Cross shop Q50 RedSport?

[vdubjetta02]

While I own both an Audi and an Infiniti, I was curious if any of you cross shopped your new S4 with the Q50? It seems the aftermarket scene is already well under way. While I agree, my Audi fit and finish is better than my infiniti. My infiniti is still a nice reliable car so I was curious your thoughts? Obviously you are on this forum so you chose the Audi...

Interesting video:
426HP, 460TQ

[ibu11et]

I cross shopped the two. I thought the point of the red sport was to bring the GTR tech into a saloon. Nope. All those ads with Seb Vettel were so far from the mark.

The Q50 was complete crap. The interior, unrefined; the motor, unbelievably laggy; the tech, dated. The only good point for me was the price.

I have a buddy who writes for Motor Trend and he agreed that the only thing worse than the Q50 Red Sport, was the Q60.

[dculber]

I was looking to buy the q50S hybrid (more power & tq) but read a lot of horrible reviews of about electronic issues. Bought S4


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[spawn350]

I didn't get an S4/S5, but I entertained the Q60 Redsport before buying my TT-RS. My (now ex) girlfriend has a Q60 RS, and I was actually very pleasantly surprised driving it. I really liked the interior and figured with a good tune it would be a pretty quick car. I love the exterior styling too.

[BrockDM]

Having owned a Q60 Red Sport, and still do, I can say it is a great car. I don't experience any lag or anything unpleasant.

Now, comparing the Q50 RS to the S4 that is a different story. I would go with the S4 all day.

I agree with the above, the interior is disappointing and the tech isn't out of this world but I love the power and performance. Out of the box is fun to drive and I have yet to have a complaint or problem. It also has nice gains with a tune and small bolt ons.

[JohnEnglish]

I cross shopped the two. I thought the point of the red sport was to bring the GTR tech into a saloon. Nope. All those ads with Seb Vettel were so far from the mark.

That was the Q50 Eau Rouge which was never given the go ahead.

[clerkpalmer]

I wanted an S4 but ended up with a Red Sport. I've owned a B7, B8 S4 and an S3 recently. I love Audis. But, real world pricing these cars are not comparable. The Red Sport can be had at 10k plus discounts making it a car that lands under 50k nearly fully loaded. My lease price is $470 a month all in with nothing down other than a 1k trade credit. I was told I would be in the 800s on any S4 on a lease. The Red Sport is not as refined as an Audi. The interior is not as nice and the tech lags behind. But, the drivetrain is SWEET and that's most important to me. The car is a rocket. The tranny is just average. I don't love it but it's not bad. I do like the RWD bias of the AWD system. It is every bit as fun to drive as a DD than my B8 S4 was. Maybe on a track it won't handle as well but those don't matter much to me. Also, while looks are subjective, I prefer the 2018 RS looks to the B9 Audi. The new S4 looks off to me. Just my opinion and probably fixed with new wheels and springs.

In short, if price was no object, I agree S4 every day of the week. But given the discounts available on the RS right now and sweet lease deals, it offers 100% of the performance of the S4 and 90% of everything else for substantially less money. As an aside, I went with the traditional steering and skipped DAS. The Red Sport at 47k nearly loaded with an underrated 400HP engine is a steal. I think the Red Sport gets a bad wrap for two reasons: (1) high MSRP and (2) DAS. As to the MSRP, if this car was compared to sub 50k luxury sedans with 400HP it would in a class of its own. As for DAS, easy, just skip it. I think Inifinit made a mistake sending DAS enabled cars to all the reviews.

[danaeroS4]

I wanted an S4 but ended up with a Red Sport. I've owned a B7, B8 S4 and an S3 recently. I love Audis. But, real world pricing these cars are not comparable. The Red Sport can be had at 10k plus discounts making it a car that lands under 50k nearly fully loaded. My lease price is $470 a month all in with nothing down other than a 1k trade credit. I was told I would be in the 800s on any S4 on a lease. The Red Sport is not as refined as an Audi. The interior is not as nice and the tech lags behind. But, the drivetrain is SWEET and that's most important to me. The car is a rocket. The tranny is just average. I don't love it but it's not bad. I do like the RWD bias of the AWD system. It is every bit as fun to drive as a DD than my B8 S4 was. Maybe on a track it won't handle as well but those don't matter much to me. Also, while looks are subjective, I prefer the 2018 RS looks to the B9 Audi. The new S4 looks off to me. Just my opinion and probably fixed with new wheels and springs.

