Considering that the number of cars Audi debuted at this year’s Frankfurt auto show actually reached double digits, we forgive you for losing track of one or two. But one of the minor debuts—the updated RS5 coupe—deserves a second look. After all, this is the car we'll finally get sometime in 2012.
The biggest changes for the RS5 are readily apparent, because the front end received the most attention. While the lower grille and chin spoiler go unchanged, the central grille gets Audi’s new clipped top corners, as well as a more subtle trim ring. And then there are the headlights, which get an overall shape that will help the car fit in wherever owners of the new A6 and A7 gather. The new lights have a more chiseled shape, and the old strings of individual LEDs comprising the running lights are gone. In their place are more-modern light tubes that run almost a full circuit around the headlight housings. Around the corner, the car’s side-window trim is now black instead of brushed metal. At the rear, slightly darker lenses cover revised taillights. Audi’s designers could find nothing wrong with the car’s beautiful cabin, so it survives this refresh mostly unchanged. Minor updates include a new steering wheel and shifter knob, as well as a reduction in MMI button count.
Because the RS model was itself a late addition to Audi’s range of cars with a “5” in their name, it doesn’t get any powertrain updates like the S5 coupe does. Sure, it was probably tempting to move the car to the company’s new 4.0-liter twin-turbo V-8, but the high-revving, naturally aspirated 4.2-liter is a wonderfully seductive engine. If anything, we’d like to see Audi coax enough power out of its turbo five-cylinder to make it a legitimate replacement for this aging V-8. Like the engine, the RS5’s suspension, transmission, and all-wheel-drive components remain unchanged. The optional carbon-ceramic brakes carry over, while the standard iron rotors get a revised design that shaves a total of 6.6 pounds between the four of them.
When we put the RS5 up against the BMW M3 and the Cadillac CTS-V in a comparo last year, our biggest point of contention was the car’s steering. It can be altered through the standard Audi Drive Select system, but we found none of the three settings suited our taste. For 2013, steering assist is provided by an electromechanical setup that, on our recent drive of the face-lifted S5, proved to be a vast improvement. With that complaint stifled and an even sharper look, we’re more excited than ever for the RS5 to show up on our shores.
              by caranddriver.com |
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