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What's the difference?
When it comes to choosing a family car, sedans are often overlooked for their long-legged wagon or beefy SUV cousins.
They're a bit of a forgotten hero but they'll always hold a piece of my heart for their practicality and (often) sexier kerb-side appeal.
If you can get used to your body cracking like a glow stick when you get in and out of them, the sedan may make a comeback!
The new Mercedes-Benz C-Class, in entry-level C200 form, has definitely tempted my family to consider a sedan in the future – it looks stately and refined but the driving experience also makes it fun.
Let's see what else it did right and if there was anything that could be improved.
Did I mention, I'm fond of sedans... ?
STOP! Don’t buy the performance SUV you were looking at! There’s a better way.
It’s the car we’re looking at for this review, Audi’s latest RS6 Performance. Freshly updated for the 2024 model year, this is the ultimate wagon, and possibly, the ultimate car which many overlook.
Is there a catch? And what has Audi changed for the 2024 model year? Read on to find out.
The Mercedes-Benz C-Class C200 is such a stylish sedan and I would totally have one. The driving performance, luxurious features and practical size made it a winning combo for my family. The price point is definitely up there but you do get a high-end build for the cash. I've seen bigger boots in other sedans and not being able to fit a third child seat will limit some families, but this still easily earns an 8.5/10 from me.
My son really loved this one. The ambient lighting was the highlight for him and he thought it looked like a "space car" inside. He gave it a 9/10.
To me at least, the RS6 is pretty much the ultimate fast and practical car. One which is just as comfortable plodding around town as it is tearing it up on the track. Keep in mind, too, this may be one of your last chances to have a car which looks like this, equipped with a V8 engine. So, have I convinced you? Would you consider one of these over a performance SUV? Tell us what you think in the comments below.
Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with travel, accommodation and meals provided.
The C200 is a sleek and elegant steed.
Initially, you may think this is just a standard Merc showcase. There's the nice big badge on the pronounced nose. Beautiful sleek lines in the body... but it's the attention to detail that make this feel special.
There's a repeated badge motif in the grille and a cute cursive Mercedes logo tucked into the corner of the windscreen. The puddle lights on the doors project the badge at night time and you can often spot a badge etched into the LED lights.
However, it's the interior that's the highlight for me and I feel like it's a big step up from previous models I've been in.
Our model has the grey 'Artico' synthetic leather trim (says grey but it's really white) and a lovely mix of piano black and shiny chrome inserts that are set against soft touchpoints throughout.
The quality of the build oozes through every stitch and join. Don't even get me started on the cool customisable ambient lighting system inside, which makes this feel like you're on the set of Tron and really elevates the interior.
It's quite fun to build one of these in Mercedes' online configurator. You can customise your trims to make it feel like your own and their blue paintwork options are great (I do love a blue car).
At a distance the RS6 is just an unassuming station wagon, but the closer you get, the more apparent it becomes how mean it is. It’s wide, it’s chiselled, it’s not just good looking, it’s iconically Audi.
The stance is so wide, its ride height so low, and its wheels are so massive that any keen eye will be able to spot where the difference is between this and any old family hauler.
Wagons may not be trendy, but there’s something undeniably cool about having the hauling capacity of an SUV at the ride height of a sedan.
Of course, if you want to look even more svelte and don’t need the boot space, the RS7 is always lurking around at a slight price premium.
Inside, the RS6 has all the modern amenities of the Audi range. Expect the usual sharp screens, lovely sports seats, and a tasteful application of textures throughout.
There’s a blend of carbon-look finishes, chrome, leather and gloss black. Perhaps a little too much gloss black to keep clean, but the aesthetic is suitably upmarket.
You can go to town on customisation, and the car we primarily tested had stitching and colour in the carbon patterns to match its 'Ascari Blue' exterior, but you can pick whatever shade or combination of colours your budget allows.
Audi’s software is pretty good these days, with an attractive theme and fast hardware to back it, and the brand’s ‘Virtual Cockpit’ is still one of the most aesthetically pleasing and customisable digital instrument systems on the market, despite being one of the first.
I'm not going to lie – there are sedans out there that have an almost limo-like space inside but the C200 isn't one of them.
It's not small by any means and all occupants enjoy the comforts of decent legroom and headroom but it's not cavernous considering the specs (1437mm high/1820mm wide/4751mm long).
The optional panoramic sunroof does cut into the headroom for back seat passengers, which is something to consider if your family is very tall.
