Audi RS5 2026 Review

Undercutting both the BMW M3 and the Mercedes-AMG C63, the Audi RS5 starts from $179,827 plus on-road costs (ORCs) for the sedan, while the wagon starts from $182,827 plus ORCs. Options include the Carbon Styling Package ($6350), the Audi Sport Package ($4400) and the Carbon Camo Matte Styling Package ($9300).

Pricing is steep for the add-ons, but if you can plump for the matte camo carbon, do it. It looks sensational. Post-purchase, Audi’s five-year service package to match the five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty will set you back $3630.

Audi knows that the formula – for the Aussie buyer at least – is to tick as many option boxes as there are option boxes available, so the RS5 comes heavily equipped off the showroom floor, aside from the options listed above.

Standard equipment highlights include 21-inch forged alloy wheels, high-gloss exterior trim, Matrix LED headlights, digital OLED tail-lights, panoramic glass roof with switchable transparency, RS sport front seats (heated, ventilated, power adjustment, massage, integrated head restraints), heated outboard rear seats, leather trim, tri-zone climate control, RS flat-bottom steering wheel, illuminated sill plates, ambient lighting and carbon micro twill inlays.

The new RS5 is heavier, too. The sedan, which is more technically accurate when described as a liftback, tips the scales at 2355kg, while the Avant adds 15kg to that. That’s compared to the old RS5 Sportback, which weighed a comparatively svelte 1835kg, and the RS4 Avant, which weighed 1895kg.Does the new RS5 feel heavier? Yes and no, but more on that in a minute.

There will be no mistaking that you’re driving the new hero, with only the front doors, roof and tailgate shared between the regular A5/S5 and the RS version. Its signal of intent comes the minute you lay eyes on it, and for the first time for this tester, the sedan looks as alluring as the Avant.

The RS5 is pumped, aggressive, wide and looks fast standing still, but remains elegant and stylish.

Infotainment is a beautiful compromise between the modern demands of the owner and the classical elegance of Audi cabin design. For instance, tech is taken care of thanks to the 11.9-inch virtual cockpit plus digital instrument cluster and 14.5-inch touchscreen, but they are integrated in such a way as to disappear into the understated cabin.

Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard, and the Apple system was faultless for us both wired and wirelessly on test. For those of you not wanting the smartphone – um – smarts, there’s proprietary satellite navigation as well as DAB+ digital radio, and a thumping Bang & Olufsen 3D sound system.

The now-expected wireless phone charger is present, but thankfully with cooling to ensure you don’t cook your expensive new phone. Semi-autonomous parking assist and an integrated dashcam are also part of the spec sheet.

The new RS5 hasn’t been crash tested by Euro NCAP or ANCAP, but it does carry the safety rating of the A5 it is based on, which achieved a full five-star rating when tested in 2024. Standard safety features include eight airbags, autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian detection, adaptive cruise control with emergency assist, blind-spot monitoring, lane-keep assist, rear cross-traffic alert, surround-view camera, rear occupant detection, speed sign recognition and tyre pressure monitoring.

Under that muscular bonnet, there’s a twin-turbocharged 2.9-litre V6 petrol engine, which generates a not-insignificant 375kW and 600Nm. And, if adding electrification was the only way to keep the legendary six-cylinder alive, what a way to do so. Add the 130kW/460Nm electric motor, which sits ahead of Audi’s eight-speed gearbox, and you have system totals of 470kW and 825Nm.

Audi quotes a 0-100km/h run of 3.6 seconds, and says the updated quattro system can send up to 85 per cent of the drive to the rear tyres. The V6 gets new turbos and Miller-cycle injection, which goes part of the way to explaining the increased power output from the previous version, with internal-combustion torque remaining the same.

There’s adaptive sport suspension, a sports differential and electromechanical dynamic torque vectoring with an electric motor to control the diff.

Once you stop staring at the striking exterior, possibly the first point of note is the way in which it hides its not-inconsiderable heft.

