Cars! - Page 19

I think it is a Chrysler Crossfire, in the new convertible mode. Drizz, I've considered the M5 and perhaps the E500, as well as the 540i. While I love the M5 and 540, the interior space is nearly identical to the 3-series in terms of square footage (surprisingly); its just larger on the outside. We'll see.

They're not easy to come by but if you can find a 540iT they're a great wagon. As Drizz mentioned the Touareg and Cayenne are excellent as well. They're one of the few current VW offerings that I really like. If you do want the ulimate though an Audi RS6 Wagon is really the only way to go...Every soccer mom needs a station wagon with 450 bhp twin-turbo V8.

An E55 should certainly have enough interior space... as well as power to burn I would rather have the E55 than the RS6... MB seriously underrates its vehicles' power... the old E55 was rated at "380 bhp" and made 385 rwhp on the dyno, that's underrating by about 70 bhp considering the car is an automatic, the supercharged E55 is rated at 476 bhp, it's 118 mph trap in the 1/4 @ 4100 lb (with driver and fuel) indicates power in the 500 rwhp range, or somewhere around 600 bhp... that's pretty good for a 4 door 4000+ lb sedan.

I'd still rather have a helicopter.

I just got a new toy (oops, I mean family sedan)  It's for driving fast (oops I mean driving the kids to school.)   I haven't had it long enough to really drive it hard (still breaking it in, so I'm being gentle) but so far, I'm really impressed.  It handles very well, has great acceleration and a reasonably broad torque and power band for a small turbocharged engine.   My new Subaru STI:

Nice, I like those, one of my former employees was really into Subaru, he had a new WRX that he did quite a few mods to.

I don't know if the RS6 is available anymore though, unlike the E55. The RS6 is much rarer, as it was only made for the 2004 model year, the last year of the older A6 styling. You would have to find a pre owned one, although there might be a few new ones floating around. I know that the RS6 was far more limited in production then the E55. I would rather take the RS6.

I think it's choice, both cars are fairly easily tweakable, the RS6 somewhat more so, and the AWD may be a crowd pleaser. I personally really like the direct response of the E55, and it feels a bit more solid (I was considering both of these cars, but went in a totally different direction and bought the preowned 911 turbo instead, and a honda accord to drive on a daily basis) I really like the idea of the super sedan though.

I looked on cars.com (or maybe it was autortrader.com) last week and found there are 3 or 4 RS6 Audi's for sale (used). All were priced in the $75,000 range.

That doesn't seem too bad, I think the E55 is $80k brand new.

Kai: I have a wagon. Great cars.

it is, noone around has the soft top, can't wait for the sun to come out this spring, love putting the top down and driving around the mountains.

kai, i drove subarus for years, good reliable sedan.

Hey, keep in mind that is $75k for a used one. As much as I like the AMG Benze's out, it is disappointing that none of them have manual transmissions. I would be perfectly happy with an S4.

I used to own a S4, it is a bit underpowered from the factory, it really needs chip, intake, exhaust, and its turbos are REALLY small, which contributes to no lag, but it doesn't really feel like a turbo car to me. MB makes the best automatic transmissions in the world, and with that particular car, their tranny does a better job of putting power to the ground than most manuals... I think it would be a fun car with a manual but I think you would have very serious traction problems with 513 lb/ft of torque at 2000 rpm with a manual tranny.