Audi RS4 Avant Vs. BMW M3 Touring Drag Race: It's Not Even Close

The two coolest wagons on sale today come together for a good old fashioned drag race. But one is far quicker than the other.

By: Brian Silvestro

May 19, 2024 at 9:00am ET

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Performance wagons are having a bit of a resurgence in America. The Audi RS6 Avant entered the US market in 2020, and the new M5 Touring has been confirmed for BMW's US lineup next year. But Europe is still the champion of fast estates, with cars like the RS4 Avant and the M3 Touring. Bringing the two together for a drag race is only natural.

French-language publication Motorsport Magazine wanted to see how the two German sport-wagens matched up in a straight-line drag, pitting them against each other in a 1000-meter (around 0.6 miles) race.

The two station wagons are fairly close on paper. The RS4 makes 443 horsepower and 443 pound-feet of torque from a twin-turbo V-6, getting power to all four wheels via an eight-speed automatic. The M3 gets 503 hp and 479 lb-ft from a twin-turbo inline-six, and like the Audi, gets power to all four wheels through eight forward gears.

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The Touring's extra 60 horses are put to use immediately at the start, with the M3 taking an early lead. Things only get worse from there for the Audi; by the time it reaches the 1000-meter mark, it's over two seconds behind the BMW, or what looks like a dozen car lengths difference.

In the past Audi's iconic Quattro system likely would've given the RS4 an early jump and possibly a win, but these days the quickest M cars employ their own version of xDrive to put power to the ground, effectively stomping any advantage the Audi may have had.