M3 J0N

Ive been a bmw guy for the last ten years, owned 4 m3s since 98 (still own two of them). (98 m3 sedan 5sp, 99 m3 coupe 5sp, 04 m3 coupe 6sp, 95 m3 coupe 5sp). While i had considered the b5 s4 back in the day, i ultimately went with the e36 m3 because it felt like a much better product OFF THE LOT - I think the b5 s4 was a couple grand more when I priced them out years ago. Obviously, the s4 had much more mod potential, but ultimately made the choice for the m3. The stock suspension differences made all the difference to me. I felt like the s4 was a bit more sedate and soft for the less spirited driver/consumer market. With the new v8 s4 vs the e46 m3, that comparison became more apparent to me, so I again opted for the e46 m3.

That being said, I have been REALLY happy with my choices. Only recently have I been wanting the BIG power that is available through that turbo b5, but the car would have to be a project car at this point if i get one. To be honest, I have always regarded the audi "S-cars" as just one notch below the bmw "m-cars" when it comes to the performance oriented driver.

My g/f had recently been looking to get into a new car. She has been driving a beat up domestic car for a bit over 5 years and I suggested making the move to something more.....well....better. We started looking at some german cars, but our budget was relatively low, so it really cut down our choices. We narrowed it down to a jetta or a volvo s40 among a couple other cars that will remain unnamed . I told her that maybe we should check out the audi A4. Brand new, it was significantly more expensive and out of our budget, but definitely the nicest out of the bunch by a HUGE margin.

We left there disappointed because she liked the car but couldnt afford it. I know shes gonna keep this car for a while, so I stressed the importance to pay a bit more and get a car youre really happy with. We went back and drove a demo. SHe was extremely happy with the car and we made a STELLAR deal on a non-titled 07 a4 2.0t demo with 8k miles 6year/100k warranty and 50k mile service plan paid for. It was a bit more than our original budget, but well worth it IMO.

It was really important, even though it is HER car, that I liked it. I decided to test drive it, expecting it to be a "relative" piece of garbage since it is basically the cheapest/entry level new audi you can get (until the new a3 came out). Let me say this: the car is absolutely phenomenal! It absolutely blew my mind! It is extremely solid, nimble, refined, and absolutely rips in acceleration (more than i expected at least). I was VERY impressed. I decided to look at some of the S models since I was there.

They had a sprint blue s4 with the carbon appearance package (both inside and out) and that special package with the vented bumpers (sorry, im a noob and dont remember what it was called). I had always been a fan of the nogaro blue on the b5 and a superfan of the estoril blue on the M cars. That being said, sprint blue, might be one of the nicest colors ive ever seen, kinda feminine, but beautiful nonetheless. It was a bit pricey though. My brand new 04 m3 with a couple options was in the low to mid 50s. The sticker on this particular s4 was 58k. The car was amazing to look at, but 58k is a ton of cash. I dont know if the performance is significantly better than the early model v8 s4, but it sure looks much better with all the carbon and the facelifted parts!

I have driven the v8 s4 (i believe it was the 2nd model year of the v8, not sure what body code that was) and was both impressed and not impressed. At the time I was looking for a new car and i was debating between the v8 s4 and the e46 m3. The particular car I drove at that time was a demo with 10k-ish miles and was offered to me at 40k. I had the budget to spend more if necessary, so my happiness with the vehicle was the most important factor. At the sticker price, IMO, the car was over priced, but at 40k At that price, it was a steal and I really considered it. Then I went to drive the m3 and was completely blown away. I purchased a brand new one that week and have not regretted my purchase at all.

Currently, all my cars are pretty heavily modded and I'm convinced that I have one of the most-mint, well done, and quickest naturally aspirated 04 e46 m3s in my area needless to say, im proud of what i have built this car into and am very happy with it. That being said, I have been looking to add another car to the stable and have been considering moving to a used 996TT, my non-exotic dream car. My father has a 996 gt2 and it totally blows me away everytime i get to drive it.

They had a couple of S5s there. I was going to test drive it, but really wanted to focus on getting my g/f's deal done and never really got the time. The car looked pretty nice in person (im still semi-undecided about the front bumper). FIrst impressions are that the quality is apparent and the interior is absolutely stunning! It is a bit smaller and cramped inside than my m3. I'll probably go back this week.

