Vs BMW M5 vs. Mercedes E63 AMG Which is best?

[ateekt]

I'll let my "avatar", do the talking here ...!

 

[Karabiner98k]

What are the advantages of the E63 over the M5 on everday roads?

3) Significantly higher torque in the low rpm range......don't underestimate this in city driving......people who buy these cars want speed (or else they would have bought a E350 or 525i). Instantaneous torque means instantaneous acceleration without the need for downshifting a few gears and reving the engine high like the M5......this makes passing cars much more easier on the road. And don't tell me this isn't the BMW way.......the 335i is the perfect example of how much BMW fans LOVE torque, once they finally have a car which gets a lot of torque in the low rpm range. Now they praise and praise about how the 335i is such a better road car than the E46 M3.

This is almost exactly the arguments people have with the E46 M3 and W203 C55, a debate I'm very familiar with.

I know this thread and this discussion is very old but it seems that there are still people who think AMG has better tractability or overtaking ability than M cars just because of more low end torque or more displacement.Having "Significantly higher torque in the low rpm range" doesn't at all 100% guarantees better tractability at low revs.The problem is that you just see engine torques.yes, E63 has more torque than the M5 but M5 has 80% of it's peak torque in wider area of it's rev range than E63.they both have 7-speed transmissions but those extremely tall ratios destroys flexibility on E63.A simple example will makes it clear:
M5 in 6th gear can accelerates from 80-120km/h in 6.9s
E63 in 5th gear can accelerates from 80-120km/h in 7.3s

So, we give E63 the advantage of a gear lower but it still can't pull as hard as M5 in 6th gear despite having "Significantly higher torque in the low rpm range" as you put it! Now let's see what happens if we put both of them in top gear(which is 7th gear for both):
M5: 80-120km/h in 7th:9.6s
E63: 80-120km/h in 7th:around 11.5s!

In city driving you are most in top gear (low rev) and behind heavy traffic and the above example completely shows M5 is not only good in this segment but also by far better than the huge grunty E63.

M5 has better tractability than most sedan cars even those with supercharger and turbocharger and mountains of torque.The secret is short and proper gearing of the M5 which is completely matches the high revving engine.

The same story goes for M3 E46 vs C55 W203.The 6-speed manual gearbox of the M3 gives it advantage in tractability:
M3: 80-120km/h in 5th gear:7.0s
C55: 80-120km/h in 5th gear:7.9s

It doesn't matter how much torquey is an engine in low revs or high revs, when it is hooked to super-tall gearing it is not as flexible as the torque figure suggests.Comparing F430 with corvette and viper in terms of in-gear and tractability numbers proves this point.F430 with considerably less torque than viper but it destroys viper in terms of tractability.

BMW engines have always been famous for low-end torque and broad distribution of torque all across the rev-range.Also BMW cars have been the most strong cars in terms of tractability in their own categories.

So, M5 has no problem in city driving in low-revs and it doesn't need to rev high or to downshift to deliver instant overtaking power.In fact it is better than E63 in pulling low revs.M5 is an exception.It pulls nice in low revs, mid range and high up the rev range and that's why the V10 is a masterpiece.

 

[Mr Robert]

As a layman, I would like to ask if the "in-gear" times aren't a bit pointless if the cars does not feature the same gearing?

 

[Karabiner98k]

As a layman, I would like to ask if the "in-gear" times aren't a bit pointless if the cars does not feature the same gearing?

The exact fact that "the cars do not feature the same gearing" is what i tried to prove for those who were not aware of it.