What's the news?
We love a fast estate here at CompleteCar.ie. There's just something so cool about a practical family car that can bother a Porsche 911 whenever the mood takes it, and Audi has long been the purveyor of some of the fastest estates around. This time, it's the turn of the A4 Avant to get the RS treatment.
Exterior
No real surprises here, as the typical Audi Sport (formerly Quattro GmbH) treatment is apparent in the swollen wheelarches, the mean-looking front grille treatment and the twin exhausts out back. The hallowed Nogaro Blue paint makes a return, and Audi claims that the overall look takes inspiration from the infamous 90 quattro IMSA GTO racer. YouTube that and set the volume to loud. Wheels are 19-inch forged aluminium as standard, with 20-inch items an option.
Interior
Like the recent RS 5, the interior is a symphony of understated black, from the flat-bottomed steering wheel to the sports seats. There's nothing unfamiliar here, although the Virtual Cockpit dashboard will feature RS-specific displays to tell you how much G-force you're pulling, which is always useful to know.
Mechanicals
Harking back to the original RS 4, a bi-turbo V6 is the powerplant of choice. Whereas the last RS4 featured a woofly, naturally-aspirated V8 that was full of character, it came in for criticism in the torque department. This engine rectifies that and then some, with 600Nm available from 1,900 to 5,000rpm. Power remains at 450hp, though the car is sure to feel much more potent thanks to that tree-pulling twist figure.
Quattro all-wheel drive is of course standard, coupled with an eight-speed tiptronic automatic gearbox. Performance is understandably epic; top speed is 249km/h (280km/h when de-restricted with the RS Dynamic package), and the 0-100km/h time is 4.1 seconds. Ceramic brakes, RS Sport Suspension Plus and a trick rear differential are on the options list.
Anything else?
BMW and Alfa Romeo don't make estate versions of their junior super-saloons, so the car's main rival will be the Mercedes-AMG C63 S estate. The RS 4 Avant is available to order in the UK later this month from £61,625 (€68,290), though there's no word on Irish pricing and availability yet.