German Heavy Metal - Triple Teutonic Treat.
Audi RS 6 vs BMW M3 vs Mercedes Benz SL600
Audi - I know it is based in Bavaria now, but that iconic Logo started out in Zwickau in Saxony.
Mercedes-Benz is Stuttgart in Baden-Württemberg
BMW are based in Munich from Bavaria.
Now my first thought was - That Beemer is going to get squished under the power of the other two. But then I did a cheeky run at the seasonal at Silverstone to earn me close to a million Kazula if I get the win with a 200% Log In bonus - I only managed 1 ... oh, all three cars got the win but I got dropped from the PSN before the end of two of the runs... (The Mercedes was the Prize Money winner by that technicality of wireless infidelity.) But the One I thought would be outmatched was easily the pace setter. But Speed isn't everything in My reviews. So do the other two have any aspects that can out match the m3?
*** Round 1 *** Silverstone Seasonal ***
Hey who cares about feeling things out, lets just run the test!
2m29.8 (13m07.1) Audi RS6
2m28.3 (12m59.7) Mercedes
2m26.5 (12m50.6) BMW M3
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2m20.6 (12m18.3) BMW M5 (Edit)
Big comfortable win for the M3... but let's examine why...
*** Round 2 *** Powah ***
443bhp - Audi RS6
493bhp - Mercedes SL600
338bhp - BMW M3
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500bhp - BMW M5
but how can the lowest powered car win, and win by a solid margin.
*** Round 3 *** Torque ***
37.2kgfm - BMW M3
57.1kgfm - Audi RS6
81.5kgfm - Mercedes SL600
53.5kgfm - BMW M5
Okay the straight six in the Beemer is so modest
*** Round 4 *** Weight ***
2025kg - 54:46 Mercedes SL600
1840kg - 59:41 Audi RS6
1570kg - 50:50 BMW M3
1715kg - 50:50 BMW M5
This bit here was the bit that I guess must have had the biggest effect on the lap times. The Merc is heavy and also front heavy so it works the brakes hard but puts the fronts under a huge loading. The Big thing is how much of the Audi's weight is over that front axel - It makes it a very safe drive, but who wants safe?
*** Round 5 *** Handling ***
A personal thing but with no driver aids the BMW was better, the Audi wasn't as pushy (Understeer heavy) as I expected, but the weight made it pudgy in corners. The Merc was good solid fun, the engine let you have a bit of fun if you like to do powerslides but the weight makes the suspension work extra hard. The Beemer however was wunderbar!
(The M5 however was more fun than the M3 - It builds on the M3 - loses a bit in how soft the suspension is, but it makes up for a slight step back in precision with a really nice balance the Engine really helps out but because it has a softer easier power curve you can get the power down smoothly when compared to the SL600's Monster V12.
*** Round 6 *** Looks ***
The Audi is a 4 door sedan, great for moving a corporate team about the autobahn. The Beemer is only a two door, so is much suited for just two inside. The Merc has a tricksy folding roof... without the need to do it by hand or it being a flimsy fabric. The Audi is last - but the Merc and Beemer are close, but the M3 has a solid set of proportions. However the Mercedes has a slightly more GT sporty look whereas the M3 is a bit more boxy town car in origins.
THE Mercedes, Yesterday.
*** Round 7 *** Colours ***
All three win as they all come with Dark Green Paint. Sure there are other colours, but Ryk likes his dark green.
*** Round 8 *** Rapid rule change ***
Dreadful news, the Entry from Bavaria has been disqualified for being out matched by the other two cars...
but happy days the replacement is here... let me just grab the cloth coving the car, which is much larger than the humble looking M3, just a quick pull to reveal.... Arrrgh my eyes!
Well this totally flummoxed me. I thought that the M3 was going to get squished by the other two more powerful cars but it was a real Cinderella story of the little sister rising up to the challenge and trashing her big ugly German sisters...
Then the clock struck midnight and the magic stopped, and there were three ugly sisters...
Now the new "after midnight" Uberbeemer is even more dominant on the track, the high revving V10 engine is a beast that gives it plenty of forward propulsion, but the weight is reasonable and lower than the Audi and Mercedes so it can brake with poise and corner like it has fired a harpoon into the apex - The big let down is the lack of a Green Paint chip. So I went with Alpineweis - which made it into a big of a white whale on track, which isn't so bad in car where the Big M5 will win you over, but the outside...
As the respected American teen sensations "Daphne and Celeste" once sang,
U-G-L-Y you could make an Onion cry...
Who knew the song was about the BMW M5?
Which is best? Well I'd have said the M3 and praised how much performance it gets from much less physique. A real case of training over talent. But the Steroided up M5 is a juggernaut compared to the Audi and the Mercedes.
M5 wins.
But the Audi wasn't that bad, looks a bit safe and subtle, the handling wasn't as terrible as I expected - for sure it was the worst but considering where the engine is and the drive train it was better than I expected.
The Mercedes - This was a big loveable lump the V12 engine putting the rear tyres into a headlock and ruffling its hair through every corner like an older sibling. The super smart folding roof would be a plus point... if I could get it to work. But I would prefer the M3 to the SL600.