900 HP Audi RS 6 Gaps 800 HP BMW M3 Competition in a Drag Battle for the Ages

I think I can safely say a fair share of people have seen short videos or compilations of heavily modified BMWs trashing every other car out there. So, it feels like justice to level the playing field by having both cars involved dish out enough power to make sci-fi cars seem docile in comparison.

Granted, in this case, the cars are not exactly on equal footing, as Audi has the mighty yet hefty C8 RS 6 in its corner while the much nimbler G80 M3 Competition is present to represent BMW. But there is at least one mitigating factor here, as the RS 6 has the power advantage over the M3.

However, it's not by much, so let's look at what's under the hood of this mean wagon. It all starts with the 4-liter twin-turbo V8 that's ever so popular in cars produced by the Volkswagen Group. And it's been taken to the next level with a few upgrades, like a stage three ECU and TCU tune, along with upgrades to the turbos, intercoolers, and air intake, as well as new downpipes and an upgraded exhaust.

The result of this work is a car that delivers a whopping 900 hp to all four of its wheels via its Quattro AWD system and a torque converter automatic transmission. And with all that power hitting the tarmac, the RS 6 has an impressive power-to-weight ratio of 441 hp per ton.

And while it seems that the work done on the engine in the Audi is not that extensive, the BMW has it beat in this category. This M3 Competition is able to reach a colossal 800 hp with just a stage two ECU and TCU tune, upgraded downpipes and mid-pipes, and an upgraded intercooler. This is a spectacular performance gain from the 503 hp that the 3-liter twin-turbo straight six delivers from the factory.

The result of this work is a car that sends all that power to all four wheels via its X-Drive system and, yet again, a torque converter automatic transmission. But the torque converter is not the only thing these cars have in common, as the M3 Competition has a similar power-to-weight ratio of 449 hp per ton.

So, we have two cars with all-wheel-drive systems and similar power figures and gearboxes. But just because two cars sound similar on paper does not mean the numbers will be reflected on the track. In this case, Audi smokes BMW in the rolling races two times out of two, leaving it behind by around two car lengths.

That only leaves the main event between the sports sedan and the family wagon still undisputed, the drag race. And the RS 6 once again gaps the M3 despite short shifting, leaving it with zero wins out of four races and enacting revenge for all the internet mockery Audis worldwide had to endure at the hands of BMW fans. The quarter-mile times show a difference of 0.3 seconds between the two cars, with the RS 6 crossing the line in 10.3 seconds.