Enter the RS4. The dealer had an IMMACULATE metallic black rs4 of some special edition red interior with titanium exterior and interior carbon packages. The car is absolutely breathtaking. I sat in it and like the s4 and s5 interior, it absolutely blew me away. Given my impression of the s4 i drove, this would probably be the audi car I would buy. I wish they would add the CF splitters and the vented rear bumper like they did on the special edition sprint blue s4 they had there.

The only kicker: sticker price was 79K....EESH. Is the car impressive in person? yes. Is it impressive on paper? yes. Is it impressive while driving? I have only read/heard great reviews of it since i have not driven it myself, but damn, 79k for a "4-series" audi? I mean, I thought the m3 prices were getting out of hand. The rs4 is to the a4 what the m3 is to the 3-series (i know most would probably argue that the s4 is a better comparison, but i disagree). The m3 and the rs4 has the upgraded interior, wider fenders, more powerful enigne, tweaked suspension, upgraded wheels, etc, the list goes on and on. Like I said, i think the m3 is already priced jsut about where I was comfortable dishing out the cash, but I wouldnt pay 60k for it, so i'm having a hard time justifying the 80k for a competing car (i wonder how many of you would argue that the rs4 is more than 20 grand better than the m3)...Either way, I would be totally down for gettign a slightly used one if the price is right. Now i need to find a dealer willing to let me drive one. Apparently, they are such a rare commodity that they want to have the paperwork done before they allow a test drive, which is understandable, but ridiculous at the same time. Any suggestions, I REALLY want to see how audi built this car to perform?

Bottom line is that I was totally blown away by the way audi has gone (performance aside since i didnt get to drive any of them ) The quality and design of the interior as well as the comfort is far ahead of the bmw and I will definitely consider one of those R or S cars as my next vehicle! Coming from a diehard M-guy (really audi's main competitor), you audi guys should take this as the ultimate compliment.

-Jon

Bob W.

the RS4 is better at everything else. so it really depends what your needs are....a drift car, or an all-around car.

having said that, you should be comparing the M3 to the 911....at least until there's an M3 4-door with AWD.

btw, about 95% of the RS4s in the US stickered at $73-74k. the car you looked at has a special order interior which is $5000. BMW hasn't announced US pricing on the new M3, but you can be pretty sure it's not going to be far from $70k when fully loaded.

Phantom RS

Don't actually drive the RS4 unless you're ready to write the check.

gamblerS4

I didn't see where you had mentioned where you are from, but there are quite a few on here that get together. if you happen to be near some of the members that frequently get together i'm sure you can get a "test" drive or at least a shotgun perspective.

M3 J0N

show up at an audi meet in a bimmer and look like a total douche Its hard to introduce yourself when most think youre the enemy . I live in southeast FL in between west palm beach and fort lauderdale.

M3 J0N

Its THAT good, huh? damn, i better hold off a bit, i cant afford the RS4 unless i sell 1 of the M3s

M3 J0N

shouldnt the rs4 be compared to the current (e46 m3) rather than the new m3? The way my car runs, I would give it a decent chance against a stock or VERY lightly modded rs4, but I almost never see one on the road. As far as drifting goes, ill give that to the m3. I dont know how much the suspension on the RS4 is compared to the standard S4, but the m3 would tear the s4 (rs4 possibly) apart in that respect - its much lighter and way more nimble.

ESFO

Have you run your car at the track? That's really the only way to assess if it's comp for the RS4.

M3 J0N

i have tracked my e36s quite a bit. my e46 is my weekend toy/garage queen with only 20k miles on it since 04. I have run quite a few v8 s4s on the street (both stock and modded) and havent come across one that could even come close to my car. I think the closest race from a slow roll to 130ish was like 5 cars...Like i said, Im totally unimpressed with the acceleration of the standard s4. How much faster is the rs4 than the standard s4 in a 20-120 roll?

Bob W.

it makes no more sense to compare the M3 to the RS4 than it does to compare the M3 to, say, an Audi S6....they're not the same class of vehicle.

did you see the episode on Fifth Gear where they compared the RS4 to the E46 M3 w/competition pkg? RS4 beat it in a straight line, and around their road course...decisively. The M3 won the drifting competition. There's a link to that segment somewhere on the web, maybe someone will post it.