Which performance estate - S4 or C43 AMG?
Discussion
Posting on behalf of my dad who isn’t on PH (well yet anyway). He is looking to get a performance estate and considering a 2017 Audi S4 or C43 Amg. He is swaying towards the Audi having owned a 2001 S4 many moons ago but the Merc is also appealing. Merc seems to be a little more pricier and tad more power but aside from that both seem to be quite evenly matched. Appreciate any advice and opinions from those who have owned either or even both.
The C43 is the slightly better car but it'll cost you more to buy, to be honest your dad will be happy with both.
Does your dad do a lot of miles? If he doesn't then the full fat versions of both start to make sense as their depreciation can help to offset the slightly higher running costs.
Does your dad do a lot of miles? If he doesn't then the full fat versions of both start to make sense as their depreciation can help to offset the slightly higher running costs.
I’ve recently moved my C43 (saloon) on whilst prices were high.
I found it ridiculously competent at all speeds, and if you find one with the sports exhaust, it makes a ruddy good noise for a modern V6. Try and get one with the Premium Plus pack: the sound system was great and the sunroof is a nice touch. Also, the smaller screen looks a bit naff on a car at that price point…
As for the interior, my experience was that it was mostly form over function: it looks nice, and the open-pore wood is lovely, but I had so many dash rattles/squeaks, it became rather tedious.
Also, the wheels are very delicate and very expensive: I’ve had to replace two this year following pothole issues, costing me over £1300…
I found it ridiculously competent at all speeds, and if you find one with the sports exhaust, it makes a ruddy good noise for a modern V6. Try and get one with the Premium Plus pack: the sound system was great and the sunroof is a nice touch. Also, the smaller screen looks a bit naff on a car at that price point…
As for the interior, my experience was that it was mostly form over function: it looks nice, and the open-pore wood is lovely, but I had so many dash rattles/squeaks, it became rather tedious.
Also, the wheels are very delicate and very expensive: I’ve had to replace two this year following pothole issues, costing me over £1300…
I've a C43 Wagon.
Good car and a little more involved than the Audi I got out of. Anything specific you'd want to know?
Just make sure you get one with the Premium Pack if you can. Also, try to avoid (like the plague) the piano black gloss centre console, it's terrible for finger prints and scratches if you look at it incorrectly. Mine lasted about 2 weeks before I ended up buying a replacement centre console from eBay (£150), looks so much better in Black Ash wood IMO.
That being said, there's never many C43 Wagons for sale, so if you see a good car just know you can change the dash with some YouTube education.
The 2017 cars sound better as the 2018 models got slapped with Euro emissions (noise) rules, they also respond better to performance tuning than the 2018- models.
It'll ship with 367bhp but MSL Performance (Birmingham) can remap to 400-420bhp (£500).
No issues to speak of and MB will sell you an extended warranty for decent money if you want piece of mind.
Poster above mentioned a C63, but be conscious of the differential in servicing costs and parts. Also be aware the C63 is RWD, the C43 is 4WD (69R/31F). Same deal with the RS4 with regards to ownership costs... The RS tax is real.
Good car and a little more involved than the Audi I got out of. Anything specific you'd want to know?
Just make sure you get one with the Premium Pack if you can. Also, try to avoid (like the plague) the piano black gloss centre console, it's terrible for finger prints and scratches if you look at it incorrectly. Mine lasted about 2 weeks before I ended up buying a replacement centre console from eBay (£150), looks so much better in Black Ash wood IMO.
That being said, there's never many C43 Wagons for sale, so if you see a good car just know you can change the dash with some YouTube education.
The 2017 cars sound better as the 2018 models got slapped with Euro emissions (noise) rules, they also respond better to performance tuning than the 2018- models.
It'll ship with 367bhp but MSL Performance (Birmingham) can remap to 400-420bhp (£500).
No issues to speak of and MB will sell you an extended warranty for decent money if you want piece of mind.
Poster above mentioned a C63, but be conscious of the differential in servicing costs and parts. Also be aware the C63 is RWD, the C43 is 4WD (69R/31F). Same deal with the RS4 with regards to ownership costs... The RS tax is real.
I agree with most of the above. I too had a c43 premium plus but all the rattles and squeaks became irritating after a while and cashed in this summer.