The storage is maybe a tad leaner-than-average for a car of this size. The glove box and middle console aren't massive but will suffice.
The cupholders up front can be removed if you need extra storage space for larger items and back seat passengers enjoy retractable cupholders in the armrest.
The way the front doors curve out creates a larger than normal storage bin and drink bottle holder – which help make up the difference. There is a dedicated phone pocket, to tuck it out of the way.
The boot space is 455 litres (VDA), which isn't as large as some others on the market but it was plenty big enough for my family's needs.
There's a handy under-floor storage pocket for smaller items, like the puncture repair kit, because you don't get a spare tyre in this.
When it comes to ease of use, my six-year-old loved not needing my help to get into his seat and he still enjoyed a decent view out of the wide back window.
The amenities in each row are good but not class-defining. Still, creature comforts have be well-thought through.
Front occupants enjoy heated seats and fantastic lumbar and under thigh support. Dual-zone climate control sorts out the temp, and the cool circular air vents that make loud audible 'clicks' when manoeuvred give the interior a jet cockpit vibe.
While I've never had an issue opening or closing a sedan boot, the powered lid was a nice feature to have this week.
The tech throughout is great and intuitive to use. The massive 11.9-inch touchscreen multimedia system is cool and is easy to use once you become acclimatised to Mercedes system.
The customisable digital instrument panel makes the driving experiences feel individualised.
The interior is a chilled out space with gentle scrolling touchpads taking the place of most 'push' buttons and dials.
Think of each surface as being a bit like a touchscreen tablet in how you operate it. I was a little worried the touchpads would be laggy but they're very responsive.
There's only one USB port in the whole car, which limits charging for other passengers but I did enjoy the easy connectivity of the wireless Apple CarPlay.
The electric heated front seats are a nice touch but I was amused by the 'kinetic' function on both. It's what you might call a 'massage' function on another car but here they don't really work. It's best to think of them as a way to do some (very) gentle stretching on a long trip.
The 360-degree camera view is super clear and crisp but the dynamic guidelines (which tilt the camera angle) are a bit too dynamic for my liking and I relied mostly on the bird's eye view to park.
As I've mentioned, the ambient lighting system creates a stellar atmosphere inside. I've often wondered why other car manufacturers haven't jumped on that bandwagon because it's a relatively cheap way of creating wow factor. And it generates massive wow factor in here.
Okay, I promised a car with the practicality of an equivalent SUV, but it’s not quite there. The trade-off is still worth it, I promise, but there are a few areas where the RS6 isn’t as practical as you think it’s going to be, particularly for front occupants.
Yes, it’s a big wide car, with large but supportive seats and plenty of headroom, but the issue for those travelling in the front two seats is the surprisingly limited amount of storage.
Yes, there are two bottle holders in the centre console with a folding tray lid to hide them away, but they aren’t huge. Bigger bottles would have to go in the door bins, but even then they’re a bit height-constrained.
There’s a decent glove box on the passenger side, but even the centre console box is very shallow, with more than half of it taken up by a wireless phone charger.
The touch panel for the climate unit looks impressive but still can’t match having physical dials. It has clicky haptic feedback to your individual presses, and all the functions are permanently accessible instead of hidden in sub-menus, so if you’re going to make climate a touch-based interface, it doesn’t get much better than this.
Where the RS6 shines is in the back seat. Despite those big bucket front seats, I had heaps of room behind my own seating position (at 182cm tall), with lots of headroom and sufficient width in the cabin to spread out.
You sink into the rear seats, which are heavily contoured so riding in the back is a pretty good experience even on the track.
Rear passengers get four adjustable air vents in both the B pillars and in the centre, as well as their own touch panel for the rear climate zone.
USB power outlets are also available, and there are netted pockets on the front of both back seats, with a further two bottle holders in the drop-down armrest.
The centre seat is probably only good for kids, because there’s a very tall raise in the centre required for the driveshaft, eating all the legroom.
The boot is fairly large at 548 litres which is in mid-size SUV territory, although I will admit some performance SUV rivals offer closer to 600L.
Space expands to 1658L with the second row folded flat.
Herein lies the rub. There are four models for the C-Class sedan and ours is at the bottom of the pack.
But don't let its position fool you in thinking it'll be cheap because this model starts at $78,900... and that's before you start adding the option packs.
Our model is fitted with the 'Vision Package' which adds a host of features – like a panoramic sunroof, head-up display and heated front seats, to name just a few. This adds about $3000 to the price tag.
