Tuning a 2003 RS6
 

Apologies if this has been covered before, I've searched the forums, and didn't find anything too helpful.

I am considering purchasing a 2003 Audi RS6, and would like to know what (if any) options are available for tuning it to increase the vehicle's HP. I have about $60k to spend on the car + tuning, so that leaves $20-$30k depending on how much the car ends up costing.

I'm looking to get an AWD luxury car (or SUV) that has a biggish back seat and excellent straight line speed. I'd have likely bought a CTS-V already, but they're RWD only. Stock, the '03 RS6 is clear of everything else in my price range by 10%+. But I'll be checking into tuning options for some of its competitors, so of course it's only fair to do the same for the RS6. :)

Thanks in advance for any help.

Not many of us are in a position to afford an RS, so the traffic here in the RS forums is kind of slow. I'm sure some of the gurus would be able to help you out though, assuming they find this thread.

IIRC the RS6 is the 4.2L V8 with twin turbo? Probably already has a ton of power. If you are looking for a good daily driver, you can probably get it chipped for under $1K and have more than enough power on tap. Maybe some bigger DPs and a tuned exhaust...

What kind of power are you looking for? What will you be using the car for?

Thanks for the response. The RS6 does indeed have a twin turbo with a ton of power (450 to be exact). :D However, I'm a rather obssessive soul, and want to have the fastest sedan possible. It's going to be a daily driver for me. My current daily driver is a 2002 Z06 (and a Dodge Durango in the winter, bleh) but I've finally been convinced by a strong practical female voice (read: wife) that I should make my daily car something suitable to carry our two kids with me, year-round. Optimally, I'd like to achieve a CW:HP ratio similar to the Vette's, but realize that may not be feasible.

It appears that if I were to chip it, I may have to beef up the tranny as well.
http://www.insideline.com/audi/rs-6/...-audi-rs6.html

I have no idea how much it would cost, or if it's even doable to beef up the transmission in the car. I would guess this would apply to any HP upgrade? Whether it be from DPs or tuning the exhaust? Unfortunately I'm a total newb at this stuff, but after seeing what can be done so economically to Evos and STis (both of which have backseats that are too small for my purposes) I definitely feel obligated to explore this option for cars I am considering.

as far as i know... and i am not rs guru either.... but i would have to agree w/ beau on the tuning and d/p's exhaust and that kind of stuff to open the car up


there are 2.7t guys that are running "stage 2 +/-" cars with factory trans'..... i wouldn't think you would have to upgrade the trans till you go bigger turbo....


now with that being said... a z06 is 500bhp right? you are saying that a rs6 is 450bhp... so a tune and open up the exhaust and you will have the same or more bhp than a vet... i would actually bet that the rs6 would be more fun to drive than the zo6 w/ or w/o the tune and other stuff


but if you want the rs gurus, your best bet is to go over to audizine or possibly quattroworld or vortex.... there might be guys here with rs cars, but your main stay of guys here i would say have the lower model a cars or s cars..... where as az has plethora of rs guys

It's definitely something I want to find out. Of course, all the better if I wouldn't need to upgrade the tranny. Maybe that article was FOS.


Actually, the '02 Z06 is 405 HP. But it only weighs 3,118lbs for a 7.70 CW:HP ratio, while the '03 RS6 is 450HP but weighs 4056lbs for a 9.01 CW:HP ratio. To bring the RS6 in line with the Z06 I'd need to raise the HP to about 527. Of course, anything beyond that would be gravy. :D

If this is true, that will be awesome. The Vette is an absolute blast to drive.

Thank you very much for these tips. I initially started my information search by Googling "tuning a RS6" but that led to a bunch of people talking about putting RS6 parts in other Audis, not exactly the direction I'm looking to go. So I've been Googling "2003 RS6 forum" and that lead me to here and audi-forums.com. I'll try those sites you've recommended.

I'm sure you could also look into bigger turbos, improved intercooler...

When (if) you get this project going, please keep us informed over here. Who knows, you may end up being our RS guru here on audiforums.

In case you haven't found it yet......
 

The best information for the 2003/2004 RS6 is here:http://www.rs6.com/forum.php Enjoy! Good luck with your purchase, regards, paul

I'll be sure to do so. :)

And I doubt I'll ever reach expert status, but if I can escape something best described as "functionally retarded" then I'll be happy.

I've nosed around that site a bit, great tip, ty.

Totally obvious URL, should have thought to try it. :o

so you getting one?