Sam CarLegion has recently pitted four six-cylinder performance cars against each other to see which is king of the hill from a dig and from a rolling start. All four are based on rear-drive platforms, but these variants all feature AWD.
The list includes three Germans and one South Korean vehicle, with the latter being a white-painted Stinger GT. Weighing in at 4,179 pounds or 1,895 kilograms if you prefer metric units, the Kia is the heaviest of the bunch. It also happens to be powered by the largest engine as well, for its twin-turbo V6 displaces just over 3.3 liters.
368 horsepower and 376 pound-feet (510 Nm) are the crankshaft numbers, which makes the Stinger GT more powerful and torquier than the Audi S4. Quite a bit lighter at 3,847 pounds or 1,744 kilograms, the quattro-equipped sedan puts out 349 horsepower and 369 pound-feet (500 Nm) from a 3.0L single-turbo V6. Said engine is closely related to the RS 4's and the RS5's performance-oriented 2.9L TFSI V6, which is a twin-turbo affair.
The next challenger is a previous-gen Mercedes C-Class in C 43 attire. This, in turn, means that it's rocking a twin-turbocharged V6 instead of the current generation's inline-four turbo. Although some might be tempted to put said V6 on a pedestal, bear in mind that it's not a true AMG engine.
Previously marketed as the C 450 4MATIC AMG Sport, this version of the Kompakt Klasse launched with 362 ponies to its name for the 2015 model year. The bi-turbo motor was ultimately enhanced to 385 horsepower, whereas torque is listed by the Stuttgart-based automaker at 384 lb-ft (520 Nm).
Photo: Sam CarLegion on YouTube
Tipping the scales at 3,902 pounds (1,769 kilograms), the Merc is noticeably lighter than the BMW M440i Gran Coupe. For these quarter-mile showdowns, the M340i Sedan would've been the car to race against. Even so, remember that both of them are based on the very same platform, feature the very same engine, and come with ZF Friedrichshafen's eight-speed automatic tranny.
BMW six- and eight-cylinder mills are known to make a bit more than advertised. The B58 in the M440i is officially rated at 382 horsepower and 369 pound-feet (500 Nm), which puts it extremely close to the Merc's non-AMG engine. Given this info, does it come as a surprise that both of them clocked 12-odd seconds in the quarter mile? C 43 recorded a very respectable 12.6 clicks, while BMW's five-door liftback crossed the line in 12.5 seconds.
To 60 miles per hour (97 kilometers per hour), the BMW proved quicker, managing a best of 3.9 seconds compared to 4.1 for the Mercedes. The Audi recorded bests of 4.1 and 12.5 seconds, respectively, whereas the Stinger GT ranked fourth with a 4.7 to 60 and 13.4 seconds in the quarter.
The Stinger GT and S4 lost against the BMW from a roll. But rather surprisingly, the C 43 bettered the M440i from 37 and 50 miles per hour (60 and 80 kilometers per hour). The big question is, would you consider the current-gen C 43 with the hybridized inline-four turbo over the M340i?
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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