S6 vs M550i XDrive

[Z06S4]

I'm in the market to upgrade my beloved B8S4 because I need something roomier for the family. The logical choice obviously is the S6, but I want to consider all reasonable options of a performance oriented sedan with AWD. Cadillac is eliminated for not offering the CTS-V with AWD, Lexus for being luxury biased, Maserati for being unreliable and Mercedes for being overpriced. This leaves the BMW. I realize you're all Audi biased, but surely some of you looked at the BMW. Why did you choose the Audi over a similarly priced and powered BMW?

[Rez90]

I owned a 2010 X5M for 4 years. My mother owned an X5 years before.

both were literally the most temperamental and unreliable pieces of shit ever.

Plus....BMW service prices were complete rape.

I love BMW's offerings....but i doubt i'll ever own another one...as the two that were ever in my life were both part time jobs to maintain.

[dasaab]

I owned a 2010 X5M for 4 years. My mother owned an X5 years before.

both were literally the most temperamental and unreliable pieces of shit ever.

Plus....BMW service prices were complete rape.

I love BMW's offerings....but i doubt i'll ever own another one...as the two that were ever in my life were both part time jobs to maintain.

I used to be a big BMW fan as well, but the cars always gave issues.. They would be in my garage more than my driveway!

[cobrario]

no contest for me-
S6 more reliable, by far
Quattro > X-Drive
S6 resale wayyy> that any 5 series- their resale is horrible.
S6 just a classier, better looking car for me.

good luck

[Djpeaksd]

It sounds like AWD is very important to you. I don't think anyone can dispute the Quattro vs. Xdrive debate. Seeing some videos online Xdrive is a joke compared to Quattro. In my neck of the woods everyone has a beemer. I like the fact that the S6/S7/RS are kind of rare and you don't see them much.

[gta7]

Agree with others looked at BMW and excluded the same cars you did right away.

I think BMW is in the decline and Audi is doing great things.

[flyfishing]

i had an m5. it was the biggest POS ever and i went rt back to audi.

[Velopod]

I've had 3 BMWs (last M3) and had zero issues with any of them as far as reliability. I have not been so lucky with Audi.

Great, driver focused cars with MUCH better handling/balance then most Audis.
But, that is about it as the for versus against. The S6 is a better car in most every other way in my opinion. Go drive both though - one of my partners just went through this and ended up with the 550xi stating he didn't like the interior of the Audi vs. the BMW. Go figure, I though most all preferred the /Audi interiors!

[Gonzoe11]

I owned a 2010 X5M for 4 years. My mother owned an X5 years before.

both were literally the most temperamental and unreliable pieces of shit ever.

Plus....BMW service prices were complete rape.

I love BMW's offerings....but i doubt i'll ever own another one...as the two that were ever in my life were both part time jobs to maintain.

^ THIS
I can echo everything said here.

[1flossedS4]

Owned two prior BMW's NO issues at all with them in 40,000 miles. (320i, 335i). That M550 is a great car.. not sure if it's S6 great but I haven't driven an S6

I will say the BMW 5 series drives less sporty but is super comfortable.

[boarder007]

The M550i (loaded) is a superior car to the S6 IMHO. Its faster, tech is great, tons of options, and the M550i will probably hold more of its value. It going to be the most sought after 5 series when it comes to resale. The S6 resale does take a large hit out the gate, but most cars at that price tag do.

I just decided between S7 and M550i and went with S7 because:

1. As mentioned by everyone Quattro is still superior, X-drive is inferior. I snowboard about 100 days a year, 38 mile round trip in Vermont. I like to get to the mountain before everyone, Audi wins every time.

2. Interior - I love the Audi seats, especially the Audi design arras red, love the red twill carbon weave. Although the BMW interior can be customized a lot more, and the seats may even be more comfortable, but over all the C7 cockpit, MMI set up, to me is the best out right now(even though its getting a little dated). That said BMW does have a one up on the tech that inside the car. Their computer has a lot more capability, especially if you get it loaded.

3. the badging - I know this sounds funny, but I hate "fake" M cars, if you have the "M" badge its got to be made by the motorsports divisions using M parts. I am a purist. I thought I would grab the S7 now, wait another year or 2, then the M5 with AWD comes out, and trade-in then, but after talking with my buddy at BMW, the new M5 will pretty much only be AWD upon launch, cornering, and loss of traction, otherwise it RWD- thats how he explained it to me, so no M5 for me. Will be trading up to the new RS7 some day...

final thoughts - both amazing vehicles, go drive them both. They are totally different. I do wish I could drive a BMW daily, they are more a drivers car, very responsive. So long as I need AWD, I will be sticking with Audi Quattro, so S7 was the ticket for me.

Best of luck, I am sure you'll end up with S6 if AWD is the determining factor.

Previous BMW's: 1992 318is, 1999 M Coupe, 2001 740il, 2001 M Coupe

[Mdavis1722]

I switch from the a F10 M550i to the Audi S6. BMW is the better handling car from factory. BMW interior is more on the luxury side than sport. I had issues with mine once I added burger stage 2 piggyback. Kept getting trans malfunction light, to much torque making the computer limiting trans activity. Sometime will put you into limp mode. There was no ecu tune available for the N63 so piggyback was the only option. If you are not planning to tune BMW but if you want to tune Audi. Both are great cars to drive. I am thinking about trading my S6 for a M6GC.


