Audi are a German car manufacturer and simply make wonderful
cars. However, the perception is that the Audi car price is
expensive, certainly compared to other cars in its market. We've
provided an article below to explore this arguement in more
detail.
AUDI'S SUPER-HOT WAGON: THE RS6 QUATTRO PLUS AVANT
Audi has been producing standard looking cars with a lot of
power for some time, but the latest RS6 Quattro Plus Avant is a
wagon with supercar performance. It is powered by a
twin-turbocharged 4.2 liter V-8 engine with no less than 480 bhp at
6,000 rpm. The previous model developed 450 bhp.
The standard A6 has front-wheel drive, but obviously to transmit
that much power onto the road they've given the car four-wheel
drive, which is particularly important with the engine out in front
of the front axle. Yes, that's the unusual layout of the Audi A4
and A6 models.
SUPERCAR PRICE, SUPERCAR PERFORMANCE
They aren't producing many of the RS6 Pluses, and the price is
up in the supercar league at around $120,000 (£66,675). But yo
still a highly practical wagon you can use to collect builder's
material, or pile high with luggage for your summer holiday. And in
between you have a car that can compete with many a slick-looking
superccar. For example,the Ferrari F430, a fabulous two-seater has
only 10 bhp more than the RS6, and because the RS6 engine is
turbocharged it will have much more power in the 2,000-5,000 rpm
rantge than the Ferrari - in other words it will have more usable
power.
This 40-valve engine - that's five valves per cylinder - would
be just the job in a neat mid-engine coupe, and indeed Audi has one
of its own on the stocks, but it's not very neat. In the RS6 it
turns what looks like an ordinary wagon into a fire-eating frenzied
dervish.
Audi used to split the power of its quattro system with an equal
amount of torque going to the front and rear axles. But with this
model, and the latest RS4 it has adopted a center differential that
sends 40 per cent of the torque - or power - to the front wheels
and 60 per cent to the rear wheels. This is a better arrangement
because it prevents excessive understeer - that's when the front
end of the car slides outwards - which can happen with a car that
is so nose-heavy.
PLENTY OF SPACE FOR THE FAMILY
This RS6 is one mighty powerful car, capable of 175 mph - that
top speed is limited by a governor - with a 0-60 time of 4.6
seconds. Very fast, although the Mitsubishi Evo VIII FQ330 can do
0-60 in just 4.4 seconds. Methinks the RS6 is a bit heavy... But to
be fair, the Porsche Carrera can't do better than 4.6 seconds,
albeit with 300 bhp.
In practice, 0.2 seconds is neither here nor there, so the
difference between this RS Plus and the old one won't be noticed by
anyone without a stop watch - and a might fine one at that. A mere
human can't measure 0.2 seconds, and can't do much in that much
time either. Still, these are all very fast cars, and once you get
below 5 seconds for the 0-60 time you're hot. That's good enough
for me. Without a stop watch.
About the Author
JohnHartley is the editor of
Fast-Autos, an online magazine devoted
to fast cars and supercars. He has written for many top auto
magazines, and has written 10 books about cars and the auto
industry, including 'Suspension and Steering Q&A' and 'The
Electronics Revolution in the Motor Industry'.