More than 2.3 tonnes is no mean feat of engineering to hide, and yet, even when unsettled by nasty, mid-corner ruts, the RS5 remains composed and asks to be pushed even harder. The way in which the clever torque vectoring works across the rear axle, with 400 volts being fed to it, settles the rear beautifully and ensures it never steps out of line.

You’d have to try pretty hard to unstick the RS5, and that’s saying something with so much power on tap.

The engine, petrol alone or when you factor in the smarts of the plug-in hybrid system, is sensational.

The new RS5 is ridiculously fast on road or track, composed, just nasty enough and without the intimidation you might expect this much power to bring. While super-fast lap times will take learning and finesse to access, a fast run on a regular B-road is just as rewarding and no less enjoyable.

In true Audi fashion, leave the RS5 in ‘efficiency’ mode and you’ll slice your fuel consumption right down, with the system defaulting to electric running as much as possible. On that note, the 25.9kWh battery pack delivers an electric range of 76km for the Avant and 78km for the sedan. Enough, then, for the average daily commute to and from work without using any fuel at all.

Flick across to RS mode, though, and the animal is unleashed, along with serious regeneration back into the battery pack. It means you can have fun on your favourite road and then sail back into your lunch stop on silent, electric power. It’s also because a devious Audi engineer worked out that maximum head kicking is achieved when the battery is at a higher state of charge.

The shriek of the exhaust in RS mode is intoxicating, to say the least, and matches the pace with which you can drive the RS5 once you warm to the task.

There’s no doubt that there’s complexity under the skin – such is the way of the modern electrified world – but the new RS5 allows you to sidestep that complexity altogether if you just want to tool around town, or access it in the simplest way if you want to really wind the wick up.

It’s a beautiful, elegant compromise between what Audi must do and what it wanted to do. And the driver is the one to reap the reward. For instance, the way in which the electric motor is integrated into the drivetrain effectively eliminates lag, no matter how tardy the driver might be with the accelerator pedal. There’s just immediate and then relentless forward urge.

Perhaps the RS5’s strongest element is its duality of character. The fact it can be so composed, comfortable and effortless as a long-distance tourer, while hiding the performance capability it does, is quite remarkable.

While some manufacturers have used PHEV technology as a means to outright efficiency, Audi has shown it can do that, but also a lot more. The eight-speed automatic is smooth at city speeds, but rapid-fire fast when you load it up, and the adaptive dampers dealt with choppy Tasmanian roads with ease. It’s an all-rounder, of that there’s no doubt, and it’s one of the best.

If we could leave this section of the review blank, we would. There’s almost nothing to dislike about the new RS5.

You could opine that it’s heavier than before and therefore not as agile, but it isn’t and it never feels so.

You could argue that it’s expensive, but performance of this level has always commanded a premium. The whopping rubber is likely to meet its end quickly if you drive the RS5 enthusiastically, and is likely to cost a fair wedge to replace.

Also, the huge wheels are mandatory, which, on some roads in Australia, might be a touch too firm. Those gripes aside (and we’re scraping, mind you), the new RS5 is a truly great car that should be admired as such.

There’s little doubt that if your budget stretches to the rarefied air in which the RS5 exists, pick your poison and buy either the sedan or Avant, depending on your preference.

While I love the sedan more than I ever have, this tester would plump for the Avant – just.

The new RS5 is a performance car of eye-watering capability, long-haul comfort, practicality and engineering genius that ensures every drive is a memorable one.

Audi has given the now-legendary six-cylinder a stay of execution with the addition of plug-in tech, and long may it live.

2026 Audi RS5 at a glance:
Price: $179,827 plus ORCs (sedan), $182,827 plus ORCs (Avant)
Available: Now
Powertrain: 2.9-litre V6 twin-turbo petrol-electric
Output: 375kW/600Nm (electric motor: 130kW/460Nm)
Combined output: 470kW/825Nm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Battery: 25.9kWh lithium-ion 400-volt battery
Range: 76km Avant/78km sedan (WLTP)
Fuel use: 4.2L/100km (sedan)/4.4L/100km (Avant)
CO2: 97g/km (sedan)/101g/km (Avant)
Safety rating: Five-star (2024)

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