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[Mdavis1722]

2014 N63TU replaced the N63. The TU can be tuned.


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[1flossedS4]

For the record, my X Drive BMW's were all fantastic in the Northeast.

[bombri]

I just recently purchased a 2014 S6 after looking for a long time at both cars. I actually had a dealership let me take a 2014 fully loaded 550ix home with me for the weekend and "test it out". Here are the simple reasons I chose the S6.

1. Purely stock, with these two model years the S6 is faster.
2. Handling - the S6 feels tighter and more response, and the 550 certainly feels like it leans more luxury
3. I care a lot about speed, and APR has superior products to anything Dinan can offer in terms of price, addition to power output and reliability.
4. Looks (highly subjective I know) At the end of the day, the Audi both interior and exterior I believe to be a sharper looking car. The inside of an Audi feels like a cockpit suited for a young guy who wants a mix of sports luxury, with an emphasis on sport. The 550 interior feels very nice (seats probably more comfortable) but I can't help but thinking that I feel like a 60 year old business executive in this thing. That's not what I want since I'm 33 and taking my first plunge into the sports car realm
5. Quattro vs XDrive - same as others have stated
6. My mechanic's recommendation (paraphrased) - Total gearhead that's worked on these types of vehicles for 15+ years said "the 550 is a nice car, don't get me wrong, but I can just about guarantee you that we're going to become real good friends."

[Julius_855]

I also had to make a choice.
Over here, a reasonably loaded 550i was more expensive than an S7, and I couldn't really understand why. Yes, interior might look nicer for some but damn the S7 seats... (but not ventilated... :( )

But most importantly... I wanted a sport car. And although there's a lot of litterature about the audi quattro sport differential, I just could not find anything on the 550xi, if their system is at least comparable. I really sought after cornering high speed.

I might have not been super impressed about raw performance and handling the first days (but liked the look though), but since it is EPL stage1 and eurocode chassis parts... I just love it. No regrets.

Now, the new M5 seems to be on demand RWD and AWD. Let's see first detailed reports (and reliability..)

[Ironlung1948]

I owned two bmw's. A 7series and a 5series. Still own the 530xi which was purchased new in 2006. As for mechanics bmw are beast. What i didnt like was the super bland interior not so comfy seating ( 7 series was an exception) dash error lights would constantly come on and bmw service is super expensive . X drive aint shit compared to quattro and i agree resale on bmw r not very good. I wont likely go back to bmw after owning my s6. Audi drive experience just feels more individualized , interior is amazing and always impresses passengers with the stitch seating . Also way too many bmws on the road these days. Just my thoughts. Good luck!


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[Roadwarrior]

BMW rear legroom is a few inches less than S6. When I cross shopped these two that was one of the several reasons I opted for the S6 that has not yet been mentioned. Since you are upgrading for space, that could be a factor for you too.

BTW, not an Audi fan boy. My last car was a ///M car.

[Julius_855]

Haha same here, not an audi boy (initially...)

[Barritia]

After reading this post I'm even more confused than when I started lol.

They are faster they are slower
They are better handling they are worst handling
They have better interior they have worse interior


I think the only way to really know is test both for a weekend an decide your self and it seems 2 people can find the same car totally different

[ss30t]

I think you should specify what year M550i you are talking about.
The new redesign 2018 M550i is said to be faster than the current M5 says BMW.
It's not available in the US as yet but you should wait and take a look at that whenever it comes out in a few months.
Look at the reviews on YouTube for both cars. It'll give you a good idea about both cars.

[Z06S4]

OP here! I'm looking at the new M550i XDrive of which my local dealer does have one in stock. Could someone explain why Quattro is superior to XDrive? I thought they were both rear biased torque vectoring systems. Can XDrive not distribute torque across an axle the way Quattro can, thus making it inferior?

[cobrario]

OP here! I'm looking at the new M550i XDrive of which my local dealer does have one in stock. Could someone explain why Quattro is superior to XDrive? I thought they were both rear biased torque vectoring systems. Can XDrive not distribute torque across an axle the way Quattro can, thus making it inferior?

https://www.google.com/amp/jalopnik....1792513795/amp

[boarder007]

OP here! I'm looking at the new M550i XDrive of which my local dealer does have one in stock. Could someone explain why Quattro is superior to XDrive? I thought they were both rear biased torque vectoring systems. Can XDrive not distribute torque across an axle the way Quattro can, thus making it inferior?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-OrJF_PZwo

this is why!! black and white.. if you are talking about SNOW!

[VVG]

Here's an unbiased view.....

Looks will be subjective

Interior design goes to Audi

AWD for serious traction situations and exhaust sound (sport exhaust) go to Audi

Steering and handling go to BMW

Exclusivity goes to Audi

In the end you won't go wrong with either. Buy whichever one gives you the stronger positive emotional feeling

[A6sport]

Don't know much about BMW, except that I've driven many and like them, but I like my brand better. Been driving Audi cars since 1984 and will for the next 34 years, as long as they continue to hear the sound of their own music.

[Ze_Nardo6]

The M550i is faster

No, it's not.

Show me where the 550i is doing 0-60 in sub 4 seconds or a 1/4 mile in 12.2

[mbk2017]

I drove a 650i for 6 months, and even if everything else was equal, which it's not, the damn shifter drove me crazy, it is 100% counter intuitive.
Sad to say the A4/A5s now offer a similar experience with their shifter