2016 A6 3.0 vs 2016 S4

[Chadster]

Reposting from incorrect forum:

So, with the deal my dealer is giving me and incentives I have the options between a 2016 S4 and a fully loaded 2016 A6 Prestige with the 3.0 Engine and 20" wheels.

In other words, both cars will have the same engine, the S4 is of course lighter and the A6 has well, pretty much any option you can think of and then a few more. Tuning either vehicle puts the engine in some pretty interesting territory.

Its mostly for a daily driver but there is the odd chance I might, maybe, take it to a Road Course. It will be far from a regular enterprise.

Price is at invoice on both and with some incentives the A6 is only slightly more expensive than the S4.

Also found and S6, but ultimately, just couldn't afford it.

What do you think? Smaller, quicker, nimbler or larger, fancier, smoother.

[brianc21]

I'd say if your gonna have the 3.0 then the S4 is the way to go. Awesome power with stage 2 and plenty of luxury. I don't have any experience with the 6 so I can't really say on what that has to offer. In the end it's all about what you want out of the car and how you plan to use it. The S6 will be my next car when im done with this one tho.

[name.goes.here]

I think the C7 platform is much nicer. I made the move from the B8 to C7 and much prefer the larger body. Better technology, more luxurious, and more comfortable..... at least in my opinion.

[RickFLS4]

If you want more more space and luxury - A6. If you want more of a sports sedan - S4. Aside from being lighter and nimbler the S4 also has the DSG transmission which helps make it a little quicker as well. These cars may seem somewhat comparable on paper but are quite different on the road. As noted above it really depends on what you want from the car. Both are great DD's - just coming from different angles.

[agent47]

Exactly what others said. Yes the s4 is also luxurious but the C7 platform takes luxury to another travel. With sway bars and ak, the handling would change substantially. But it wont handle like an s4 since the s4 is lighter and smaller. I had the same dilemma in March of this year. I was gonna go from the A6 to the S4 but couldn't do it because of everything that I thought I would miss. I loved how I could toss the s4 around but still there were techy things on my A6 that I felt I would miss. Plus keep in mind you'd be getting a pre-facelift on the s4 and post on the A6. In the end its also about how you drive- if you hit turns at high speeds everyday, you might find the body roll on c7 quite a bit compared to the s4. But if you have occasional outburts of adrenaline, the A6 should be fine. I went from a 2013 to a 2016. The refinement is huge, you get upgraded engine, mmi and exterior. It could be placebo but the 2016 engine feels like it has quite a bit more grunt- for 2 days I have driving like a d-bag on my way to and back from work- and even without a tune the car seems very responsive and pulls along hard. Hopefully we can welcome you to the c7 section soon! Good luck!

Tortoise A6

[RickFLS4]

^ Just to clarify, the B8 S4 had a facelift in 2013. However, 2016 is likely the last MY before the B9 generation so there is that to bear in mind as well. Not sure when the next generation of the A6 platform will be out so a 2016 A6 may look "current" for a couple of years longer than a 2016 S4.

[Webtoker]

The seats in the 2012+ Prestige A6 are horrible and compared to the S4 it was a dull experience. More space yes, and a bit nicer but the S4 was more comfortable for me and a lot more fun. Less space though and ultimately how I ended up in an S6.

[yas]

S4 is an insanely fun car, but the unannounced B9 would give me pause.

[brianc21]

S4 is an insanely fun car, but the unannounced B9 would give me pause.

What I've seen so far of the b9 does not look appealing. Official release is next week tho. Is 2016 the first year of the facelift on the c7?

[yas]

What I've seen so far of the b9 does not look appealing. Official release is next week tho. Is 2016 the first year of the facelift on the c7?

I totally agree, but B9 will certainly push down the value of the B8.5. From a financial perspective, I'd hold off.

[agent47]

What I've seen so far of the b9 does not look appealing. Official release is next week tho. Is 2016 the first year of the facelift on the c7?

+1. The b9 spy shots looked pretty horrible. Cant remember the name of an old acura or honda that had a similar front end. Yes on the c7 facelift question of yours.

Tortoise A6

[Webtoker]

Cant remember the name of an old acura or honda that had a similar front end.

TLX?

[agent47]

TLX?

No. Its a 2 door that I am talking about. The latest b9 spy shots look very similar to it.

Tortoise A6

[Chadster]

Decided to go,with the S4...but then I noticed I can lease an M3 or 550i xdrive fro about $50 bucks a month less than what I'm paying for on the S4. I'm still partial to Audis but wow...those are some insane lease deals!

[brianc21]

I totally agree, but B9 will certainly push down the value of the B8.5. From a financial perspective, I'd hold off.

If the b9 is shit, wouldn't that make the 8.5 more appealing? Or is my logic off.....

[Chadster]

I"m still debating this one. Originally I thought I might track the car but probably won't much, if at all. If anything, I want to make sure I can zip and pass, and do whatever I want on the interstate and pull in easily into parking spaces in Chicago. I need a sedan, but it doesn't need to be big, but on the other hand...I love tech and luxury. I've heard though that the Bose system in the A6 isn't that good when compared to the BO in the S4. Decisions, decisions.

Has anyone ever tuned an A6? Seems like you would (why not) but APR didn't seem to have much difference.

An S6 would be nice (and maybe the best combination of both) but at 20K more, I just can't justify the cost. And really, if I can punch ahead of whomever I need to with the 3.0 on the A6 that will work for me.

Thoughts?

