Why is the Audi S6 v10 so cheap?

[ingenieur]

On the hunt for a car with a big petrol engine and noticed via 'any make' search on Autotrader that the Audi S6 is a hella lotta car for under £10k.

So are they absolute money pits or something? Why aren't they as strong money as the M5 or AMG?

[RB Will]

Because it is only the S6 not RS6. probably comparable in price to a 540/50i or E500

It is a bit of a no mans land car now, you could justify the running costs of an RS6 to yourself but a watered down one with similar bills is a harder sell.

[paradigital]

For starters they aren't the competitor to the M5 or AMG E63, they are the E60 550i competitor, so they don't hold that halo value that the RS6 would.

I'm also led to believe that running costs aren't exactly pretty!

[brillomaster]

Im not aware of there being inherently wrong with the audi v10, unlike the bmw v10 which is quite fragile. And as said, its just a big engine in a fairly humdrum saloon, nothing special like an m car or proper amg.

It does seem like a lot of car for the money... i can count on two hands the number of production vehicles with v10s in, and that one is available for under 10 grand is seriously appealing, even if just to tick a box by running it for a year then selling.

[HiAsAKite]

Running costs.

Plus almost anything, is an engine out job....

[The spinner of plates]

I had a boss who had one. He liked it but didn't like the running costs enough to keep it more than 2 years.
Conclusion was that it cost far more than double per mile to run vs the 3.0tdi, and whilst better, was no where near double the experience.
Without deep emotional 'just want', man-maths can quickly slide into pure maths... then it can all start looking a bit ugly.
Often a the law of diminishing returns when you stick a big engine in a humdrum car - you're playing to quite a narrow crowd

There are those who will dig this sort of thing, but as used prices confirm, it's not that many.

[TCX]

'cheap' to buy....or cheap to use?

[ensignia]

Love the sound these Audi V10s make at lower revs. Has a lovely whine which, to my ears, sounds delightful.

The 4.2 V8 in the RS4 and R8 was the same albeit slightly lower pitched, but no less aurally pleasing.

[ingenieur]

Shows what I know about Audi's, comparing the S6 to the M5. Haha.

Not sure I'd class the rest of the shell as humdrum. Has special seats and I doubt the brakes and suspension are the same that you'd find in the 1.8l

Interesting to know there's nothing specifically wrong with them... merely the fact that they're unpopular due to running costs.

[ninjag]

HiAsAKite said:

Running costs.

Plus almost anything, is an engine out job....

This is what worried me about the RS4 and the 4.2 V8 being squeezed into an engine bay which wasn't really designed for it.

[Mouse Rat]

Also the S6 is probably more comparable to the XF 5.0. Both similar value but I would imagine the XF would cost less to maintain overall.

[ingenieur]

I think I'd feel safer with the XF somehow. Don't know why... but VAG cars make me nervous about reliability.

[Walter Sobchak]

I’ve always thought the S7 was pretty good value compared to the RS7, it’s still a 4 litre twin turbo V8 just de tuned and only making 450 BHP IIRC which is both more than enough and easily mappable.

I don’t know what differences there are between the S and RS variants of that engine though, I imagine it has to be more than just a power map, different turbos for starters.

[RB Will]

depends what you are after really. if it is just the power / straight line speed a modded S6 or whatever will match the RS / M / AMG versions but it does not come close to being the whole package. A mapped S4 is quicker in a drag than a standard RS4 but the engine / drivetrain/ chassis / brakes / interior are all different and it is the components that add up to the better experience not just a bit more power

[ZX10R NIN]

The main issue with these is not that they go wrong a lot (most are 100k+) but when they do the parts are specific to that car & that car alone so therefore the cost can sometimes be very stiff, like most performance Audi's it'll also need a decoke which isn't overly expensive.

Go in with your eyes open & it won't be the worst buy.

BUT I'd be looking for a nice 5.5 500 Mercedes they're imo a much better car.

5.5 CLK500 with pretty much every option tick including Air Cooled seats for half your budget:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202205215...

CL500:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202204144...

If you fancy a truly potential borkage purchase then I give you the CL600:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202205185...

[Snow and Rocks]

I had a 2005 A6 3.0Tdi back from when it was nearly new through to about 5 years old and 250k miles.

It was a good car and really quite durable if expensive to fix when it did go wrong. However it definitely wasn't an exciting car to drive and it's strengths were all things that wouldn't really be improved by fitting a 5.0 V10! It had a great interior, was surefooted even on snowy Aberdeenshire back roads and effortlessly refined on long journeys.

The biggest weakness of the car was the chassis - the ride was fine on SE suspension and small wheels but it felt really nose heavy if you tried anything too adventurous.

I think the V10 and a sporty setup would arguably make it a worse car overall.

[trevalvole]

ZX10R NIN said:

5.5 CLK500 with pretty much every option tick including Air Cooled seats for half your budget:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202205215...

In photo 13, what's that pipe that makes its way up and down through the front engine cover and is it OE?

[MarkJS]

ZX10R NIN said:

The main issue with these is not that they go wrong a lot (most are 100k+) but when they do the parts are specific to that car & that car alone so therefore the cost can sometimes be very stiff, like most performance Audi's it'll also need a decoke which isn't overly expensive.

Go in with your eyes open & it won't be the worst buy.

BUT I'd be looking for a nice 5.5 500 Mercedes they're imo a much better car.

5.5 CLK500 with pretty much every option tick including Air Cooled seats for half your budget:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202205215...

CL500:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202204144...

If you fancy a truly potential borkage purchase then I give you the CL600:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202205185...

That CL500 ‘looks’ amazing value if you’ve got a war chest for running it. I’d love one of these.

[ZX10R NIN]

trevalvole said:

In photo 13, what's that pipe that makes its way up and down through the front engine cover and is it OE?

Yes it's OE but no idea.

[ZX10R NIN]

MarkJS said:

That CL500 ‘looks’ amazing value if you’ve got a war chest for running it. I’d love one of these.

Apart from the legs £500-700 exchange there's not to much borkage, the 5.5 is pretty much bulletproof as is the box.