This also has the optional 'Sport Package' which adds 19-inch AMG alloy wheels and rear privacy glass, among other things, for an extra $1300.
Unfortunately, even without all of those options, this is still one of the most expensive 'entry-level' sedans in the luxury class!
Let’s start with the bad news. Most people can’t afford one of these. The RS6, in all of its muscular glory, is more expensive than ever before. Now wearing a before-on-roads price-tag of $241,500, it’s hardly your average mum and dad family hauler. But then, there’s nothing average about the RS6.
It’s so well regarded amongst enthusiasts for multiple reasons. It’s the biggest meanest wagon you can buy, and somehow Audi has managed to make this version more powerful and even faster than before.
In fact, it’s one of the few normal looking combustion cars out there which can still hold a candle to many electric cars, with its whomping V8 helping it warp from 0 to 100km/h in just 3.4 seconds.
More on those performance specs later. If you’re wondering what else you get for your near-quarter-of-a-mill it’s pretty much every spec item Audi currently offers.
There are now lighter 22-inch alloy wheels, adaptive air suspension, a high-performance braking system, an RS-specific exhaust system, matrix LED headlights with adaptive high beams, a 10.1-inch multimedia touchscreen with navigation and wireless phone mirroring and one of the best digital instrument clusters on the market.
It also features Valcona leather interior trim, sporty bucket seats with perforated trim, honeycomb stitching, as well as ventilation and heating, additional cabin trim in synthetic suede (comprised of 45 per cent recycled fibres), ambient interior lighting and a panoramic sunroof.
It’s a lot of stuff, but one thing you get a little less of is sound insulation. Audi has chosen to remove some of it this time around so you can hear the V8 better from behind the wheel.
The C200 has a 1.5-litre, four-cylinder, turbo-petrol engine with an integrated starter-generator.
What's that, you ask? So, glad you did. It's basically an electric battery that also acts as your starter... or alternator.
It smooths out vibrations from the engine and generates some power from braking. Making this a very mild hybrid. Note the 'mild'.
Is it powerful? Surprisingly, yeah. It has a maximum output of 165kW and 300Nm of torque. Combine that with the starter-generator and we have a powerful little engine that can push the C200 from 0-100km in 7.3 seconds, while still feeling like there's power in reserve.
The nine-speed auto transmission is damn smooth and there's no clunky gear changing at any speed. It's got great pick-up, too, for when you need to overtake or zip across traffic.
The RS6 is still packing eight cylinders in 2023, producing a massive 463kW/850Nm, somehow an increase (+22kW/50Nm) over the previous iteration.
Audi’s signature ‘Quattro’ all-wheel drive system is present alongside a limited-slip differential and four-wheel steering.
Air suspension and performance brakes and exhaust also feature, alongside an aggressive Continental SportContact 7 tyre package.
The 0-100km/h sprint time is now just 3.4 seconds, allowing you to show up even some electric cars, and the RS6 features 48-volt mild hybrid technology with a cylinder-on-demand system which can shut half the block down for more efficient coasting.
The transmission is an eight-speed torque converter unit which is smooth and effortless.
The official combined cycle fuel figure is 6.9L/100km. Real world testing saw my figure at 7.2L, which was awesome for the heavy driving I did this week on a combo of urban and open-roads.
The light regen braking probably helps this coast comfortably into being a very efficient sedan for its size.
Minimum fuel requirement is 95 RON premium unleaded and you'll need 66 litres of it to fill the tank.
Driving range using the official consumption figure is around 950km, and 915km using our real-world number.
Officially, the RS6 and its eight cylinders drink a combined 11.8L/100km, although even with its fancy hybrid system and cylinder deactivation, my time with the car saw 15.0L/100km. The RS6 has a 72-litre fuel tank and takes only the finest 98RON unleaded fuel.
The steering feels solid and concise. The tyres seem like they're glued to the road, making winding roads downright fun to tackle. Oh, and the sharp 11 metre turning circle is wonderful.
The handling makes this your best friend in a car park. The lower ground clearance did elicit some unladylike grunts when I parked on a hill, but otherwise the wide door apertures makes it easy to get in and out of.
The only thing I would note is the low-profile ground clearance. Just be aware of your speed and angle when you handle car park ramps or road bumps in this. They are not your friends.
As you might have guessed from its impressive engine and performance equipment, the RS6 is a certified weapon on road and track.
On the road you can expect a quiet, refined cabin, superbly balanced steering for low and high speeds and a gentle ride quality courtesy of the pricey air set-up.
