Audi RS 5 Coupe 2017 Review - International

Audi’s second-generation RS 5 Coupe is one of the most hotly anticipated car launches of 2017, not just because it breaks a two-year drought for the German car-maker’s answer to the M4 and C 63, or because it’s the first RS model to be based on the company’s latest MLB evo platform, which underpins all Audis from the A4 and Q5 upwards.

That chassis architecture brings significant reductions in weight and improvements in performance, efficiency, ride, handling, refinement and technology, making its hottest iterations so far – the S5 sedan, coupe, cabriolet and Sportback – devastatingly quick point-to-point machines that can carve up winding bitumen with clinical ease.

Indeed, the S5 Coupe in particular is so capable that it shamed many more fancied contenders in Australia’s Best Driver’s Car 2017, setting the tantalising scene for an even more potent RS version – one that we’d hoped would bring more driver involvement to match its extra performance.

But no, the main reason we couldn’t wait to drive the new RS 5 was the lofty standard achieved by its predecessor, which was more than a match for its German arch-rivals thanks to a great chassis with all-wheel drive grip, powered by a glorious 4.2-litre normally-aspirated V8 matched to a seven-speed dual-clutch auto.

In fact, apart from the R8 supercar, the original RS 5 was the first Audi to prove that Volkswagen’s luxury brand could actually deliver a model with good steering. After a procession of accomplished performance cars that delivered class-leading design, technology, quality and grip, but fell short in terms of steering feel, the communicative and vice-free steering in the first RS 5 was a revelation.

Like its RS siblings of the day, the original RS 5’s steering was accurate, direct and free from steering kick, bump steer and rack rattle, but – even after a midlife upgrade that ditched hydraulic assistance for an electric set-up – it was the first to bring steering feedback that delivered genuine driver involvement.

So imagine our disappointment when the steering in the Nardo Grey RS 5 test car we drove at the global launch loop from Toulouse to Andorra felt as anodyne as any new S5 we’ve driven.

Even when fitted with the optional RS dynamic package -- which will be standard in Australia and includes dynamic steering, sport rear differential with torque vectoring (a $2950 option for the S5), lower RS sport suspension with Dynamic Ride Control, 20-inch wheels and RS sport exhaust – it lacked the steering feel of the old RS 5.

Like the S5, the RS 5 is agile, responsive and delivers outstanding levels of cornering traction, making it effortless to drive quickly and confidently. Also like the S5, its active damping set-up offers a wide range of capability, ranging from firm but controlled in comfort mode to firmer-still yet still compliant in dynamic mode.

In any mode, Audi’s latest RS is smoother and suppler than the M4 and makes the rock-hard C 63 feel like a bobsleigh.

Likewise, braking performance is also devastatingly capable, at least when equipped with optional ceramic front brake discs measuring a massive 400mm and gripped by six-piston callipers. (The RS 5 runs 375mm steel discs – just 25mm bigger than those on the S5 – and all three systems run six-piston callipers.)

But like the S5, it too suffers from a dearth of road feel from the front-end, making it far less communicative than either the M4 or C 63 and presenting more understeer at the limit than both German foes.

Of course, the best part about the first RS 5 was its engine – a good old-fashioned 4.2-litre atmo V8 that shrieked to a spine-tingling 8000rpm, where it produced a BMW M and Merc-AMG shattering 331kW.

Matched with a seven-speed dual-clutch auto, it was as engaging to drive as its sleek two-door body was to look at up close.

Once again, however, the RS 5 fails to live up to its predecessor in the engine department and also improves little on the circa-$50K-cheaper S5, which is no easy act to follow either thanks to its 3.0-litre single-turbo V6.

The S5 offers a decent 260kW dollop of power and no less than 500Nm of torque from just 1370rpm – even lower in the rev range than the RS 5, which churns out 331kW and 600Nm (over 1900-5000rpm).

Audi says that and a 60kg weight reduction to 1655kg are enough for the RS 5 to hit 100km/h in just 3.9 seconds, which is well faster than the model it replaces (4.5sec), which offered 430Nm from 4000rpm.

It’s also a few tenths quicker than the M4 (4.1sec) and lineball with the C 63, even if it never feels that quick.

Maybe that’s somewhat due to the eight-speed torque-converter automatic -- standard in both the S5 and RS 5 – that’s lightning-quick to upshift but sometimes hesitant to downshift fast enough.

Or maybe it’s because the RS 5’s new Audi-developed 2.9-litre twin-turbo V6, based on Porsche’s latest 4.0-litre biturbo V8, doesn’t rev to 8000rpm like the old RS 5 did, and never sounds as good.

Even fitted with the RS sport exhaust, which offers a muffled crackle on overrun, it’s not a patch on the aural delights of Alfa Romeo’s architecturally identical biturbo V6 in the Giulia, Jaguar’s supercharged 3.0-litre V6 or even BMW’s straight turbo six, let alone the C 63’s booming 4.0-litre biturbo V8.

So if you value steering feel and engine note in your European sports coupe then look elsewhere, but in every other respect the 2017 RS 5 represents a big step forward.

Beyond the elegant, masculine new exterior design and the high-quality interior that oozes quality and attention to detail from every pore, the level of refinement and technology on offer here shades all of the RS 5’s rivals.

Potentially delivering the best value in its class will be a host of standard features that remain optional in Germany. Previously a $6500 option, RS front bucket seats are also now standard, as is a three-spoke flat-bottom multi-function RS steering wheel.

And apart from the aforementioned RS dynamic package, standard kit will extend to LED headlights and Audi’s customisable Virtual Cockpit digital instrument cluster – in RS guise with power, torque, g-force and gearshift meters.

Standard safety features now include three-mode electronic stability control, adaptive cruise control with stop&go function including traffic jam assist, park assist, cross traffic assist rear, exit warning, turn assist, camera-based traffic sign recognition, Audi pre sense city (AEB) and Audi smartphone interface.

Of course there’ll be the usual array of expensive options, like ceramic front brakes (previously a $15,000-plus option) and -- for the first time -- an M4-style, 3kg-lighter carbon-fibre roof.

Other options should include the RS design package with colour-coded seat stitching, seat belts and floor mats, Matrix LED headlights, Nappa leather upholstery, Alcantara steering wheel, shifter and knee pad trim, MMI navigation plus with MMI touch, head-up display and a 755-Watt 19-speaker Bang & Olufsen 3D sound system.

New metallic exterior paint colours include Misano Red, Nardo Grey (from the RS 6) and the exclusive Sonoma Green hero hue.

Those in the market for a smooth, seductive, high-tech four-seat two-door that does all the numbers effortlessly should look no further than the RS 5.

But if real visceral appeal is also a prerequisite for your $160K sports coupe, then consider waiting for Alfa’s born-again Sprint.

2017 Audi RS 5 Coupe pricing and specifications:
On sale: November
Price: $158,990 plus ORCs (estimated)
Engine: 2.9-litre twin-turbo petrol V6
Output: 331kW/600Nm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel: 8.7L/100km (NEDC Combined)
CO2: 197g/km (NEDC Combined)
Safety rating: Five-star (Euro NCAP)