Interior is a lovely place but build not as it should be and handling is benign. Lovely engine but the 9g auto box not as smooth as it should be, certainly nowhere as good as a ZF 8 speed.
I think the s4 will age better and better built but probably not as much fun as the c43.
Interior is a lovely place but build not as it should be and handling is benign. Lovely engine but the 9g auto box not as smooth as it should be, certainly nowhere as good as a ZF 8 speed.
I think the s4 will age better and better built but probably not as much fun as the c43.
I had the b8 S4 and replaced it with a W205 C63.
Did liok at a C43 but thought i’d always regret it thinking I wish i’d stretched to a C63.
FWIW, the step up in performance is big between the S4 and C63 and the C63 is much more of an event, even at low speed.
I find it relaxing at slow speeds (sub 30mph) as you canjust enjoy the burble of the V8.
Not economical though.
S4 was competent rather than enjoyable, I suspect the C43 would be more enjoyable to drive.
Didn’t want another fast Audi as my S4 was stolen, targeted for robberies and used in robberies. That put me off getting a replacement
Did liok at a C43 but thought i’d always regret it thinking I wish i’d stretched to a C63.
FWIW, the step up in performance is big between the S4 and C63 and the C63 is much more of an event, even at low speed.
I find it relaxing at slow speeds (sub 30mph) as you canjust enjoy the burble of the V8.
Not economical though.
S4 was competent rather than enjoyable, I suspect the C43 would be more enjoyable to drive.
Didn’t want another fast Audi as my S4 was stolen, targeted for robberies and used in robberies. That put me off getting a replacement
I've not had any issues with cabin rattles to add some balance.
The infotainment screen definitely ages the interior though, but then I'm also a sucker for decent analogue dials over the more modern virtual cockpit - nostalgia. There's Android screens you can replace the screen with that look OEM and you retain the OEM system and gain a functional Android tablet. So I wouldn't let me put me off per se.
The infotainment screen definitely ages the interior though, but then I'm also a sucker for decent analogue dials over the more modern virtual cockpit - nostalgia. There's Android screens you can replace the screen with that look OEM and you retain the OEM system and gain a functional Android tablet. So I wouldn't let me put me off per se.
Appreciate the replies chaps.
He went for the S4 in the end, partly due to the nostalgia of owning a B5 in the past but also he felt he couldn't live with the Merc's chintzy and flimsy interior and difficult to use infotainment system. What also didn't help is that on a test drive of one, some sort of headlight error flashed up.
He went for the S4 in the end, partly due to the nostalgia of owning a B5 in the past but also he felt he couldn't live with the Merc's chintzy and flimsy interior and difficult to use infotainment system. What also didn't help is that on a test drive of one, some sort of headlight error flashed up.
shiversaint said:
The MB interiors are far superior than the other germans these days. I would go MB too.
Really, just had an 2020 E class AMG plus spec for 6 weeks while my 5 Series was been repaired. The Mercedes looks to have fancy glitzy interior, but functionality to operate I was relieved to get my own owncar back. I would take tbe S4 out of the two as I prefer the interiors.I have a C43 wagon. Bought in June 21 and it was up against an S4 Avant or S5 sportback. I felt it did everything better than the S4 when I was looking, but the interior rattles are driving me insane. The Audi build quality I presume is much better as that's what, Audis are fabled for. I thought if I put some effort into finding them and fixing them it might help but as soon as I fix one another one appears.
That aside it's a great car, suspension is a little stiff and mine is on 18 inch non RFTs. Get a premium plus model with the carbon or wood trim, and if possible the sports exhaust. It was the one option I wish I had. It still sounds nice without it. I like the gearbox in sport mode. In comfort mode it up shifts far too early but certainly isn't dim witted compared to my last BMW with the ZF 8 speed.
That aside it's a great car, suspension is a little stiff and mine is on 18 inch non RFTs. Get a premium plus model with the carbon or wood trim, and if possible the sports exhaust. It was the one option I wish I had. It still sounds nice without it. I like the gearbox in sport mode. In comfort mode it up shifts far too early but certainly isn't dim witted compared to my last BMW with the ZF 8 speed.
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