Audi RS5

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Audi can’t quite match BMW and Porsche for
racing car heritage, but it’s been making up for
lost time ever since the legendary Quattro broke
cover in 1980. The brand now offers everything
from a compact hot hatch to a full-blooded
supercar, but it’s the sleek RS5 that’s closest in
spirit to the famous eighties original.
With its smooth coupe lines, muscular V8
powerplant, grippy four-wheel-drive transmission
and four-seater cabin, the Audi promises to be a
supercar for all seasons.
The Audi RS5 was launched out to mark the
30th anniversary of the original Audi Quattro –
and it builds on that car's reputation by offering
even more power and technical sophistication. It
rivals the BMW M4 and Mercedes C63 AMG , and
has a 444bhp 4.2-litre V8 which drives all four
wheels through a seven-speed automatic
gearbox. It's incredibly capable in all weather
conditions, but it's not the driver's car that Audi
would have you believe.
Our choice: RS5
Other Audi RS5 body styles
Audi RS5 Cabriolet
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2013 model
Styling
In isolation, the RS5 has plenty of high-
performance kerb appeal, but it appears a little
ordinary parked alongside the pumped-up BMW
M4.
Look closely, though, and you’ll spot plenty of
racy additions that will get any car fan’s pulse
racing. Like the original Quattro, there are
enlarged wheelarches to accommodate the car’s
wider track, plus the tailgate features a neat
retractable spoiler that is automatically raised at
speeds above 70mph. As with all S and RS-
badged Audis, you get silver finish door mirror
housings and xenon headlamps with LED daytime
running lights.
You’ll find just as many sporty additions inside,
including a flat-bottomed steering wheel, heavily
bolstered sports seats, metal pedals and a
smattering of RS5 logos. The rest of the interior
is pure A5, which means a logically laid out
dashboard, top-notch materials and impeccable
fit and finish.
Admittedly, the design is starting to look a bit
dated, particularly the graphics on the MMI
infotainment screen. Still, buyers can console
themselves with the fact they get plenty of kit
as standard. The comprehensive list extends to
sat-nav, climate control, a DAB radio, Bluetooth
and soft leather seat trim.
Driving
You can tailor the steering weighting and throttle
response using the Drive Select control, but none
of the settings delivers a natural feel. Yet it’s not
all bad news. Thanks to its strong grip, almost
unbreakable traction and decent body control,
the RS5 carries impressive speed through fast
corners and fires out of slower bends like a
rocket.
Better still, the clever Sport differential can send
torque to individual rear wheels, helping to
reduce understeer and improve turn-in – although
it can act aggressively in tight corners.
Another highlight is the Audi’s 4.2-litre V8, which
is taken from the brilliant R8 supercar. The
mighty 444bhp V8 has tremendous shove – it
revs to 8,250rpm and rockets the RS5 from
0-62mph in just 4.6 seconds, and is backed up by
a thunderous bark and rumble from the exhausts.
Yet it can also be remarkably quiet and docile.
Away from the track, the Audi feels a little limp
at low speed, but once the revs climb above
3,000rpm it really flies. The impression of speed
is heightened by the rapid-fire seven-speed S
tronic twin-clutch gearbox, which serves up silky
smooth shifts in auto mode and crisp changes
via the steering wheel-mounted paddles.
When you’re not attacking back roads, the Audi
is a remarkably composed grand tourer. There’s
little wind noise, while the V8 engine is ticking
over at just 2,400rpm at 70mph. And sticking
with the standard 19-inch alloys helps take the
edge off the stiff low-speed ride.
Put it in Comfort, and it's a big pussy cat. Put it
in Dynamic mode and it generates so much grip
in corners, it almost takes the tarmac with it.
That's thanks to a rear sport differential and a
new centre diff that can send up to 85 per cent
of torque to the back wheels. For all that
technology, though, the steering never has that
much feel and the brakes – while incredibly
powerful – are numb at the top of the pedal's
travel.
Reliability
Despite Audi’s upmarket image and tradition for
engineering excellence, the A5 finished in a lowly
71st place in our Driver Power 2014 survey, with
owners criticising the car’s poor reliability.
However, it scored a top 20 result for build
quality, and the RS5 also uses bespoke parts
developed by Audi’s high-performance division,
quattro GmbH.
Standard safety kit includes the usual
complement of six airbags and electronic safety
systems, plus the added benefit of four-wheel
drive and upgraded brakes. If you’ve got deep
pockets you can spend an eye-watering £5,250
on powerful carbon ceramic brakes, £900 on
adaptive cruise control and £440 and £370
respectively on blind spot monitoring and lane
keep assist.
Practicality
If you want a bit of practicality to go with your
performance, then the Audi is worth a look. Like
the M4 it’s a four-seater, and occupants sitting in
the back get a decent amount of head and
legroom, plus individually sculpted seats.
Elsewhere in the cabin you’ll find plenty of handy
storage, including decent-sized door bins, a large
glovebox and cup-holders located in the centre
console. But the Audi’s trump card is its
spacious boot. At 455 litres it’s 10 litres bigger
than the BMW’s, while the neat ski hatch and
split-fold function add extra versatility.
With a smooth automatic gearbox, you really
could do decent distances in this car and not
feel tired, too.
Running Costs
With claimed economy of 26.9mpg and CO2
emissions of 246g/km, the Audi RS5 will cost a
lot in fuel and tax. Insurance and servicing
should be quite steep too – but then the same
can be said of the M4 and a C63 AMG. Residual
values should be quite strong - the RS5 is
relatively rare, keeping second hand prices high.
With hefty CO2 emissions of 246g/km and that
high asking price, the Audi will cost higher-rate
earners £8,259 a year in Benefit in Kind bills.
However, Audi’s monthly servicing plan helps you
budget for future maintenance.
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