Audi RS6 Avant: the lowdown
Audi has begun testing a prototype of the world’s fastest estate: the forthcoming RS6 Avant. Crammed into that nose is a Lamborghini V10. Don’t go shrugging your shoulders – it isn’t the 429bhp, ‘lower-powered’ unit from the S6, but a twin-turbo version that will summon an extra 100 horses. That’ll be enough to make the RS6 demolish 0-62mph in around 4.5sec – as quick as a BMW M6. Click ‘next’ for more.
RS chassis mods…
That hardly flush bonnet tells a story: this mule runs the Audi-Lamborghini 5.2-litre V10. Breathed on by twin turbochargers and with revised internals and breathing, the V10 will kick out in excess of 520bhp. Naturally, the RS6 uses quattro four-wheel drive to lay that kind of power down, with torque biased 40:60 to the rear to enhance the driving experience. Beefed up brakes lurk behind those bigger alloys, while the suspension has adaptive damping to offer the optimum mix of comfort and dynamism.
…and an RS bodykit
This prototype isn’t quite the finished article, but some tell-tale RS cues are present. Check out the front air dam, with vast slats feeding cooling air to the brake discs. And wide, oval pipes peep through that rear bumper, helping extract maximum performance from the V10. The RS6 Avant will go on sale in 2007. Expect prices from around £65,000.