Transforming effortlessly from a docile luxury car into a furious sports car, the Audi RS5 has a split personality that you’ll fall in love with – twice!
Story: Sarmad Kadiri
Photography: Sanjay Raikar
Nothing works like a snazzy sports car to make people around you turn green. But the problem is that you can’t drive it to work every day as the car’s ride quality would make the bones rattle. so, how does one bridge this gap?
I suppose the quattro gmbh chaps must have faced a similar dilemma to come up with a solution in the shape of the rs5 coupé. this stunning piece of design with its flowing lines and great curves can make more heads turn than a Miss world contestant. in fact, the rs5 is attractive enough to make a Miss world contestant hop into its passenger seat!
The athletic road stance of the rs5 makes it look eager to pounce on the road. it’s tastefully wide and low, yet the 9J x 19 265/35-series tyres offer decent ground clearance. the large wheels also help accommodate the beefy discs brakes (365 x 34 mm front and 324 x 22 mm rear). this enables the rs5 going at 80 km/h to come to a halt in 2.65 seconds, travelling just over 32 metres. the long flowing front end and a short front overhang increase the wheelbase to 2,751 mm, improving both driveability and interior space. the wide wheels are camouflaged by stretched-out wheel arches and the gradual transition from the C pillar to the boot gives the car proportions of classic elegance.
The front of the rs5 has the Audi family’s single-frame grille bearing the rhombus-pattern grid, which flaunts the all-important ‘rs5’ badge. the grille is wrapped in a brush metal frame and on either side are intricately designed headlights. what makes them interesting are the sickle-shaped daytime running strips of seven LEDs each that create a wave-like shape. the standard Xenon lights illuminate the road, although the all-LED light featured in the A8 and the new A6 would have been more attractive. the bumper features an edgy spitter at the bottom, with two large, black air intakes that complete the sporty characteristic in the front. this two-door coupé has a handful of crisp lines running on the body, which give it a very svelte and purposeful look.
As you enter the sports coupé, the first things that catch your eye is the rs badge on the leather-wrapped steering wheel, gear selector and on the seat backrests. the seats have integrated headrests and include a four-way lumbar support, extendible thigh support and a prominent side bolster. You also get an option of including climate-controlled seats with perforated leather for better ventilation. You feel secure with two front, side and head airbags. the speedometer goes all the way to 320 km/h, while the driver information system has a colour display, which includes lap timer and reminds you that it is an rs every time the car is cranked.
There is a dash of brushed aluminium trims from the steering-mounted gear shifters, brake and accelerator paddles, to the air-conditioner vents and buttons of the top-of-the-line MMi system. Audi offer a decent music system in the rs5, which features a card reader, an AUX port, a 6.5-inch colour screen and eight speakers. the coupé shape leaves a narrow room for rear visibility, though the back seats can comfortably fit adults of average build. the seats can be folded down to make more room for the already large 455-litre boot. There is room for a spare tyre, but this Audi just has a puncture repair kit.
Pop open the bonnet and the neatly stacked V8 comes across as a feast for the eye. Fortunately, the subtleness is restricted to design and styling and does not have any effect on the spirited engine that revs All the way up to 8,250 RPM! It churns out 450 PS from its 4,163 cc and produces 430 Nm of torque spinning at 6,000 RPM, without forced induction. The 4.2 FSI V8 is a marvellous piece of machinery, always eager to go faster. It’s not surprising, because Audi have taken the FSI technology straight from the R8 race car that has clinched four victories at the 24-hour Le Mans. The RS5 sprints to the 100 km/h mark in just 5.62 seconds! No wheel-spin, just a constant, addictive slug. And to achieve this task the quick shifting seven-speed S tronic, double-clutch gearbox comes in rather handy. Let’s try to explain what this drivetrain does in simpler terms. For instance, when a driver accelerates in the third gear, the S tronic has already engaged the fourth gear using the second clutch system. Due to this shifting gears takes just a fraction of a second without much interruption in traction and the driver hardly feels the change in gear.
The quattro features self-locking crown gear differential and torque vectoring, which powers all four wheels, but favours the rear wheels slightly more, unless the system feels that the front wheels need more power for better traction. Unlike rear wheel driven sports cars, the RS5 can carry more entry and exit speed while cornering. You can comfortably throw it around a bend, pinning the throttle early without the Audi losing its poise. The clever differential makes sure that there is always enough grip. The quattro is so addictive and effortless that I had to keep an eye on the speedometer to prevent myself from getting carried away.
You have the option of either using the normal ‘D’ (drive) mode or, for more aggressive gear changes, the ‘S’ (sport) drive, which allows the gears to rev up to the limit before shifting. But what makes it even better is the transmission double-clutches when it downshifts, creating an electrifying experience for the driver and the people around.
Those who buy a car with this kind of performance would not worry about fuel economy. Though Audi claim 10 km to a litre, we could manage seven kpl driving with a light foot and four kpl during the pedal-to-metal run. The ideal fuel for RS5 is 97-octane, which we did not use and probably the high-octane fuel would have improved its efficiency and performance.
The Audi drive select has four modes: ‘Comfort’, ‘Dynamic’, ‘Auto’ and ‘Individual’. You can alter the engine/gearbox, suspension and steering settings to suit your needs. ‘Comfort’ keeps everything held back and is best suited for laid back city driving as its softer suspension setting takes bad roads in its stride and most speed-breakers without scraping the under-body. It’s commendable considering this is a fully bred sports car we’re discussing. ‘Dynamic’, as the name suggests, puts everything in the maximum assault mode and is perfect for straight, flat roads where the RS5 absolutely flies, overtaking cars and lorries with the exhaust snarling like a beast. ‘Auto’ is a great mode for moody drivers. This mode changes the settings constantly according to the driving style. Press the pedals hard and it behaves like ‘Dynamic’ and, as you ease your foot, it goes back to ‘Comfort’. In the ‘Individual’ mode you can fine-tune everything as you like it. Personally, ‘Comfort’ felt too mild for my taste and ‘Dynamic’ and ‘Auto’ a bit uptight. ‘Individual’ seemed to be the best solution for me. I customised the steering and engine/transmission as ‘Dynamic’ and kept the suspension in the ‘Comfort’ mode. This gave the right mix of power and supple handling, while the steering weighed well and offered a reasonable feedback.
The car is loaded with luxury features such as dynamic cornering lights, a high-beam assistant that changes between low beam and high beam. Then there is the keyless entry, panoramic sunroof, tinted rear windows, electrically operated rear window blinds and a very important park assist with a rear camera. All this for an on-road Pune price of Rs 93 lakh! It says a lot about Audi’s determination to present unique, value-for-money products, especially when you consider that the nearest competitor costs close to Rs 1.25 crore. But what sets the RS5 apart from others is that it is a very practical and usable super car that won’t be just lying in your garage. Drive it every day like a luxury saloon and, over week-ends, take it on a race track to clock some very competitive timings.
When you drive the Audi RS5, it creates this incredible automobile symphony with every down shift bellow and deep rumble from the exhaust. The exhaust tone intensifies as you go higher up, transforming into a banshee howl. As it crosses 120 km/h the most beautiful sights in the automobile world appear in your rear-view mirror, with the rear spoiler gliding up gracefully, adding to the aerodynamics, so that you can go even faster. In 20 seconds you cross 200 km/h and in another 20 you cross the 260 km/h mark! All in all, it’s unbelievably practical, very fast and a completely uplifting experience that can brighten up even the gloomiest of your days.
