So the V10-powered S6 isn’t fast enough?
Seemingly not… Audi’s piping hot RS6 – caught here undergoing its final rounds of Nürburgring dynamic tests – takes the 429bhp 5.2-litre V10 from the S6 and bolts on not one but two ultra-responsive turbos for a headline-grabbing 530bhp. That’s a 43bhp more than BMW’s M5 and 16bhp more than the Mercedes E63. Who said the horsepower war was over… Although Audi remains tight-lipped about the RS6’s details, expect both saloon and Avant estate to bow in at the Frankfurt Motor Show in mid-September, with the saloon wearing a £65,000 price tag, putting it on a par with the M5 saloon and slightly cheaper than Mercedes’ E63. And as with the lesser S6, expect the popular RS6 Avant hold-all to be the more popular seller, despite its £1270 premium and 50kg weight penalty over the RS6 saloon.
More power always sounds good, but you were hardly blown away by the S6
True, we thought the S6 was a bit low-key and subdued, but don’t forget that while Audi’s S models are engineered and developed inhouse, RS models are the work of quattro, Audi’s independent tuning house. And as we experienced with the RS4, the go-faster gurus at quattro know all about driver engagement and scalpel-sharp dynamics. Which is why this oddly – and rather effectively – camouflaged RS6 mule was being hammered mercilessly around the ‘Ring.
Tell me about this powerhouse of an engine then…
Under that bonnet, the direct-injection bi-turbo V10 features heavily revised intake and exhaust systems to deal with the lower compression ratio and higher charge pressures. While the power output climbs a modest 100bhp over the S6, those two turbos will be used to bolster the V10’s torque curve. Expect at least 500lb ft of twist action for searing acceleration in any of its six gears, resulting in a 4.5 second sprint to 60mph and an effortless 155mph limited top speed. Derestricted, the RS6 would easily hit 200mph. Which means those two fat exhaust pipes will be the only part of the RS6 most other drivers will ever get to see.
What else can I expect for my money?
Both RS6 models will feature an advanced aerodynamic package. Look carefully at the rear of this mule and you can easily make out a ground-effects rear diffuser, employed to suck the car closer to the road as speed rises. Factor in the same intuitive quattro four-wheel drive system seen in the RS4 that favours the rear axle, tweaked steering and vast carbon ceramic brake discs at each corner, and the RS6 should be at home on any road, irrespective of weather conditions. While the previous RS6 used a relatively simple closed-loop adaptive damping system, the new model is expected to use a heavily uprated version of the new TT’s adaptive magnetic damping system. Using a magneto-rheological fluid, which alters when a voltage is passed though it, the dampers will offer the kind of instant reaction to keep the big Audi’s body movements in check. Roll on September for a titanic Audi RS6 Avant, BMW M5 Touring and Mercedes E63 Estate battle.