Anyone had any experience with the Audi 2003 RS6?

[on d bit]

Im curious if anyone has had the 03 rs6 in the past or have known someone that has? I am currently looking at these cars as a fun 4 sedan that I could hold onto for years to come. Seeing as only 860 made it to our shores in early 2004 I am thinking that one day they may be a collectors item(though if I do purchase one it will be to drive).

The three questions I have:
How reliable will they be as the miles add on?
Will maintenance cost more than the enjoyment of owning the car?
How much fun are they to drive?

All comments are welcome, thanks!

 

[Joe Dozzo]

I've owned mine since Nov 2003. I think it's a great car, a real 4 door sleeper. 450hp twin turbo. Smoothe power delivery, not a hint of turbo lag. Comfortable and very nicely appointed.

No problems at all with mine - a couple of recall items over the years but taken care of under warranty. Everything is packed in pretty tightly under the hood - so tight that engine removal is but one step in replacing a valve cover gasket. Oil changes are very routine - no problem at all for the do-it-yourself guy.

I wish they had manual transmissions, but I've gotten used to its automatic. Nice Sport mode and the up / down shift levels on the steering wheel are often handy.

Mine is pretty low miles (23,000) - I'm out of town a lot and have some different choices on what car to drive when I am home - but from October to March the RS6 is my daily driver. Quattro with decent all season tires and Audi's traction control and it's fantastic in the snow (Denver). Take the traction control off and it's spin city - fun all by itself in the right circumstances.

There are a couple of RS6 boards you might check out - but they'll have their own - predictable - bias.

Last... I bought a '11 Taurus SHO for my wife to drive in Anchorage. It's for sale and being replaced with a 2nd RS6.

 

[MNJason]

Ive owned two. I loved them to death. Here in MN its about the best all season car you can get, IMHO.

However, they are spendy to maintain. You have to pull the engine to do just about anything. Regular parts (calipers for instance) are outrageously expensive. The DRC will go, its only a matter of time.

These are expensive cars to run to 100k miles. So unless you are an Audi mechanic or have deep pockets, think twice.

Just my $0.02

 

[on d bit]

Last... I bought a '11 Taurus SHO for my wife to drive in Anchorage. It's for sale and being replaced with a 2nd RS6.

That tells me a lot about what you think about the reliability of these cars. Thanks! I also gather that maintenance can be expensive to keep them in proper running condition. Thanks again for both responses. Looking to find one in the 25k range with under 70k miles.

 

[BelgianGT]

Not a 2003 but I had a 2009. It's got the Lambo engine with twin Turbo. stock it already makes 580hp and after some tweaking on the dyno it made 678rwhp and 876Nm torque. Are real wulf in sheapclothes as we say.
Regular maintenance was not all that bad but fuel consumption was terrible....and very difficult to drive slowely with this car. It's so challenging all the time to release the power and play against some BMW's - Porsche. As mentioned above here it's so great on the snow really unbelievable. I was in a hurry to get back from Germany a did constant 200kmh (125mph) on the snow.

 

[Joe Dozzo]

Hello BelgianGT - Must be a model that didn't make it across the pond... Only version of the RS6 we got in the US was back in 2003, a 1 year only deal. Sure wish the beast you're describing had come over!

 

[MNJason]

The Europeans get all the hot Audis. Wagons to boot!

 

[on d bit]

Speaking of mileage what does the 03 get on the highway? Can it get 24/25 cruising at 70?

 

[MNJason]

Lows 20s are possible. I think I hit 25 once or twice.

 

[BelgianGT]

A real petty. I really enoyed that car. I had it inthe colour combo as in the pic. The reason I sold it again is because I wass homejacked and the only thing they wanted was that car. According the cops this is the favorit cars for gangsters as a get away car. It's hardly noticeable vs an ordinary A6 - spacy and fast as hell. I was afraid for my other cars in the garage but the cops said not to worry. The other cars are too flashy (z06-67 gt500) and they'd never steel that. I was pretty beaten up and learned a lesson = only drive flashy -grotesk cars that everybody immediately notices.

 

[californiacuda]

each brake rotor is over 500