RS crowns Audi A7 range

Audi has launched its first RS 7 Sportback in Australia, where just 20 examples of its most formidable five-door will find homes this year.

The flagship of the A7 line-up first seen here in March 2011 arrives just four months after the mechanically similar RS 6 Avant ($225,000 plus ORCs), which has notched up 22 sales since October, giving uber-Audi fans the option of supercar performance in a more stylish package.

At $238,500 plus ORCs, the RS 7 Sportback is one of the most expensive Audis available (although the top-shelf R8 V10 Plus costs more than $400,000), as well as being $100,000 pricier than the entry-level A7 3.0 TDI quattro (from $136,750) and almost $60,000 dearer than the S7 Sportback (from $179,900).

As such, it shapes up against other obscenely priced, large four-door ‘coupes’, including BMW’s 650i Gran Coupe (from $238,445), the Mercedes-Benz CLS 63 AMG (from $260,654), V8 versions of Porsche’s Panamera (from $287,100) and Maserati’s new Quattroporte GTS (from $319,800).

As is customary at this end of the market, however, that’s just the starting price. There’s a myriad of optional extras like RS sports suspension plus with Dynamic Ride Control ($2300), which unusually swaps the standard adaptive air suspension for steel springs, and dynamic steering ($2730). Packaged with an increased top speed limit of 280km/h, these items cost $4900.

Combined with carbon-ceramic brakes ($20,940 on their own) and a 305km/h speed-limiter, these options cost $25,840 in the Dynamic package plus, while the $10,375 Assistance package includes night vision, adaptive cruise control, lane keeping assist and blind-spot monitoring.

The $13,900 Audi exclusive design package comprises black Valcona leather trim with crimson red stitching for the seats and controls, black floor mats with crimson leather piping, crimson red seat belts and RS-embossed front RS sports seats.

Stand-alone options include a powered tailgate with gesture control ($1100), crystal effect paint ($1190), power-assisted door closing ($1400), aluminium/oak inlays ($3400), night vision ($4890), a carbon exterior package including the air intake and wing mirrors ($8500) and a 15-speaker 1200-Watt 10-channel Bang & Olufsen Advance sound system ($12,000).

Thankfully, then, the RS 7 comes with a host of standard equipment, including metallic or pearl paint, three choices of 21-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights, Audi’s MMI infotainment system with eight-inch pop-up monitor and touch pad, 14-speaker 12-channel 600-Watt BOSE sound, Audi Music Interface, digital TV and radio, DVD/CD player and Bluetooth with audio streaming.

There’s also Audi drive select, four-zone deluxe climate-control, powered two-way steering wheel adjustment, an electric parking brake, interior and exterior lighting package, ambient cabin lighting package, leather-covered armrests, carbon inlays, keyless entry and starting, and cruise control.

Standard safety kit extends to a head-up display, front and rear parking cameras, tyre pressure monitoring, twin front, four side and full-length curtain airbags, stability/traction control, anti-lock brakes, electronic brake-force distribution and an electronic differential lock.

RS-specific equipment includes honeycomb Valcona leather-clad and heated/powered RS front sport seats with driver’s memory, a flat-bottom three-spoke leather RS steering wheel with shift paddles, twin leather-trimmed rear bucket seats flanking a central storage compartment and matt aluminium exterior highlights.

As with all RS cars, however, the engine is this one’s drawcard. Representing a substantial boost from the 309kW/550Nm twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8 in the S7 Sportback, the RS 7 musters up no less than 412kW of power between 5700 and 6600rpm, and 700Nm of torque over a wide 1750-5500rpm.

The direct-injection TFSI V8 drives through a quattro permanent all-wheel drive system (the crown-gear centre differential directs 60 per cent of torque to the rear wheels by default) and an eight-speed automatic transmission – in place of the S7’s seven-speed twin-clutch auto.

Despite its hefty 1995kg unladen weight – which would have been higher without the aluminium doors, bonnet, tailgate and front quarter panels – the RS 7 rips to 100km/h in a claimed 3.9 seconds.

That makes it a bona-fide high-performance grand tourer that’s quicker than all of its bigger-engined and more expensive rivals, including the similarly powerful BMW M6 Gran Coupe but not the Panamera Turbo, which also costs almost $400,000.

Despite its pace, the RS 7 is also more efficient than all of its rivals, consuming just 9.8L/100km and emitting 229g/km of CO2 thanks in part to fuel-saving idle-stop and cylinder-shutdown technologies.

Hauling up all this heft is a massive 19-inch high-performance braking system including wave-shape discs that are ventilated, perforated, floating and save 3kg. Up front they measure 390mm and are gripped by six-piston callipers, while the 365mm rear rotors have single-piston units. The pricey ceramic brake discs save 10kg and measure 420mm front and 370mm rear.

As noted above, adaptive air suspension is standard on the RS 7 (and mode-selectable via Audi drive select), while RS sports suspension plus with steel springs and Dynamic Ride Control costs extra.

There’s no doubting the RS 7 Sportback is a big car, as evidenced by its 5012mm overall length (43mm longer than the standard A7) and 2915mm wheelbase – 1mm longer due to different suspension geometry. It also has longer front (by 24mm) and rear (18mm) overhangs and is 1mm lower overall at just 1419mm.

Luggage capacity under the expansive rear hatchback is a sizeable 535 litres, expandable via a 60/40-split rear seatback to a total of 1390 litres.

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