Celebrating 20 Years of Audi RS6 Wagons by Driving Every Generation

Wagons are the final word expression of what a automobile needs to be. Fight me.

Cars can have many capabilities, however the unique one was utility — to have the ability to get from level A to level B faster than your horse (and with considerably much less manure). If you can carry different individuals with you, a lot the higher. And for those who may carry some stuff, effectively hell, what extra may you need?

Wagons do all the above extra effectively than another type of car. But for many years, wagons have been confined to grocery getter responsibility. In 2002, Audi modified all that with the introduction of the RS6 Avant. It had the environment friendly packaging and under-the-radar form of a wagon, with the underpinnings of a supercar.

To have a good time the twentieth anniversary of the unique, Audi invited me out to drive each technology of the RS6 back-to-back, in one of the stunning settings anyplace on the planet: Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada.

C5: Big Power, Big Package

First up for me was the holy grail of the RS line, the C5 RS6, which was by no means bought within the U.S. Americans needed to make do with the B5 RS6 sedan, which, maybe because of the forbidden fruit impact, by no means captured the creativeness just like the Avant (Audi-speak for wagon) did.

Using the new-for-1997 A6 as the bottom, the mad geniuses at Audi — led by Stephan Reil, who oversaw each technology of RS6 and was, till just lately, Head of Technical Development at Audi’s Neckarsulm facility — have been tasked with including extra energy in the course of the A6’s mid-cycle refresh in 2002. And add extra energy they did.

Audi began with the 335-hp naturally aspirated 4.2 liter V8 out there within the S6. Now, 335 hp was good, however nowhere adequate for Reil. Working with British engine producer Cosworth (on the time a subsidiary of Audi AG), Reil’s workforce slapped twin turbos on the 4.2-liter. The end result: An unheard-of 444 hp and 428 lb-ft of torque. At the time, no different road-going Audi had ever provided extra energy.

On the drive up from the Calgary airport to Banff National Park, the 20-year-old RS6 proved to have aged very effectively. Granted, each RS6 on this journey was factory-owned and meticulously maintained, however the automobile pulled like a freight practice. The ZF-sourced 5-speed automated gave crisp shifts that made it very clear this automobile may nonetheless do 0-62 mph in 4.6 seconds, prefer it was recent off the meeting line.

Once the roads began to show a bit twisty, Audi’s Dynamic Ride Control energetic suspension felt utterly dialed-in. The DRC system consists of metal springs coupled with cross-linked hydraulically actuated shocks, which may actively regulate primarily based on driving fashion. I assumed the energetic suspension would really feel like 20-year-old expertise — sluggish, laggy, and inaccurate — however I used to be 100-percent incorrect. DRC is absolutely mechanical, with no digital controls, and regardless of the automobile’s age I used to be capable of lean on the large Audi tougher than I ever would have guessed I may.

Sometimes, historical past is simply outdated. Before I acquired behind the wheel, for those who’d requested me to forecast what it could be like hustling a 20-year-old RS6, I might have predicted a enjoyable journey down reminiscence lane at greatest. I’d be happier in newer tools.

After I acquired out of the C5, I used to be ecstatic. If this was the oldest, easiest member of the RS6 household, I used to be pumped to find how good the remainder could be. I didn’t have to attend lengthy.

C6: Some Power Is Good. More Power Is Better.

I stepped out of the C5 at a ravishing relaxation cease overlooking a picturesque vista too stunning for Hollywood to recreate. I gazed longingly on the subsequent RS I used to be about to pattern: The mighty C6, the one with the twin-turbo V10 engine.

This was the automobile that outlined the RS badge for me. It was additionally the beginning of greater than a decade and a half the place the RS6 was not provided on the market within the U.S. So this may be my first time ever behind the wheel of the uber Avant.

This spacious, sensible wagon provided 572 hp and 480 lb-ft of torque beginning at 1,500 rpm — extra energy and torque than the up to date R8 GT. The twin-turbo V10 is a beast of a motor. The claimed 0-62-mph time on the C6 was the identical because the previous-generation automobile, however the energy supply couldn’t be extra completely different. From the second you tip into the throttle, an enormous wave of torque shoves you alongside as if the hand of god got here down and swatted you within the ass. Brutal acceleration is offered in any gear, at any time.

Audi’s DRC system returned within the C6, this time confronted with a bit extra work: The weight of that V10 engine (and the truth that a lot of it hung forward of the entrance axle) meant fast route modifications weren’t fairly on the menu with this RS6. It’s not a lumbering car like so a lot of at the moment’s high-performance SUVs, however nimble it’s not.

Audi additionally introduced a C6 RS6 sedan to the rodeo. I drove it, however I didn’t push the four-door as laborious as I actually needed to. This stunning Nimbus Gray sedan as soon as belonged to the aforementioned Reil… who occurred to be driving shotgun with me. No strain there.

It was actually robust for me to restrain my proper foot although. Every time I might dip into the throttle, the V10 would take advantage of wonderful sounds, delivered concurrently with an enormous whack of acceleration. This is certainly the rawest of all of the RS6 generations, and more than likely the toughest to stay with on a day-to-day foundation.

Still. The sound, and the ability supply, have been every part I assumed they might be, and fairly a bit extra. I used to be significantly disenchanted once I needed to hand over the keys.

C7: Less Is More?

