Sam CarLegion originally planned for three cars partaking in this quarter-mile showdown: an R35, an E 63 S, and a TT RS, all of them boasting more power and torque compared to their stock forms. But as it often happens with tuned cars, the modified Nissan GT-R experienced some issues during the warm-up runs.
The R35 just wouldn't launch properly, and for some reason or another, it would lose power halfway through the quarter mile. Alas, only the E 63 S and TT RS were left to duke it out at the Dunnville Autodrome in Ontario. Let's begin with the Mercedes, shall we?
As you might already know by now, the V8-powered 63 is living on borrowed time. AMG is believed to employ a six-cylinder lump and plug-in assistance for the all-new model. Hearsay even suggests that Mercedes won't advertise it as 63, but under the 53 moniker.
The most powerful iteration of the W213 packs 603 horsepower (612 ps) and 627 pound-feet (850 Nm) from a hand-built V8. Most of those reach all four wheels by means of a nine-speed transmission featuring a start-off clutch rather than a torque converter. According to AMG, this design saves weight and improves acceleration.
Tipping the scales at 4,587 pounds (2,081 kilograms), this E 63 S is anything but stock. Highlight mods include K&N drop-in air filters, valved mufflers constructed from titanium, X pipes, downpipes, and a Stage 2 tune. Following these improvements, the 4.0-liter V8 is believed to make in the ballpark of 760 ponies.
Turning our attention to the Audi, the red-painted TT RS in the video below produces way more than the factory-rated 400 horsepower and 354 pound-feet (480 Nm). Under the hood, the 2.5-liter turbocharged inline-five mill is rocking a new valvetrain, rods, and pistons.
A TC800XT 2.5 TFSI hybrid turbo from HPerformance also needs mentioning, along with 980-cc injectors from Bosch. The list of modifications further includes an Iroz Motorsport low-pressure fuel pump. With 94 octane in the fuel tank, this unassuming coupe belts out a staggering 550 ponies at the wheels. That's roughly 620 horsepower at the crank, which is huge if you remember that we're dealing with 2.5 liters of displacement.
It's also much lighter compared to the rear-biased E 63 S due to its Volkswagen Group MQB vehicle architecture. Prior to the aforementioned modifications, the TT RS used to weigh 3,306 pounds (1,500 kilograms). Audi hinted that it would replace the fossil-fuel TT with an electric TT, although Audi has refused to elaborate on the finer details of the heir apparent.
That said, which one of these gasoline-munching brutes do you think is quicker off the line? That would be the TT RS, with a zero-to-60 time of 2.9 seconds compared to 3.5 for the E 63 S. In the quarter mile, the Audi prevails with a blistering ET of 10.4 seconds as opposed to 11.49 for the Merc. Even more surprisingly, the TT RS makes easy work of the E 63 S from a rolling start. That's three nil, which is mind-bogglingly impressive for a compact-sized coupe with Golf underpinnings.
Still, from the standpoint of aural pleasure, one cannot escape the fact that eight cylinders arranged in a 90-degree V sound better than five arranged in a line.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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