It’s the BMW M4 rival for those who want the safe behavior of an all-wheel-drive car
Audi's stand at the Geneva Motor Show may be dominated by the Q8 Sport Concept, but there's also something for performance car enthusiasts.
That would be the all-new Audi RS 5 Coupé, the first Audi Sport model to feature the new RS design language. At first glance, it may not look like it, but designers drew inspiration for the RS 5 Coupé from the racing details of the Audi 90 quattro IMSA GTO.
These massive air inlets with a honeycomb structure dominate the front end, which also features a much wider and flatter iteration of the Singleframe grille compared to the standard A5. Performance car design tweaks include the additional lateral air intakes and outlets, as well as the pronounced bulges over the wheel arches (widened by 15 mm/0.6 in compared to the A5 Coupé).
You'll also recognize an RS 5 Coupé thanks to the tinted bezels of the optional Matrix LED headlights, quattro blisters on the flanks, and RS-specific diffuser insert, oval tailpipes, and spoiler lip. The performance coupé rides on standard 19-inch wheels, with 20-inch rims available as an option.
For more personalization options, Audi offers three appearance packages: gloss black, carbon, and matt aluminum.
But what should interest you the most is the engine, an all-new 2.9-liter biturbo V6 gasoline engine rated at 444 hp (450 PS) and 600 Nm (442 lb-ft) of torque. It may lose two cylinders compared to the previous RS 5, but it has the same power output and an additional 170 Nm (125.4 lb-ft) of peak torque available from 1,900 to 5,000 rpm.
What that means it's quicker, covering the 0-100 km/h (0-62 mph) sprint in 3.9 seconds and reaching a top speed of 280 km/h (174 mph) with the optional Dynamic Package. Audi also says the "full-bodied RS sound" remains, but we doubt it will sound as dramatic as the outgoing V8.
Torque is sent to all four wheels (40/60 front/rear) by a standard quattro system via an eight-speed Tiptronic automatic transmission with optimized shift times. An optional rear sport differential is available as an option.
The standard RS sport suspension means the RS 5 Coupé sits much lower than the production model, with options including Dynamic Ride Control (DRC), ceramic brakes, and dynamic steering with RS-specific tuning.
Since the new RS 5 Coupé is 60 kg (132 lb) lighter than its predecessor, it's 17 percent more economical, averaging 8.7 l/100 km (27 mpg US) and 197 g/km CO2. Not that economy would matter too much for the buyer of an RS 5 Coupé.
The new RS 5 Coupé will arrive in Europe in June 2017 with a starting price of €80,900 in Germany.