Listen. The C6 RS6 acquired its fair proportion of criticism in its day. Plenty of it needed to do with the truth that it was lower than stellar at dealing with something curvier than the German autobahn. So in 2013, Audi switched out the twin-turbo V10 for a twin-turbo 4.0 liter V8 — the smallest engine ever to take a seat in an RS6. Reducing the scale of the engine allowed Audi to avoid wasting weight, and significantly enhance the RS6’s driving dynamics.

Audi reconfigured the engine compartment, transferring the brand new powerplant 6 inches rearward, which gave the C7 55/45 entrance/rear weight distribution (an enormous enchancment over the V10 mannequin’s 60/40). Also serving to the “dynamism” (because the Germans prefer to name it) was the truth that the brand new RS6 was nearly two and a half inches wider than the A6 it was primarily based on. It additionally sat nearly an inch decrease on an energetic air suspension system that now got here customary within the RS6.

The lack of displacement didn’t boring the efficiency of the RS6. The twin-turbo V8 put out practically 560 hp and 553 lb-ft of torque. With a brand new 8-speed Tiptronic gearbox, the C7 solely wanted 3.9 seconds to achieve 62 mph and will prime 190 mph on the open street.

For me, leaping into the C7 was like hanging out with an outdated pal. When I lived in Germany, I spent a bunch of time behind the wheel of a C7. (I’ve owned a B5 and two C8s as effectively — you can say I like Audis.) When it debuted, the C7 RS6 was the head of automotive engineering. It was brutally quick, aggressively good-looking, and — it bears repeating — brutally quick.

Reil and his engineers did a tremendous job making the C7 extra than simply an autobahn cruiser. Of all the RS6s, the C7 is essentially the most enjoyable to drive on a twisty street. It’s very approachable, and due to that, you find yourself going considerably quicker than you understand.

Unfortunately, in 2013 Audi’s brass nonetheless didn’t assume that Americans have been worthy of such automotive excellence. The C7 RS6 was by no means imported to our shores. But that was all about to alter.

C8: Saving the Best for Last

Launched in 2020, the current-generation C8 RS6 didn’t disappoint. Still rocking a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8, however now boosted by a 48-volt mild-hybrid system that may kick in 16 further horsepower, the C8 pumps out 592 hp and 590 lb-ft of torque. More importantly, with the C8, Audi lastly determined to convey all that energy and torque to the U.S. — the primary time an RS6 was formally imported right here.

Although it’s a great bit heavier than its predecessor (by practically 440 kilos), the C8 manages to do the 0-62-mph dash in solely 3.6 seconds. But straight-line pace will not be the one venue the place the C8 excels. To counteract its newfound heft, Audi mixed its energetic air suspension with all-wheel steering that aids high-speed stability and improves low-speed maneuverability, making the large RS much more nimble than a automobile this measurement has any proper to be.

While earlier generations of RS6 have managed to convey delicate menace with their styling, all subtlety was deserted with the C8. There isn’t any mistaking the present RS6 for anything on the street. The roof, entrance doorways, and liftgate are the one physique panels shared with the base-model A6 Avant. Everything else was designed particularly for the RS, which was widened by an enormous 3.15 inches over the usual mannequin. The RS6 additionally will get Audi’s Matrix LED headlights with laser mild.

It’s the way in which all of those upgrades come collectively that makes the present RS6 really feel so particular. The hybrid-assisted energy and all-wheel steering assist the RS slice by means of Canadian vacation site visitors like a shark; the energetic suspension soaks up each bump and jolt on the tough roads round Banff. It’s the best possible of all worlds: Power, appears, dealing with, and utility all wrapped up in a single bad-ass package deal.

Final Thoughts

The C5 is sensible, particularly when you think about it’s a 20-year-old automobile. I really like the C5 like I really like an outdated film. It’s fantastic, and it stirs up all the appropriate feelings. It can’t maintain a candle to the efficiency at the moment’s RS6 affords, however that’s not a criticism — it’s a sign of every part Audi did to advance the mannequin over 20 years.

The C6 is an absolute beast, and that V10 sound is absolutely addicting. But it’s nearly too hardcore for me to wish to use as a every day. My on a regular basis drive is extra twisty bits than straight strains, and the V10 simply doesn’t like altering route. Also, it could piss off the neighbors each morning as I left for my caffeine repair, and whereas that will be enjoyable as shit for me, it could get outdated for everybody else round me.

The C8? It’s a masterpiece. It does all the appropriate issues, on a regular basis. Its stability of efficiency and utility is second to none. And in fact, it being the latest of the road, it has all of the tech to make it essentially the most easy automobile to make use of on an on a regular basis foundation. What’s stopping it from being my choose? Styling. I like a little bit of subtlety in my every day driver, and the C8 is something however delicate. Maybe Audi ought to have caught the V10 within the C8 — that ridiculous engine is a a lot better match for the look of the present RS6.

The C7, then, is the right combo for me. The efficiency isn’t that far off the C8, however it goes about its enterprise with far much less flash than its newer sibling. It’s new sufficient that the tech doesn’t really feel dated, and after beating round Banff for a full 8-hour day, I didn’t must dash from the automobile to get my again adjusted.

All of the above is simply quibbling. I might gladly get up to any considered one of these beauts in my storage, residing with it each day with out grievance. Audi has created a masterpiece with your entire RS line, and the RS6 is the piece de resistance. Twenty years on, it nonetheless stokes the automotive fires. I can’t wait to see what they’ve in retailer for the C9.