andy-xr]

German issue, too efficient and hasnt got any soul. If it broke down a bit or did a few unexpected things you'd probably like it more

[Lefty]

Indeed. Hugely fast, very competent, very comfortable, very refined. Just lacking character.

I'm not sorry I had one, not at all and I'd have another as part of a 10-car fantasy garage...

[QuattroDave]

279 said:

QuattroDave said:

Yet I've not really built an affinity with it. I always knew fuel consumption was going to be 'strong' but I wasn't expecting 11.1mpg as an average for a week (I brim it each sunday) even considering my commute is only 3.5 miles of heavy traffic I think below 15 is a tad harsh so that's clearly not helping, although on a run I seem to get between 21-26mpg so my 1,100 mile average is 19.

...

I think the following will help:

more economical (even mid 20's as an average would be 50% better!)
...

If your commute is 3.5 miles frankly why do you care about fuel economy? Your commuting miles aren't going to rack up to anything very meaningful, and quite frankly any car is going to get rubbish economy sitting in traffic on a short journey.

Mid 20s on a 3.5 mile commute is a pipedream unless you're eyeing up a Focus or similar.

I think you misunderstand, I'm not looking for my daily commute to be mid 20's, but the overall average (as opposed to 19 that the RS6 is sitting at now). Anywho Plus commute is 2.5 miles of motorway (all slip road) so actually I averaged about 29 in the 530d and yesterday a frankly stupid 44 from cold in the alfa!

Can't state strongly enough that despite it only being a short commute I have a very strong accountant brain that whirrs around tutting at this and that. I try to keep it under control but it's always there!!

Edited by QuattroDave on Sunday 13th September 17:57

[QuattroDave]

treetops said:

3.5 mile commute. Will kill that engine. You don't need that car for that job.

280E said:

Have you ever considered a push bike for that 3.5 mile commute?

Spent four years commuting on a bike 5 miles each way and more often than not preferred it as Southampton traffic is frankly abhorrent at the best of times. Would gladly cycle to new work (only been there 5 months) save for two problems, 1. no shower & 2. nowhere at all to lock a bike up. I've got the landlord to sort the first and am meeting him again tomorrow as it happens to sort the second, then, barring really horrible weather I'll cycle most days which will sort the local fuel economy problem but still leaves me with the other issues I'm feeling with the car!

[QuattroDave]

wormus said:

try one of these:



Proper V8 with bags of supercharged tuning potential.

Forgot they did an estate of these!

Ironic isn't it that I'd discounted the VXR8 on the basis that it'll just about do 17mpg and here I am with a car doing just a whisper north of that figure!

I drove an auto VXR8 around thruxton, was horrible to drive on track compared with the astra and even corsa!!

Edited by QuattroDave on Sunday 13th September 18:11

[Magic919]

I thought the VXR8 was not great on the track and the Corsa VXR was about the best (Rockingham). But the VXR8 was great fun on the road. Used to get about 16mpg on my 12 mile commute.

[QuattroDave]

Magic919 said:

I thought the VXR8 was not great on the track and the Corsa VXR was about the best (Rockingham). But the VXR8 was great fun on the road. Used to get about 16mpg on my 12 mile commute.

I've done the VXR days five times now, all at Thruxton. First two times I much preferred the Corsa, but now I know the track that much more I could take the Astra to the limit which took over as my favorite of the bunch. Missed it this year though

[sealtt]

For something totally different that might have a fun personality - fantastic noise - and tonnes of practicality ... Why not check out a Range Rover Sport SVR? Not driven one myself, but read good reviews and as a Range Rover convert myself, after being totally underwhelmed by a new M6 cabrio!!, thought I'd throw it out there.