RS4 Vs M3

hawker1986

hawker1986

hawker1986

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Hi all,

Im vaguely pondering a change in car as ill have had my civic for 6 years soon and I quite fancy a bit of step up in performance and quality so am looking at current gen M3/RS4.

I'm not really interested in discussing price or buying options new/used etc. Im not planning on getting one till end of the year and will think about new/nearly new option once ive decided which car I want to get.

The reason ive picked these cars out is that I want something with 4 doors, 5 seats and a good boot which is easy and comfortable when needed but with the performance and occasion of a sports car.

Basically I'd like peoples opinions of them, must have options, general thoughts, pros and cons etc.

Slightly vague thread but just after info and thoughts to chew over. Input much appreciated.

Thanks :)

Hawker
 
You need to understand the costs and potential running costs of these cars, more so the Audi - despite it being frankly awesome.

You also might be disappointed with the boot space, depending what you think is decent. Only the avant rs4 really matches the civic boot, though the m3's is usefully shaped if you don't need the height

Edit - ooops I totally missed how new you were talking, instantly assumed e46/b7
 
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You might want to clarify which M3 and which RS4, the versions differ completely as do running cost. Unless by current version you mean the latest ones just released?
 
Sorry yes by current I mean F80 M3 and B8 RS4 (the ones I could go out and order brand new tomorrow), both cars have boot space equivalent more or less to my civic, which is fine.
 
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A Civic to an RS4, bear in mind you'll be looking the not so nice side of 1500 just for brakes when they wear out, not to mention servicing etc

Both are awesome though! The BMW more so in my opinion, I'm not a fan of Audi's
 
Well the M3 wins by the virtue of the fact you'd have to be absolutely nuts to spend significant money on a B8 Audi now, they are so old (The platform/interior was around in the A5 a full year before the A4 remember) that I believe there are dinosaur bones in the boot. Not a place to sink £60,000!

Whilst I am absolutely sure the performance is blistering, the rest of the time the fact it's so dated inside would genuinely irritate me, by contrast the M3 is a reasonably fresh and contemporary car with a far more modern infotainment interface etc.

Though really if I had a burning desire to throw £60,000 into a BMW or an Audi I'd ignore a brand new M3 and walk right over to the 6 Series Grancoupe range. Then you'll actually feel like you've bought a £60k car rather than a £25k car covered in bling with an amazing powertrain, which is fundamentally what the M3 (or RS4) are.

Whilst it's absolutely no M3 you can buy an F30 335i M Sport for under £30k which 80% of the time will feel very much like it's the same thing only without any of the nutcase costs involved in the M3. It'll also be a big step up performance wise from whatever your Civic is.
 
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Neither car would make me feel happy about spending 60K on one, which is exactly why I haven't spent 60K on one. I have borrowed both cars to test drive them properly and the M4 I had felt quicker than the B8 RS4 are more fun but the RS4 is probably the better all round car, certainly more practical but neither feel special enough for 60K. I actually was less impressed with the B8 than I was with my own B7, it lacked something I never quite understood, it just did and I felt much the same about the M4.

I think an M6/M5 would make you feel better and for 45K-50K you could get a great M5 that will hand both the B8 and M3/4 a clean pair of heels whilst feeling and being much more special. Sadly however the M5 will be worth 20K in 24 months I fear so bath time awaits anyone who punks 45K on one today. At 60K these cars (B8/M3) do not represent good value in my opinion.

Spend less, buy older, have the same fun, lose MUCH less money.

Or do the sensible thing forget boot space and seats and buy a 911.
 
Useful thoughts, im prepared for the jump in costs associated with the car change in terms of consumables etc. I reckon the Audi would be more expensive to run. Fox your point about the age is useful, certainly as ive poked round them in the show room my interior preference is to the BMW. TBH I don't want a car as big as the 6 series, wont fit in my garage without risking breaking it.
Ive also thought about a 335i and im sure youre totally right but I want the full fat version of what I get, currently have the disposable income to own something special so want to make the most of it :)
I am test driving an M5 as well as the M3 when we go, so will see what I think of it and the size. Also didn't think the M5 was any quicker than the M3? certainly based on the official figures
Disappointingly I cant lose the sensible hat with the Mrs having a 350z, someone needs to have something practical!
 
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The 5 is a BIG car, but you do get use to it and can throw it around very easily. It has a good nose too unless you carry big speed at which point it will understeer like a bitch.
 
I don't blame you. Not really a fan of recent mercs.

I would have to agree with Fox. I'd rather have a 5 or 6 for the money, the M3/4 will just feel like a blinged up £20k motor when you're sat inside it, rather than a motor worth the money you will have no doubt spent.

According to Broadspeed, the new price on a M5 compared to an M4 (both with DCT) is only an extra £5k, so that's gotta be £5k well spent, IMO.

Of course, for around the same money, you could have the Porsche Macan Turbo, which, while only 400 BHP, would be practical too, and still a Porsche for that special feeling. Or the 510 BHP Jag XF with the supercharged V8. Or only a few k's short on an RS6 avant...
 
Housey said:
Sadly however the M5 will be worth 20K in 24 months I fear so bath time awaits anyone who punks 45K on one today.
Click to expand...

It's interesting you should say that. My thinking recently has been they will hold up a little better than that looking a the current F10 used price that seem to be holding strong.

If it's going to drop 25k in two year, be outside of the original warranty and also need to be taxed then those £500 (6 + 23) lease deals flying around last year are looking even better. You could have driven a new M5 for around half the cost of a 3 year old one.
 
F10 has been out for 5 years though hasn't it? Think i would rather have the M4.

As fox would say, £70k for a 5 year old 5 series? :p
 
It's a generation thing not outright design age, the 3 series is the same generation as the 5 but the A4 is previous generation.
 
Depreciation is always a big thing for me. I'd hate to think how much I'd lose if I bought a new M3. Even with the 12% or so that you can negotiate off the list price, it's an obscene amount of money you'd lose in the first year alone. Audi always do better in the depreciation stakes but you'd still lose a lot. £50k of my money would go on a GTR; their prices are holding fast these days or maybe a V8 Vantage S with the 4.7 engine?
 
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