It’s as noisy or as quiet as you want it to be, with the cylinder deactivation toning things down at low speeds, and the engine roaring to life under heavy acceleration, or when the 'Dynamic' drive mode is selected.
It can at times be alarming how much the RS6 leaps to life, as it feels so cushy in a city, its width and cabin giving the feel of a luxury car rather than a performance one.
Make no mistake, though, the RS6 is properly quick, and when you give it a kick, it’s the roaring, aggressive machine the spec sheet suggests.
The best place for this? The track, of course. The big V8 and the capability of the all-wheel drive system are truly best explored at velocities impossible to legally achieve on the road.
Once you get past the bark and snarl of this wagon’s eight-cylinders at full force, and the lightning-fast shifts of its eight-speed automatic, you’ll have a moment to appreciate the way it simply holds to the tarmac when you tilt it into the corners, providing a balance when loaded up which only air suspension can provide.
The steering is awesome, communicating the texture of the road nicely to the driver, and requiring just the right amount of force to keep the car pointing where it needs to go.
The grip level is astounding with the huge tyres and the four-wheel steer system lets this hefty wagon take corners at a tighter angle than your brain initially allows.
Thankfully, the four-wheel steer system isn’t weird, either. While it can have a strange effect on some cars, in the RS6 it only bends your mind slightly when you tip it into a hairpin. Otherwise it feels pretty normal.
When everything is warmed up, it can let its guard down slightly and allows the driver to eke out a slide at the rear here and there for extra fun-factor
Jeez. What a machine. I guess this is what a quarter of a million dollars buys. A car that can do it all. Take the kids to the school in comfort and tear it up on the track like few other passenger cars on the same day.
There’s a caveat, though. A small one which looks like it will turn into a big one for cars like this in the near future.
I had the opportunity to drive the RS e-tron GT around the same circuit and it was better. Much better.
It was faster, more accurate, more composed. It was so effortless, I didn’t realise exactly how much quicker than the RS6 it was until I drove them back-to-back.
It’s a good sign for the future, but also a reminder a V8 like this isn’t the performance pinnacle it once was.
The safety sheet is well-stocked and has the usual suspects you want in a family car, like: AEB with car, pedestrian, cyclist and junction turning assist (effective speed 7.0-90km/h); forward and back-over collision warning, lane keeping assist, lane departure warning and emergency lane keeping assist, as well as, blind-spot monitoring.
I quite like the 'Active Distance Assist' which helps to automatically slow your vehicle speed to keep a set distance to the car in front in stop-start traffic.
Perfect for those busy city commutes. And if you're not confident on parking, this also has a 'Park Assist' feature.
It's nice to see that this has nine airbags, which include a driver's knee airbag and the newer front centre airbag.
This has a maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating which is nice and new from testing done in 2022.
There are ISOFIX child seat mounts on the outboard rear seats and three top tether anchor points but because of the narrower rear seat, you'll only comfortably fit two side-by-side.
It was super easy to fit my seats and there's a good amount of room for front passengers when a 0-4 rearward facing child seat is installed.
Like its standard cabin equipment, the RS6 has had the entire catalogue thrown at it for active safety gear. Included is freeway-speed auto emergency braking with pedestrian, cyclist, and intersection detection, lane keep assist with lane departure warning, blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert, an exit warning system, and adaptve cruise control with traffic jam assist.
Elsewhere the RS6 gets dual front, dual side, and head curtain airbags, with ISOFIX points on the outer two rear seats as well as three top-tethers across the rear row.
The RS6 is not safety rated by ANCAP, but the rest of the A6 range was awarded a maximum five stars in 2018.
The C200 comes with a five-year/unlimited km warranty, which is standard for the market.
There are multiple servicing options and on the five-year plan, the services average $1090 annually, which is quite expensive.
Servicing intervals are pretty good at every 12 months or a longer than usual 25,000km, whichever comes first.
Five years and unlimited kilometres is the warranty length, and Audi’s ownership program includes invites to events like the one we were able to experience for the launch of this car. A track-test of the RS6 and the RS e-tron GT.
If you own one, I recommend them, you’ll learn a thing or two about the car and possibly yourself while you’re at it.
Servicing is required once every 12 months or 15,000km, and a service pack covering the first five years or 75,000km can be purchased alongside the car at a cost of $4360.
It works out at $872 per year, which isn't economy car cheap, but with such a complex drivetrain, what did you expect?