In short, if price was no object, I agree S4 every day of the week. But given the discounts available on the RS right now and sweet lease deals, it offers 100% of the performance of the S4 and 90% of everything else for substantially less money. As an aside, I went with the traditional steering and skipped DAS. The Red Sport at 47k nearly loaded with an underrated 400HP engine is a steal. I think the Red Sport gets a bad wrap for two reasons: (1) high MSRP and (2) DAS. As to the MSRP, if this car was compared to sub 50k luxury sedans with 400HP it would in a class of its own. As for DAS, easy, just skip it. I think Inifinit made a mistake sending DAS enabled cars to all the reviews.

I’ve taken one for a ride and I agree it goes :)....I will have prob agree with you on the 100% same performance wise but will 100% disagree with you when you say it’s 90% everything else.
I would say the RS it’s about 60% everything else i.e. interior, styling, technology, overall quality.

That is just my opinion from driving one and also driving rental cars Q50/Q60 non RS which too me is very boring interiors and tech.




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[clerkpalmer]

I’ve taken one for a ride and I agree it goes :)....I will have prob agree with you on the 100% same performance wise but will 100% disagree with you when you say it’s 90% everything else.
I would say the RS it’s about 60% everything else i.e. interior, styling, technology, overall quality.

That is just my opinion from driving one and also driving rental cars Q50/Q60 non RS which too me is very boring interiors and tech.




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Certainly a fair opinion. It is 100% not an Audi. It becomes a value proposition more than anything else. My car had a 58.5K MSRP and my purchase price was 47k. I don't think anything can touch a RS at 47k on the market so I am very satisfied. But, if I had the extra 10k in my budget, I'd go with an S4. When I see an S4 I'll be jealous but I'll know I'm only paying $470 a month and I'll get over it.

[BrockDM]

I wanted an S4 but ended up with a Red Sport. I've owned a B7, B8 S4 and an S3 recently. I love Audis. But, real world pricing these cars are not comparable. The Red Sport can be had at 10k plus discounts making it a car that lands under 50k nearly fully loaded. My lease price is $470 a month all in with nothing down other than a 1k trade credit. I was told I would be in the 800s on any S4 on a lease. The Red Sport is not as refined as an Audi. The interior is not as nice and the tech lags behind. But, the drivetrain is SWEET and that's most important to me. The car is a rocket. The tranny is just average. I don't love it but it's not bad. I do like the RWD bias of the AWD system. It is every bit as fun to drive as a DD than my B8 S4 was. Maybe on a track it won't handle as well but those don't matter much to me. Also, while looks are subjective, I prefer the 2018 RS looks to the B9 Audi. The new S4 looks off to me. Just my opinion and probably fixed with new wheels and springs.

In short, if price was no object, I agree S4 every day of the week. But given the discounts available on the RS right now and sweet lease deals, it offers 100% of the performance of the S4 and 90% of everything else for substantially less money. As an aside, I went with the traditional steering and skipped DAS. The Red Sport at 47k nearly loaded with an underrated 400HP engine is a steal. I think the Red Sport gets a bad wrap for two reasons: (1) high MSRP and (2) DAS. As to the MSRP, if this car was compared to sub 50k luxury sedans with 400HP it would in a class of its own. As for DAS, easy, just skip it. I think Inifinit made a mistake sending DAS enabled cars to all the reviews.

You are exactly right. It's hard to beat the price of Infiniti. Not even just new, you can pick up a 2016 or 2017 Red Sport for under $40k with very low miles... They depreciate very quickly which is why I have never bought brand new. I typically lease or buy used. (The Q60 is my 5th Infiniti lol)

[clerkpalmer]

You are exactly right. It's hard to beat the price of Infiniti. Not even just new, you can pick up a 2016 or 2017 Red Sport for under $40k with very low miles... They depreciate very quickly which is why I have never bought brand new. I typically lease or buy used. (The Q60 is my 5th Infiniti lol)

As a point of reference, I leased a B5 S4 in 2000 for $460 a month... The lease deals on the Red Sports are insane.

[pdqgp]

The Q50 was complete crap. The interior, unrefined; the motor, unbelievably laggy; the tech, dated. The only good point for me was the price.
I have a buddy who writes for Motor Trend and he agreed that the only thing worse than the Q50 Red Sport, was the Q60.

