Autocar UK – 21 August 2019

12 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 2 1 AUGUST 2019

A

udi Sport has revealed

the fourth-generation

RS6 Avant, which

features a 591bhp

mild-hybrid twin-turbo V

and will spearhead a major

RS range expansion.

The hot estate is one of six

new Audi Sport models due this

year, including the RSQ3 and

RSQ8 SUVs, which have been

spied testing recently. But the

flurry of launches kicks off with

the latest high-performance

Audi estate, extending a

l i n e a g e d a ti n g b a c k to th e fi r st

RS model, the 80-based RS

Avant, which was introduced

25 years ago.

Project manager Michael

Binder said the RS6 Avant

represented “the DNA of Audi

Sport”. The fourth-generation

model has been extensively

reworked from the A6 Avant

to showcase the latest

design language of Audi’s

performance car division.

The only body panels

carried over from the standard

A6 are the front doors, roof

and bootlid. Everything else

is an RS-specific design.

The new panels make the

performance estate’s body

80mm wider than a standard

A6’s, which measures

1886mm, although the track

width is unchanged.

The revamped front end

includes a new bonnet with

a ‘powerdome’ and thinner

headlights taken from the A7.

The gloss black front grille

is an RS-only design and the

air intakes built into the front

bumper are styled after those

on the R8 supercar. For the

first time, the Audi logo is

available in black as part of

black and carbon styling packs.

There are RS-specific side

sills and roof spoiler and a

bespoke rear end incorporates

a bold diffuser and twin

oval-shaped exhausts.

Inside, a leather sports

steering wheel features RS

aluminium paddle shifters

and there are leather- and

Alcantara-covered sport

seats and a revamped

instrument panel.

Binder said the brief was to

“give maximum performance

without compromise” and that

is reflected in the 565-litre

luggage compartment,

unchanged from the standard

A6’s, which expands to 1680

litres with the 40/20/40 rear

seats folded.

As with the previous

generation, the new RS6 is

powered by a 4.0-litre twin-

turbo TFSI petrol engine,

now boosted by a 48V belt

alternator/starter mild-hybrid

system, which can recover

up to 16bhp. The engine also

utilises a cylinder-on-demand

system that can shut off

half of its cylinders to boost

fuel economy.

The powertrain produces

591bhp – up from the 552bhp

of the previous standard

model but slightly below the

596bhp offered by the 2016

Performance variant – with

590lb ft available between

2100rpm and 4500rpm.

The new RS6 Avant can

achieve 0-62mph in 3.6sec.

A governed top speed of

155mph can be extended to

174mph or 189.5mph with

the optional Dynamic and

Dynamic Plus packages

respectively.

Power is sent to all four

wheels, with a 40/60 split

between the front and rear axle

as standard, through an eight-

speed automatic gearbox,

which features a launch

control option and wheel-

selective torque control. The

dynamic packages add a sport

differential.

The Drive Select function

gains configurable RS1 and

RS2 modes, which are

activated by an ‘RS mode’

RS6 Avant starts hot Audi rush

Five performance Audis will follow in the 591bhp wake of the new RS6 Avant this year

OFFICIAL PICTURES

There’s plenty of

leather, Alcantara

and slick tech inside