[agent47]

I"m still debating this one. Originally I thought I might track the car but probably won't much, if at all. If anything, I want to make sure I can zip and pass, and do whatever I want on the interstate and pull in easily into parking spaces in Chicago. I need a sedan, but it doesn't need to be big, but on the other hand...I love tech and luxury. I've heard though that the Bose system in the A6 isn't that good when compared to the BO in the S4. Decisions, decisions.

Has anyone ever tuned an A6? Seems like you would (why not) but APR didn't seem to have much difference.

An S6 would be nice (and maybe the best combination of both) but at 20K more, I just can't justify the cost. And really, if I can punch ahead of whomever I need to with the 3.0 on the A6 that will work for me.

Thoughts?

Let me answer all of your questions here
A6 is huge but the engine has quite a bit of grunt. You would have absolutely no issues on zip and pass.
The 360 overhead view makes parallel parking a joke.
The Bose on 2016's is slightly better. I wont say that the Beo from S4 is amazing over the Bose on C7. It might be better but only marginally. I love my music and I can tell the difference between good and bad systems. Bose is not bad. Its just not as good as the Beo on C7.
I tuned my 2013 A6. Am I doing it to my 2016? Absolutely. The engine wakes up and you'd have a 4500lb sedan capable of beating a lot of so called Muscle Cars on the road. The 2016 has 333hp and the engine seems more refined and pulls harder. I am not sure if any tuners have tunes out for 2016's yet but based on my experience from my previous car, I am going stage 2 directly- enough to pull past most cars out there on the road.
In the end it will just be about if you are willing to sacrifice a little bit of handling for a more refined and luxurious car. I had the same dilemma and I ended up getting an A6 again- yes I couldnt justify getting a new S6 at this time.

Tortoise A6

[Chadster]

Excellent. Just the input I needed. I'd be willing to give up a little handling for the considerable luxury increase I can get on the A6. Plus, there are some good incentives now on the A6 which make it even more attractive.

So tell me more about the sound system (which is very important to me!)...Are you saying that the BO in the S4's is slightly better but not enough to be a decision over the Bose in the A6?

[eyeloveteeth]

the difference between the interior and MMI for 2016 A6 is way too big an upgrade to consider an S4.

[agent47]

Excellent. Just the input I needed. I'd be willing to give up a little handling for the considerable luxury increase I can get on the A6. Plus, there are some good incentives now on the A6 which make it even more attractive.

So tell me more about the sound system (which is very important to me!)...Are you saying that the BO in the S4's is slightly better but not enough to be a decision over the Bose in the A6?

Yeah. The beo on s4/5 is good, just a little better over the Bose in my A6. My issue with it is there was lack of Bass and it sounded a little more on the treble side. But the beo on the C7 platform is just awesome. However the b8.5 beo vs c7 bose is not a very big difference. Audiophiles say that the bose isn't that great on the highs. But it seemed sufficient to me.

Tortoise A6

[GeorgeA]

I was in the same boat as you, I actually walked in the dealer for a 2015 S4 but somehow ended up leaving with an A6 which I hadn't even considered prior. My salesman offered me a test drive in the A6 after the S4 and I completely fell in love. I'm more into the driving characteristics of the vehicle but I was completely shocked by how sporty the A6 actually is. I was expecting an E class type of handling but it felt very similar to the S4, to the point that it was worth getting. The interior is what won me over completely though, beautiful all around. The B9 is about to unveil too, which was another reason I stuck to the C7.

[BlueSVT]

Such a completely different car in terms of build quality! The S4 still feels like an entry level car inside... where as the "6" models are SO nice, and have such an upgraded luxury feel!

[Chadster]

This has been very helpful...I was all set on an S4 but just finalized a deal for an A6. I"ll be interested to see how this goes once it gets an APR Stage II. APR says at least 375 awhp, which has to put the HP at the crank in the low to mid 400's. Likewise with torque.

[velodb]

Dude,

The b8 S4 is totally lame looking and dated. I was behind the 2016 A6 and it was beautiful. The b9 is right around the corner so I would go C7 over B8

[agent47]

This has been very helpful...I was all set on an S4 but just finalized a deal for an A6. I"ll be interested to see how this goes once it gets an APR Stage II. APR says at least 375 awhp, which has to put the HP at the crank in the low to mid 400's. Likewise with torque.

Very nice! We'll just have to wait a bit for the 2016 tunes I guess. Plus if no one has noticed- the pulley on the 2016 is different from the pre-facelift. It has like four bolts on it now. I'll post a pic later.

Tortoise A6

[jmeenach]

Congrats!

[Chadster]

Interesting about the pulley. When I talked to APR no one had sent in their ECU's yet. They said until they have the big codes they won't know how different or the same they are from the previous.

[Chadster]

Figured I'd update these threads with my decision for future reference. For anyone that may care I ultimately went with the 2016 S6. All the luxury all the speed. Both way more than I need. Still, really appreciated all the help and insight from these boards.

[tonymission]

Figured I'd update these threads with my decision for future reference. For anyone that may care I ultimately went with the 2016 S6. All the luxury all the speed. Both way more than I need. Still, really appreciated all the help and insight from these boards.

Good for you. I love mine... just got it two days ago :D


(Go Pack Go?)

[Chadster]

Good for you. I love mine... just got it two days ago :D


(Go Pack Go?)

Love it too...and while I live in WI I'm a rare transplant so, I find when the Pack is playing its a great time to go to Home Depot...then I relax while my team plays (generally) later in the day. Perfection.

[tonymission]

Love it too...and while I live in WI I'm a rare transplant so, I find when the Pack is playing its a great time to go to Home Depot...then I relax while my team plays (generally) later in the day. Perfection.

Haha yeah there aren't many people who move TO WI. Just out, like me. Sunday streets are usually pretty clear!

Any pics of the car?