I know which vehicle id rather be driving day to day. Especially with those looks and engine. (Although the XF-R puts up a argument in comfort stakes too).

There are a lot of variables however which make it hard to pick any one car. Each car would naturally have it’s unique traits some of which may or may not suit a buyer. This is where the E63 would probably gain a few buyers. Other focuses away from the phyiscal drive it self such as engine noise, the E63 is a gem. Granted the M5 is absolutely amazing sounding (bloody hell it sounds like an F1 engine for the road), if you’ve heard any of the 63 engines, the moment you start it, you know it’s something special.

Don’t quote me on this, as i’m not sure, but i’m under the impression the XF-R is cheaper than both the M5 and E63?
If so, value for money, that sounds like a good buy and would probably be taken into consideration by the said reviewers.

The Realist – Very true (re: “die-hards”). But also consider that, many people may be looking to upgrade rather than start fresh per say. I know it may sound stupid but i’m pretty sure there’s a market out there that is more than happy to just “move up”. For me, as much as I believe that a dealer’s big buyers should be well treated, the same unfortunately doesn’t seem to come for those that shop in the sub $100K group say. This applies to BMW at least, and possibly rounded down to even a single dealership, but I firmly believe that, given any brand loyalty (includes even purchasing the car X brand from Y dealership), MB and BMW a like have a few things to learn from Lexus as every dealership must meet higher standards set by Lexus themselves (basic things like a free courtesy car, the best bit about Lexus though is that even rock bottom is still an IS250 and not a B200K ).

Now we just need to wait for the usual Aussie magazine review comparing the E63, M5, RS6, XF-R with a Bombadore W200 or E-Series 2 HSV with the left over Pontiac parts and pronouncing the Dunnydore the winner.