[RL_M550i]

A year ago i spent a few months looking for a used Audi RS7. I was getting frustrated because i couldnt find one not beat up for a reasonable price. I had an add for a used 2021 M550 come by my social media feed and out of curiosity looked into the car. Prior to this add i had not idea what a 550 was as i had always been an Audi fan. After reading up on the 550 i test drove it and bought it the next day as it hit all the check boxes of what i was looking for in a car. Now, a year later i came by a 2021 RS7 that has the same miles on it as my 550.
Im struggling with the idea of trading in my 550 for the RS7 with the RS7 being about $35k more than what i could get for the 550.

Im curoius whats everyone’s opinion when comparing the two cars. I’m on the fence but i have the green light from the wife to pull the trigger.

[JTV]

Honestly, the M550i is such a great car that I could not imagine trading it, and having to throw $35k in as well, for what is essentially a lateral move or marginal increase in vehicle performance/quality/status. IMHO, be happy with your sweet M550i and keep your $35k.

[silverydragon72]

Id agree its not worth the 35k to me at least unless you got money to burn and just love the RS7 that much but I wouldn't do it.

[adhrp]

Originally Posted by JTV

Honestly, the M550i is such a great car that I could not imagine trading it, and having to throw $35k in as well, for what is essentially a lateral move or marginal increase in vehicle performance/quality/status. IMHO, be happy with your sweet M550i and keep your $35k.

This.

[Neusser]

Originally Posted by RL_M550i

A year ago i spent a few months looking for a used Audi RS7. I was getting frustrated because i couldnt find one not beat up for a reasonable price. I had an add for a used 2021 M550 come by my social media feed and out of curiosity looked into the car. Prior to this add i had not idea what a 550 was as i had always been an Audi fan. After reading up on the 550 i test drove it and bought it the next day as it hit all the check boxes of what i was looking for in a car. Now, a year later i came by a 2021 RS7 that has the same miles on it as my 550.
Im struggling with the idea of trading in my 550 for the RS7 with the RS7 being about $35k more than what i could get for the 550.

Im curoius whats everyone’s opinion when comparing the two cars. I’m on the fence but i have the green light from the wife to pull the trigger.

While the M550 is nose-heavy by BMW standards, I would say that purely based on chassis, the RS7 is a shopping cart vs. the BMW.

If you care about the drive, the M550 will be superior in every metric aside from suspension tuning. The RS models will be stiffer from the factory, but you can solve that with a set of KWs or even a good set of Bilsteins and a few other bits.

[RL_M550i]

My biggest concern is which one will be more reliable over time.

[NGT2]

Originally Posted by RL_M550i

My biggest concern is which one will be more reliable over time.

Probably the M550. There are a couple known issues but mostly they seem to be holding up well with miles and years on them.

I don’t know Audi well at all. RS7 is a sweet car. I’ve just heard they’re a nightmare when they get some miles on them. The person I heard it from has been selling them for years.

That said, they’re all high maintenance by average standards.

Drive your M550 to the RS7 and then test drive the RS7. You’ll know which one you want.

What kind of miles and options do you have on your M550?

[EBsM550i]

I've owned only Audis for over 20 years, and never had any issues, they were rock solid, until 2019. I had a 2016 S6 stage 2 with E, pushing 650 HP, and it was amazing. A distracted driver took it from me in 2022. I picked up a 2019 A6 Sport and had daily issues. Literally daily. Sensor malfunctions, car hitting brakes or calling 911 at 70mph because no driver detected, etc...it was in the shop 9 times in 11 months, over 8 weeks in its last visit. They could not figure it out. Same with my wife's 2019 Q5. Ac kept dying, and after 7 visits, they couldn't figure it out. I asked Audi to buy mine back, they declined but offered me $4k to keep the car as is. 4k! To keep my family in danger. That pissed me off. I asked them for records on this car before I bought it, as now I'm thinking they knew this car was an issue and kept it out there. How many other lemons are still out there because they offered a few K? They refused to give me any records. I lawyered up, made them buy it back and take my wifes lease back. Join any FB group for 2019 or newer Audis, the new electronic heavy design is garbage. Theyre failing all over the place. Alternators are a huge weak point, with a 4 to 8 week wait time for parts. Materials and build quality feel like crap. They don't even let mechanics fix the cars anymore, without aubmitting everything to the TAC center in Germany and getting approval and instructions first. I got a 21 m550i in December and I'm finally in love with my car again. This car is soooooooo much nicer than any 2019 or newer audi, not to mention more reliable. I've gone 6 weeks without a malfunction!! Check out Audis JD power ratings. Gone from top 10 to 3rd from last in last few years. CEO was fired due to quality issues. I'll never go back.

[w1zk1d]

Originally Posted by RL_M550i

A year ago i spent a few months looking for a used Audi RS7. I was getting frustrated because i couldnt find one not beat up for a reasonable price. I had an add for a used 2021 M550 come by my social media feed and out of curiosity looked into the car. Prior to this add i had not idea what a 550 was as i had always been an Audi fan. After reading up on the 550 i test drove it and bought it the next day as it hit all the check boxes of what i was looking for in a car. Now, a year later i came by a 2021 RS7 that has the same miles on it as my 550.
Im struggling with the idea of trading in my 550 for the RS7 with the RS7 being about $35k more than what i could get for the 550.