LOL. You're entitled to your opinion but I have to LOL at the motor being laggy. Not. I have a 2018 I picked up in December and understood where it stands in terms of it being a mid-cycle refresh. Perhaps you went into looking at it without realizing that. To me it's very simliar to my 2014 S4 was when I bought it as a refresh to the B8. No, it's not up to the same standards as the B9 in all areas. That said, one could say and could have said back in 2014-2016 that the Audi was dated and lagging behind. I mean stock vs stock motor vs motor, the RS400 was already moved to a twin turbo set up whereas the B8.5 was still on the SC platform. Feature and interior wise, the B8.5 was on a 2009 platform and lacked a lot of features vs the RS400. However, again, move forward to 2018 and yes, it's mid cycle. I will agree that the price is the best part. I cross shopped a B9 vs my Redsport and while the Infiniti was $63k MSRP, I picked it up with a total of $12k in discounts and a lease payment for 39 months with ZERO down outside making my first payment for just over $550mo. Audi couldn't touch that, not even close.

I wanted an S4 but ended up with a Red Sport. I've owned a B7, B8 S4 and an S3 recently. I love Audis. But, real world pricing these cars are not comparable. The Red Sport can be had at 10k plus discounts making it a car that lands under 50k nearly fully loaded. My lease price is $470 a month all in with nothing down other than a 1k trade credit. I was told I would be in the 800s on any S4 on a lease. The Red Sport is not as refined as an Audi. The interior is not as nice and the tech lags behind. But, the drivetrain is SWEET and that's most important to me. The car is a rocket. The tranny is just average. I don't love it but it's not bad. I do like the RWD bias of the AWD system. It is every bit as fun to drive as a DD than my B8 S4 was. Maybe on a track it won't handle as well but those don't matter much to me. Also, while looks are subjective, I prefer the 2018 RS looks to the B9 Audi. The new S4 looks off to me. Just my opinion and probably fixed with new wheels and springs.

In short, if price was no object, I agree S4 every day of the week. But given the discounts available on the RS right now and sweet lease deals, it offers 100% of the performance of the S4 and 90% of everything else for substantially less money. As an aside, I went with the traditional steering and skipped DAS. The Red Sport at 47k nearly loaded with an underrated 400HP engine is a steal. I think the Red Sport gets a bad wrap for two reasons: (1) high MSRP and (2) DAS. As to the MSRP, if this car was compared to sub 50k luxury sedans with 400HP it would in a class of its own. As for DAS, easy, just skip it. I think Inifinit made a mistake sending DAS enabled cars to all the reviews.

Well stated. I wanted the B9 but to get simliar/slightly better power performance and all the RS400 offers it turned out to be the better value. DAS - I have it and love it. Remember when the B8.5's got flack for moving to electric assist? The same here with DAS. I made a few modificiations starting with Tires and that transfored the Redsport into a whole new car. Runflats are the VERY worst tire I've ever driven on and can't believe they come standard.

Here's my car and the list of mods that are done:

Modifications:

• Burger MS JB1 - now my RS400 feels pretty much just like my Stage II APR Tuned S4 did. Gobs of torque down low, dare I say more, and plenty of room up top. I can't find my Dyno's from the Stage II tune but I'll post them in comparison once I do. My RS400 came in spot-on with what Burger showed. Granted it was nice and cool out when I had it done but still, it came in very strong. I'll know come May when our first track day hits as to how it translates into time and speed. My Stage II S4 ran 12.2 at 112-113mph. The seat of my pants tells me the RS400 will be close to the same time but I can tell the traps will very likely be better as she pulls stronger up top. 2 minutes to install or remove and a simple but VERY effective and reliable way to add power. AnyB9 owners in Columbus open to a few runs need just PM me. Perhaps we can make it official by getting them out to National Trails in the spring.
• Tint - Llumar Pinnacle Ceramic, 15% rear; 35% on the sides.
• Custom eye liner on my girl as I like my ladies sexy
• Trim Wrapped in Gloss black 3M
• Tires - ditched the RunFlats and given it's a lease I decided to run DWS06's on the stock wheels.
• Factory Spoiler - In route painted body color
• Exhaust - Axle Back Hemholtz desinged Infiniti Sport Exhaust - OMG I love it. This is exactly what the car should have sounded like from the factory. Internal sound maker OFF! I wish my Audi sounded as good for so little coin.

Here are some clips of what she sounds like. Make sure you are on a playback device with some bass

Here's the cold start up:
https://youtu.be/BXI4TAs8kqE

Warmed up car with a few revs in park:
https://youtu.be/bm2uh7Fs78o

Mild throttle to and rrom roll:
https://youtu.be/gZlp2JK0p58


Just cleaned her up this weekend.

[will13k7]

Infiniti's are definitely the best looking Japanese cars, exterior-wise at least.

Price wasn't an consideration when I looked at all the cars in this category, so the b9 s4 came on top.

A lot had to do with aesthetics.

Some cars had more downsides though, e.g., the Q50's transmission when compared to the ones in the german cars. I don't care too much about the tech, though the virtual dash, with its huge tach in the B9, was a plus.