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Car #1
Make
Model
Variant
Engine
Car #2
Make
Model
Variant
Engine

compare selected cars
2007. - 2010.
E - Luxury car
sedan, 4 door
rear
Badges
Production
Vehicle class
Body style
Wheel drive
Safety
2008. - 2011.
E - Luxury car
sedan, 4 door
front

Marketing

Dimensons & Outlines

4841 mm
1846 mm
1468 mm
520 liters
520 liters
70 liters
Length
Width
Height
Boot (min)
Boot (max)
Fuel tank
4927 mm
1855 mm
1459 mm
546 liters
546 liters
70 liters
2007 BMW 5 Series
2008 Audi A6

Engine

Diesel
4 - Inline, 4 valves per cylinder
Turbo
1995 cc
163 hp
350 Nm
Engine
Fuel
Configuration
Aspiration
Displacement
Power
Torque
Volkswagen
2.0 TDI BMN
Diesel
4 - Inline, 4 valves per cylinder
Turbo
1968 cc
170 hp
350 Nm

Performance (manual gearbox)

manual gearbox - 6 gears
1485 kg
8.6 s
223 km/h
8.0 l/100km
4.7 l/100km
5.9 l/100km
158 g/km
Gearbox type
Vehicle weight
Acc. 0-100
Top speed
Cons. (urban)
Cons. (highway)
Cons. (average)
CO2 emissions
manual gearbox - 6 gears
1565 kg
8.9 s
225 km/h
7.5 l/100km
4.7 l/100km
5.7 l/100km
149 g/km

Performance (automatic gearbox)

automatic - 6 gears
1495 kg
8.7 s
223 km/h
9.3 l/100km
5.5 l/100km
6.9 l/100km
185 g/km
Gearbox type
Vehicle weight
Acc. 0-100
Top speed
Cons. (urban)
Cons. (highway)
Cons. (average)
CO2 emissions
cvt - gears
1575 kg
8.9 s
218 km/h
7.3 l/100km
5.0 l/100km
5.8 l/100km
153 g/km

Expenses

5500 EUR
Price from
5800 EUR

Virtual Adviser's™ opinion

Overview

Two significantly similar cars, no doubt about that. Still, each one has something different to offer. Having both cars powered by diesel engines and utilizing the 4-door sedan body style within the same 'Luxury car' segment, the only major difference here really is their wheel drive configuration (rear for the BMW and front in the case of the Audi). The first one has a BMW-engineered powertrain under the hood, a 4-cylinder, 16-valves 163hp unit, while the other one gets its power and torque from a 4-cylinder, 16-valves 170hp engine designed by Volkswagen.

Safety

A starting point here would be to take a look at the results from European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) tests which were performed on both of the cars, with the Audi being a slightly better choice apparently. That aside, let's consider some other aspects which affect safety. Both vehicles belong to the luxury car segment, which is generally a very good thing safety-wise, but that fact doesn't break the tie between the two cars. On the other hand, taking kerb weight as an important factor into account, Audi A6 offers a marginal difference of 5% more metal.

Reliability

Reliability is not the best thing to consider on the make level, but it is worth mentioning that both brands display similar results in faults and breakdowns, all the models observed together. These are the official statistics, while our visitors describe reliability of BMW, as well as Audi, with the same average rating of 4.2 out of 5. Independent research findings rank 5 Series as average reliability-wise, and A6 is more or less at the same level.That apart, owners of different cars powered by the same engine as 5 Series rank it on average as 4.2 out of 5, exactly the same as the other one.

Performance & Fuel economy

BMW is a bit more agile, reaching 100km/h in 0.3 seconds less than its competitor. Still, it lacks the power to win the top speed competition, topping at 223 kilometers per hour, 2km/h less than the other car. When it comes to fuel economy things look pretty much the same for both cars, averaging around 5.8 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (49 mpg), in combined cycle.


Verdict

Audi appears just a bit more reliable, although the difference is truly marginal. The most important thing when deciding between any two vehicles should always be safety, both passive and active. In my opinion, everything taken into account, Audi A6 offers much better overall protection, which launches it ahead of the other contender. From there things take a different direction, with BMW offering somewhat better performance, just enough to call it quicker. It does come at a cost though, and that's the fuel consumption... It's not difficult to say then that if I'd need to make a choice, it would definitely be the Audi. In any case that's my personal view, built upon all the data available to me. What should decide here though is the way you feel about the two vehicles, and I hope you'll find my guidelines useful in the process. I suggest you spend two more minutes in order to find out which car, based on your needs and budget, would be picked by the virtual adviser, among thousands of similar, yet so different vehicles.

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