- Olga Kokorina
- Translated by Olga Apetenok
- Ru He Fr
Powerful, versatile and compact
The Audi RS4 is the most powerful version of the estate, built on the A4 model by Audi Sport GmbH. The Audi S4, also a fast and sporty car, is a level below. The abbreviation ‘RS’ comes from the German RennSport, which means motorsport. All RS versions are equipped with an all-wheel drive transmission, a powerful engine and feature numerous modern technologies. The RS models have been produced in small batches (around 2 thousand units) for four generations.
The first generation
The first generation was represented by the Audi Avant estate only. The car debuted in 1999 and was sold in the majority of European countries, some regions of Asia and even in some Latin American countries. The RS body size made it possible to include this car into the mid-sized segment. The estate was 4,525 mm long, 1,799 mm wide and 1,386 mm high, with a wheelbase of 2,607 mm. The car came with a 2.7-liter twin-turbocharged V6 engine with 380 hp. The car could accelerate to 100 km/h in 4.9 seconds and consumed 12 liters of fuel per 100 km. In total, a little more than 6 thousand cars were produced and sold.
The second generation
Interestingly, here the Germans took a break (2001-2005), after which they came to their senses and resumed the production of the model. First of all, the manufacturer released a 4-door five-seater sedan, followed by the Avant estate and a 2-door 4-seater cabriolet. The car was equipped with a 4.2 liter V8 engine, which developed 420 hp, accelerating to 100 km/h in 4.8-4.9 seconds, depending on the bodywork. The new RS4 grew by a few centimeters. But the main thing is that the car grew in the eyes of experts: the Audi RS4 won the Most Amazing Car of the 2005 Year competition in 2005 by Top Gear and the High Performance Car award at the 2017 World Car of the Year (WCOTY).
The third generation
It was released in 2012 and was produced in an estate body only. The third Audi RS4 remained roomy and dynamic, featuring an automated transmission instead of the 6-speed manual transmission. These concepts are closely related, as the 7-speed DSG could easily handle 450 hp and accelerated the car to 100 km/h a little faster than before, in 4.7 seconds. The maximum speed also increased from 250 km/h for to 280 km/h. The estate became larger (4,719 mm long, 1,826 mm wide, 1,415 mm high). About seven thousand cars were sold.
The fourth generation
The new Audi RS4 was unveiled at the 2017 Frankfurt Motor Show as an estate with new characteristics. The car featured a 3-liter engine, capable of accelerating to 100 km/h in just 4.1 seconds, while the car itself was 80 kg lighter. But the engine still remained powerful (the same 450 hp) thanks to turbocharging. The torque increased from 430 to 600 Nm. By the way, the same engine is used on the Porsche Panamera. An interesting detail: the car came offered with an 8-speed Tiptronic automatic transmission, not a semi-automatic one. The car had a spacious interior and trunk with a volume of 505 liters.
2019 restyling
A couple of years later, the car was restyled and is still being produced in this form (2021). So why cannot this modern Audi RS4 make it to Israel, as it is sold in many countries around the world?
The 2019/2020 Audi RS4 features a redesigned front end with new LED headlights (matrix headlights are available for a surcharge), as well as taillights. The interior now has digital instruments with a 12.3-inch display and new RS graphics. As usual, a fresh version of the MMI media system with a 10.1-inch touchscreen is integrated; it has a more progressive filling and voice control. Therefore, the car no longer has the rotating control unit. As before, the model has a truncated steering wheel, sports seats and on-board electronics with additional features such as displaying acceleration and torque graphs.
The car features the same 2.9-liter turbocharged V6 engine (450 hp, 600 Nm) with an 8-speed automatic transmission and quattro permanent all-wheel drive. By the way, it is equipped with an interaxle differential that distributes torque in the 40% (front)-60% (rear) proportion. If necessary, a different redistribution of the car’s forces is possible: the electronics can direct up to 70% of the torque to the front, and up to 85% to the rear axle.
The dynamics of the 2020/2021 Audi RS4 are at the same high level. Note that the top speed is electronically limited at 250 km/h as standard and 280 km/h with the RS dynamic options package. The fast estate interacts with the roads thanks to the sports suspension, and the ground clearance is reduced by 7 mm from the size of the regular Audi A4 with sports package.
In December 2019, Audi celebrated the 25th anniversary of the RS version. Special series of RS models were released with a special package with the self-explanatory name ‘anniversary package 25 years of RS’. The bumpers and sills feature matte silver trims, while the brand logos, spoilers and mirror caps are painted black. The interior of ‘anniversary’ cars can boast of a black finish with blue stitching. The logo is embroidered on the seats and carpets, the wheel hubs are also decorated with it, and when the front doors are opened, it is projected onto the asphalt.
