Audi RS5 2010 Review

Not so much
>> Doesn't stand out from the crowd
>> Not cheap -- even compared to AMGs and Ms

Overall rating: 3.0/5.0
Engine/Drivetrain/Chassis: 3.5/5.0
Price, Packaging and Practicality: 3.0/5.0
Safety: 3.0/5.0
Behind the wheel: 3.5/5.0
X-factor: 2.5/5.0

OVERVIEW
--

The lineage started with a collaboration with Porsche that created the RS2 -- a pocket battleship of a wagon that delivered massive stomp via a turbocharged five-cylinder. What road presence it lost in size it made up for in huge performance. It's still sought after today.

As the RS legend expanded the donor car moved from A4 to A6 and then back again. But the recipe was consistent -- turbo power, all-wheel-drive traction and, within reason, relatively understated looks. Perhaps the most obvious external signature was the pumped guards RS model inevitably sported.

Now Audi has followed the likes of AMG and M to offer an expanded range of RS models. Though the RS6 is out of production, it's still a current model. The TT coupe spawned an RS version last year with the arrival of the TT RS...

And now there are three. Audi's latest uber sporty, the RS5 Coupe, officially joined the line-up Down Under this month (October). Launched locally, in at times streaming wet conditions at Phillip Island's Grand Prix Circuit, the two-door four-seater arrives with a hefty pricetag of near-$180,000 and a unique-to-RS high-revving naturally aspirated V8 powerplant.

Only one other RS model -- the superseded A4-based RS4 -- has eschewed forced induction since the badge's introduction (with the aforementioned RS2) in 1994. All other current RS family members, the TT-RS five-cylinder and RS6 V10 sedan and Avant (wagon), are turbocharged. But that's not the only thing that sets the RS5 apart -- it also debuts the very latest version of Audi's trademark quattro all-wheel drive chassis with a new lighter, smarter and faster centre differential and a computer-controlled rear diff that can 'vector' thrust to deliver sharper than every dynamics.

More seriously than ever Audi is going hunting for BMW bear...

PRICE AND EQUIPMENT
-- Big pricetag, and then there's the options
Audi is not shying away from pricing the RS5 at a premium. The single coupe model variant (expect a cabrio eventually) is listed at a hefty $175,300. This is almost $40,000 more than the S5 Coupe on which the vehicle is based.

And against the recent trend of BMW and Mercedes-Benz to load a very high level of equipment into its flagship sporties, the RS5 does ask extra for some items most buyers might expect into the bargain. Indeed, though the RS5 gets a fair complement of equipment; by way of example you'll need to pay extra for a sunroof ($2860), adaptive cruise ($2945), dynamic steering ($1080) and front seat heating and memory functions ($850 and $1377).

Included in the sticker price, however, are a top-end 10-speaker stereo and satnav system with full iPod and Bluetooth connectivity, front and rear park sensors, xenon headlamps, full proximity key entry and start and, of course, tri-zone climate control air. Audi's exquisite and industry-leading cabin finish is included FOC.

Offsetting some of the add-ons is the fact the Audi Drive Select System is standard. In the case of the RS5 this allows the driver to choose from Comfort, Auto and Dynamic settings or Individual mode which delivers customisable settings. As well as altering the steering assistance (and ratio when active steering is also purchased), transmission and engine throttle mapping, Drive Select also 'tunes' the rear Sport differential (see more in MECHANICAL below) and the exhaust system in the RS5. The latter enables flaps in the exhaust to deliver a more fruity engine note.

Key optional extras include 20-inch wheels (from $3885, 19-inch are standard) and a choice of alloy or matt black external dress up packages. Aggressively bolstered RS front bucket seats will add $6500 to the bill. A brake upgrade package is also available (see more below).

MECHANICAL
-- Revs not turbos
The new RS5 features a bespoke version of Audi's 4.2-litre direct-injected petrol V8. Featuring numerous internal tweaks and new inlet and exhaust systems, the engine is related to that featured in the R8 sportscar. Like the R8's it is built by hand in Györ, Hungary.

Featuring a low-pressure diecast aluminium-silicon alloy crankcase Audi promises light weight and extreme durability. The crankcase is of a bedplate design -- that is, the lower bearing supports are integrated into a single ladder-like frame for maximum rigidity and vibration reduction. Forged crankshaft, conrods and pistons are used for strength. The complete engine weighs in at 216kg.

Audi says its FSI high pressure direct-injection system was developed on the racetrack. It's essentially used across the Volkswagen Audi Group these days but is at its zenith in the RS5. Combined with a high 12.3:1 compression ratio, variable valve timing and an active [variable] inlet manifold, FSI delivers the combination of high power across a wider revband and high levels of fuel efficiency.

Thanks also to carefully tuned hydroformed exhaust manifolds it also sounds like a real V8 -- and boy does it rev! Audi claims peak output of 331kW at 8250rpm. Torque tops out at 430Nm and is available from 4000-6000rpm.

RS5 also joins the bi-modal gang with an active exhaust system. Says Audi: "At higher loads and engine speeds -- or at the push of a button in the standard Audi drive select control system -- the exhaust flap is opened for an even richer sound."

Real V8 fans can further option "a particularly distinctive sounding sport exhaust system with black tailpipes that also includes this switching function". The RS5 sports exhaust system is a $2600 option.

In the RS5, the muscular V8 is matched to a new seven-speed twin-clutch S-tronic automated manual transmission and the latest version of Audi's trademark Quattro all-wheel-drive system. The latter benefits from a new lighter and faster acting 'crown-gear' centre differential. A special RS version of Audi's electronically-controlled torque-vectoring (rear) Sport differential also makes its debut in the RS.

