MOTOR

Badges, brakes and

engine, Porsche left

its mark all over the

RS2; unlike the 500E

which it also helped

develop and build for

Mercedes-Benz

Porsche and Audi

were still separate

in the ’90s, however

financial woes forced

Porsche to solicit its

expertise to other car

companies

Full throttle is nothing,

nothing, nothing, then at

3500rpm, wham!

notice the tinny, thin doors as you climb

into the RS2’s not-quite-classic, not-

quite-modern interior.

Common to ’90s interiors, black is the

all-prevailing colour, broken up by white

tacho and speedo, blue stitching and

little touches like a carbon fibre dash

insert with a blue weave through it. And

the seats, oh yes, bright blue Alcantara

not even a blind man could miss.

They are quite nice to sit in, however.

Made by Recaro especially for the RS2,

they’re softly padded and comfortable.

Crank the key clockwise and the slow-

tempo starter motor fires the engine

up. As you set off, the RS2 shows its

age again in the clutch, gearshift and

steering, which all feel from a different

era. It’s a 21-year-old car, after all.

The RS2 rides well on springs which

must be pretty soft. Porsche kept the S2’s

cushy springs but fitted stiffer shocks

and thick swaybars. Pitch the RS2 into

your first corner and it feels like those

911 mirrors are going to grind off on the

road. There’s a bit of body roll, yes.

We didn’t get the chance to test the

RS2’s change-of-direction but from our

brief drive, it’s probably not a bad thing

we didn’t. We mightn’t have survived to

tell you what it’s like, such is the RS2’s

fairly springy suspension.

The steering is very light, slow in

rack and feels sloppy and loose rather

than tight and direct. With the pillowy

suspension, aggressive steering inputs

can upset the RS2.

Full throttle from 1500rpm is all

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