And the back-seats? Are they comfortable?
Much as we love the all black, sportiness-exuding cabin of the RS5, we cannot say many good things about the space in the back. For a fully grown adult, those seats can be used as a torture chamber. So invite the guy who took away your girl in college for a ride. You would be fully avenged. Getting in and out is as uncomfortable, if not more, than sitting in those cramped seats. There is hardly any head-room or legroom and only kids would likely fit in there. Or cats. Or whoever you hate in general.
How does it feel from behind the steering wheel?
To start with, the steering feels slightly heavier than you get to experience in most Audi cars. Still, it somehow manages to lack any feedback. It doesn’t inspire confidence initially as you start pushing the car hard around some challenging bends – it feels a somewhat unnatural, and needs some time getting used. The feeling doesn’t last for long, though. You see, the RS5 comes equipped with the Quattro permanent all wheel drive system, in an advanced evolutionary stage with the self-locking crown gear centre differential and torque vectoring. The RS5 is also offered with the optional sport differential, which actively distributes the power between the rear wheels.
What all that jargon means, is that you get loads of grip, more than you would ever have likely experienced, and it eventually ends up escalating your confidence in attacking corners at a rate that rises exponentially.
Apart from the test run we did for this car on our way to, and around the gorgeous Amby valley twisties, I also had the pleasure of being driven in the RS5 around the Coimbatore track by Audi’s official trainer-driver Prithveen Rajan. Now, fast as we may want to drive on public roads, we hardly ever take them to their limit for obvious reasons. A racetrack is a different playground, though, with no inhibitions about the drunken motorist hurtling at you while trying to overtake that rickety bus on a blind corner, or the innocent mongoose who doesn’t realize that he’s sprinting straight into fatality’s cruel jaws while crossing the road. I clearly remember the RS5 darting around clinically around the Coimbatore circuit at mind-numbing speeds, subjecting us to some fanatical G figures in the process. There absolutely wasn’t any drama, any wailing from the tyres or perturbing body roll. It’s a point and shoot affair. The RS5 is clinically precise in what it does.
And that’s exactly what we experienced while piloting this blue coloured beauty while assaulting a variety of bends. It just goes around them without the slightest of theatre. You won’t likely get as thrilled in the RS5 as you would in a wiggle-happy machine with a steering wheel that chatters like a teenage schoolgirl, but you would definitely be doing much, much faster speeds.
How does it sound?
It’s a quintessential sportscar in the way it sounds. Being powered by a normally aspirated motor helps. The engine is revvy, so you are incited by the sound to rev harder as the soundtrack keeps getting sweeter and sweeter as you approach the redline. It’s not a loud, thundering kind of an engine sound, but an ever so mildly restricted burble that gratifies your senses without overwhelming them. It’s the kind of sportscar sound that you are used to hearing while playing those racing arcade games. It’s a thoroughly delectable piece of audio, good enough to grab attention too, but doesn’t have the roaring, booming sound some more muscular cars boast of.
How about the suspension? Is it comfortable?
To put it mildly, no. Although you have the Comfort mode to choose from, from the Audi drive select, you should be putting your money elsewhere if some solace for your behind and back is what you are looking for. While Comfort mode does loosen up the springs mildly, the RS5 remains a stiffly sprung car. Most, nay, all the furrows, crinkles, folds and undulations on the road manage to filter inside the cabin. The ride is harsh, and while driving on the ripply concrete surfaces, the sensation gets even more pronounced. Turn the Dynamic mode on, and the ride gets bone-jarringly, rattlingly stiff. The RS5 is built essentially for ultra smooth surfaces, and driving it on our roads isn’t a very comforting experience. Surprisingly, though, the ground clearance is pretty good and the RS5 managed to tip toe over some big speed breakers in Mumbai. We even managed to take it off the road for a photo-op. This one wouldn’t scrape its belly, even if it rocks you inside its rather small cabin.
Next page for images with details, verdict and price>>>