No manual variant of the RS5 is offered.

Though permanent all-wheel drive, the RS5's power delivery is rear-biased with around 60 per cent of torque directed to the wheels in normal driving. The system can, however, transfer 70 per cent of available drive to the front axle and up to 85 per cent to the rear as required. In the wet conditions at the Phillip Island launch, the system provided staggering levels of traction even on standard road tyres.

Audi claims the two-door coupe accelerates from 0-100km/h in 4.6 seconds on its way to an electronically governed top speed of 250km/h. This can increase to 280km/h upon request.

For all its performance potential, Audi claims the 4.2-litre engine can also be amazingly frugal. Thanks in part to the efficiency of its twin-clutch seven-speed gearbox, the V8 returns test mileage of 10.8L/100km for the combined cycle.

Running gear highlights include 19-inch wheels and eight-piston front calipers. The RS5's standard brakes are conventional metallic rotors -- 365mm front and 324mm rear. Ceramic composite front discs (a whopping 380mm in diameter) are optional... And expensive -- at over $15,000...

PACKAGING
--

The RS5 is very clearly based on its A5/S5 stablemates and save for the more heavily bolstered seats and some minor finish upgrades (piano black and carbon-fibre themed), the interior is hard to split from even cooking model variants of the donor coupe.

A conventional two-door coupe, there's room for four in comfort -- and reasonable head and legroom in the rear. In this regard the RS5 is similar in concept to BMW's M3. It takes a conventional, if stylish, model and slips a supercar underneath it.

For a full rundown on the specs of the A5 and S5 coupes checkout our various launch and seven day reviews.

In separating itself from the A5/S5 crowd the RS5 does feature significant body differentiation -- well, significant to Audi aficionados at least. To a casual glance arguably there's not enough difference.

The hot coupe gets bespoke front splitter, lower front valance and intakes and a distinctive RS grille. At the rear there's a pop-up spoiler (operable at over 120km/h but able to be deployed via a button in the cabin), and sculptured under-bumper 'diffuser' treatment.

Front and rear guards get trademark RS blisters that hark back to the original Sport Quattro.

Matt black or extra chrome dress up packs are available at a (relatively) modest cost. These help beef up the individualisation of the RS5. We'd tick the box lest the car be mistaken for a 2.0-litre A5.

SAFETY
-- All of the above
Plenty of kit here -- as is the case for all Audis in this category/class. The complement of materiel featured in the standard car is carried over plus a tunable stability control system that delivers a sport setting with a little more leeway for interesting roads and track antics.

Of note in terms of active safety is both the new quattro system and the new Sport differential -- combined the two deliver a car with the turn-in characteristics of a pretty sharp rear-wheel drive car but the get-out-of-gaol-free grip and traction of an all-wheel drive. You'd have to be a total numpty to get into trouble in this car... Unless you turn everything off AND leave your brain in the tool box.

This is one very fast and very flattering hotrod.

COMPETITORS
-- Premium every one
M3 is the main combatant here. Some might lump in C63 and even Lexus' IS F but those two four-doors aren't nearly as sharp or as focussed as the RS5. Indeed, pure coupes like Porsche's lower level 911s may even be a more common comparative purchase.

The BMW is still a very firm favourite among the hotshoe brigade with quite some legitimacy. In the hands of most the RS5 is very probably faster over a given piece of road, but we still think the M3 delivers more joy (no pun intended) when campaigned by a keen steerer.

There's something too about the M3's stance and detailing that somehow makes it standout more on the road. Perhaps the fact the Audi S5 looks so good to start with is part of the reason the RS5 is just a touch invisible.

ON THE TRACK
-- Clever bits count
The Carsales Network man in Europe, Michael Taylor, rated the RS5 as Audi's best drivers' car yet at the coupe's launch in Spain mid year. And there's little we've learned from our local track drive that contradicts MT's impressions. Perhaps the best balanced front-engined Audi yet, the RS5 made short work of the Island's fast, flowing layout, and thanks to the tuneable sport diff, was especially wieldy in comparison to its conventional quattro cousins.

With the sport diff in normal mode the chassis is relatively neutral, but as you push on that traditional element of all-wheel drive understeer starts to creep in. Apexes get just a smidge harder to hit and you can't quite get on the power as early as you might like to without running wide. It's a matter of degrees but you get the idea.

Set the Audi Drive Select system to Individual and use the MMI menu to select Dynamic mode for the Sport diff, however, and it's a different car. Instead of the front end seeming just a touch vague a tweak of the wheel is instantly rewarded with the nose arrowing towards the inside of the corner, helped by a decent shove of torque from the outside rear wheel. The effect is so marked when driven in anger back to back that you have to reprogram your turn-in points... Or simply go a fair bit faster. We chose the latter route!

In this guise the RS5 was easily a match and probably faster than the V-10 R8 Spyders we were driving around the Island back to back. As the track dried lap times in the low 1:50 range were easy -- not half bad for a full-loaded street-legal coupe.

Though not equipped with the optional ceramic rotors we couldn't fault the brakes either. The Island isn't overly hard on the picks, but there's a couple of big stops each lap and its handy to know the pedal is going to stay high and that retardation is going to be consistent every lap.

A big tick, too, to the latest S tronic transmission in the RS5. This is the best dual-clutch I've used on a track yet. It's sharp, positive and very, very quick. Let's hope it translates to the street.

Indeed, without any street component to our RS5 experience there's a hope overall that the car translates well to the open road. At this stage we can only guess. It's not often that a car as good at the track as the RS5 proves to also be a cracking road car. The M3's one... Which we guess creates the almost perfect excuse to grab one of each and disappear into the hills... For your benefit only, dear reader, of course...

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