Im curoius whats everyone’s opinion when comparing the two cars. I’m on the fence but i have the green light from the wife to pull the trigger.

I too was in the same boat as you. Initially I researched for a few months and was looking to get a 2016-2017 Audi RS7 (non Performance). I even contemplated getting a S7 and just tuning it, but because of the different trannies, I opted for the RS7. However, the more I researched, the more that I saw potential issues with the turbos being starved of oil and then eventually failing due to poor design of a oil screen filter. There was a recall that replaced the screen with a more porous one, but many have just done complete deletes of the screen, which is not a small job. Also, I felt that the interior and infotainment for those years were outdated and Audi steering is not inspiring. All of that, and where I live it's a rural area with mostly farms and some trailers out in big fields of land. I also travel a lot to NYC, and with what's going on in the world, I feel personally it's better (for me) to not have a target on my back. I decided on getting something a bit more low key but wanted at least a v8. To each his own, but I love my '20 M550i - has the 523HP engine, it's a low-key sleeper, it doesn't get much attention- only from those that know what's under the hood, and it's an absolute pleasure to drive. It's the perfect balance of comfort and sport/power for me. I know that the later RS7 models will have upgraded interior/MMI but I like the look of the 2016-2018 S7/RS7 model years best. However, the one major thing that I liked about RS7 were their seats. To me, they are way more comfortable than the M550i seats.

[BMW012]

remove the resonators for 300 bucks, then wire me the remaining 34,700. thank you

[RL_M550i]

Thank you everyone for the feedback. I know a guy that tunes Audis and he’s telling me id get more miles out of the Audi than BMW and i’d have more issues with the BMW. That along with all the talk about n63 engine reliability had me thinking.

[Benjamin_Nicholas]

Originally Posted by RL_M550i

Thank you everyone for the feedback. I know a guy that tunes Audis and he’s telling me id get more miles out of the Audi than BMW and i’d have more issues with the BMW. That along with all the talk about n63 engine reliability had me thinking.

The n63 hasn't had issues for many years.

The 2021 M550i has all the kinks worked out.

[Joe-BMW33]

Can't add much to what has already been said, but personally, I never liked the A7/RS7 in terms of style. That hatchback bugs the shit out of me.

RE: the "N63", for lack of better words, there is a lot of ignorance on the N63. The original N63 has cast a dark cloud over the TU2/3. People shoot from the hip on reliability because of it without really doing research or homework.

[BMW012]

how many more years would you keep either cars for?

[AP]

Yeh this forum is pretty active and any issues are quickly highlighted and the n63 tu2/3 seems to be ok , so far.

[Joe-BMW33]

Originally Posted by AP

Yeh this forum is pretty active and any issues are quickly highlighted and the n63 tu2/3 seems to be ok , so far.

I would argue it's been as reliable as the B58 which is widely considered bulletproof. Both suffer similar coolant issues, but that's it. Pretty good sample data given the TU2 has been on the M550 since 2017 (non US) and 2018 (US).

[RL_M550i]

Originally Posted by BMW012

how many more years would you keep either cars for?

As long as possible until it becomes a problem child. I have a truck thats my daily. This car is my weekend car.

[NGT2]

Originally Posted by RL_M550i

Thank you everyone for the feedback. I know a guy that tunes Audis and he’s telling me id get more miles out of the Audi than BMW and i’d have more issues with the BMW. That along with all the talk about n63 engine reliability had me thinking.

BMW owners forum says BMW.

Audi specialist says Audi.

Who’d of thought?

FWIW, the guy that told me a performance Audi is a nightmare is an Audi salesman. But frankly, I think that’s going to be the general sentiment on any of these performance geared sedans as they age. And it’s all relative. What is a headache to some is nothing to others. Outside of the coolant issues, I haven’t heard of any significant issues on this BMW engine across all models or the M550 specifically.

[Benjamin_Nicholas]

Originally Posted by Joe-BMW33

RE: the "N63", for lack of better words, there is a lot of ignorance on the N63. The original N63 has cast a dark cloud over the TU2/3. People shoot from the hip on reliability because of it without really doing research or homework.

This. 100%.

People have a shred of information and they think they know the whole story without doing a little internet research.

I still hear buyers of the 2023 M550i 'concerned' over the 'engine issues' they 'heard about.'

People are sheep who don't often take it upon themselves to educate.

[overcooked]

My experience with Audi has been great, they are mostly rock solid and have a lot of grip.
However the C8 RS7 is just too heavy at close to 5000 lbs. Even though it has a better engine than M550 (stage 1 flash gets you 700hp, it's the same class as S63 engine, not N63), it probably won't be faster or as fun to drive compared to M550 simply due to the weight.

[2022M550i]

If I was hell-bent on spending 35 grand more, I would get an M5. Issue solved. Wouldn’t even look at the Audi.

I test drove the Audi, Mercedes and BMW sedans. I thought BMW was the best bang for the buck hands-down.

[xander_g]

Originally Posted by 2022M550i

If I was hell-bent on spending 35 grand more, I would get an M5. Issue solved. Wouldn’t even look at the Audi.

I test drove the Audi, Mercedes and BMW sedans. I thought BMW was the best bang for the buck hands-down.

Coincidentally, I know someone who's on their 2nd rs7 and currently praying it gets stolen. At least my friend with amg gt53 gets to drive a different loaner every month lol.

If you have the extra dollars burning a hole in your pocket, M5 all the way but I'm biased.