Friday 24th July 2015

Audi RS4 saloon returning!

Next RS4 is due in 2016 with four-door and Avant bodies - watch out M3 and C63?

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Now this is the kind of Audi model range expansion we can get on board with. The next RS4, set to to be V6 powered and launched next year will be offered as both a saloon and estate. Keen fast Audiphiles will know that's only the second time in RS4 history that this has happened, the last being the iconic B7 of 2005.

New one has a lot to live up to...

The decision has come about through demand from the US and China, where they still like a sedan or four-door or whatever regional variation of saloon sounds best. There is no confirmation yet that the RS4 saloon will be sold in Britain but with both M3 and C63 saloons available, plus the potential of a fast Jaguar XE, surely the case for British sales is easy to make.

Remember when Audi said it would only have one RS-badged model on sale at a time, to preserve the exclusivity of the badge? Yes, that definitely isn't happening any more. The RS4 will be launched next year which is an incredibly quick turnaround given the new A4 has only just been announced. Remember the outgoing RS4 only went on sale four years after the standard car. Apparently Audi customers want RS versions early in the product lifecycle. And we know there are plenty of customers!

So what will the next RS4 actually be? We can bid farewell to another screaming V8 sadly, the old 4.2 most definitely not making an appearance in the next car. The 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 in the RS6 isn't likely either, the engine expected to be instead powered by a new 3.0-litre turbocharged V6. Around 500hp is likely to go battling the BMW and AMG.

Further details are scarce at present but a new supersaloon in development is good news by us. As for fast Audi hit and miss, it's certainly been hit rather than miss recently with the R8, S1 and RS6 all impressing. Even the RS3 was better than expected. Finally if news of another RS4 saloon has you interested in the old one, decent ones are now available for less than £20K. Tempting...

[Source: Autocar]

 

 

[CharlieAlphaMike]

Fabulous. I love fast Audi's. The article mentions the M3 and C63 (obvious rivals and great cars too - love them) and also mentions the 'potential of a fast Jaguar XE' (another potentially brilliant fast saloon).

But why isn't the new Alfa Romeo Giuila QV mentioned? Do we just dismiss Alfa's because they fall apart, rust, develop electrical problems? Come on, wake up, this new Alfa looks set to blow everything else (within that same market segment) into next week, without breaking sweat; 3.0 litre twin turbo V6 (developed by Ferrari), 503bhp, 4WD, Torque Vectoring System, option of double clutch 'Auto' or manual gearbox, multi-link rear suspension, double wishbone front, adaptive damping, Active Aero Front Splitter...maybe you forgot to read the Press Release!

[CharlieAlphaMike]

Esseesse said:

I guess the fast Alfa doesn't feel real yet.

And the Jaguar? Only a 'potential' performance model so I question why it was even mentioned in the article. The Alfa would have been worthy of a mention because it is real and will be on sale next year.

[CharlieAlphaMike]

E65Ross said:

I watched a video, think it was evo or autocar) of the M3 vs C63 with the performance pack thing.... The merc was over 500bhp.... The M3 was faster round a track which summed up what they said about how the 2 cars felt.

The C63 is quite heavy, around 1640kg I think. That must have some impact on performance, especially around a track. The Alfa is supposedly 1500kg, some 20kg lighter than the current M3 and so approx 140kg lighter than a C63. Must make a difference, especially with the rest of the Alfa 'spec'.