Audi RS 6 GT - Staggeringly Silly

17 Jul

An RS 6 with some extra teeth

There’s very little to dislike about the Audi RS 6. It’s spacious, looks good, and will outdrag pretty much everything. Behind the wheel, it can feel like just another car if you treat it sensibly, but the moment you start pressing buttons and mashing pedals turns into a monster. An affable one that likes to go fast, not a bitey one.

The RS 6 GT is an RS 6 with some extra teeth. And it feels like something of a moment in the car’s history. There’s a reason for that: it was probably supposed to be a big one. Why? You might remember Audi’s been messing with its names a fair bit. For a spell there, the even numbered cars were going to be electric (A4, A6, etc), while the odd numbers were for ICE/hybrids. That spelt doom for the RS 6 and RS 4 as we know them - two Audi icons that were defined partly by their bodies (Avant all the way, mostly) and their ludicrous ICE engines. An RS 5 and RS 7 would be along offering similar petrol-powered thrills in due time, the purists would know the difference… and almost certainly be vocal about it online. The RS 6 GT was something of a hardcore farewell to the car coveted by millions.

And then… a reverse ferret. The EV/ICE number split isn’t a thing any more, and now Audi’s doing that awkward thing where you say goodbye to someone and realise you’re walking the same way home. As embarrassing as it might look, we still have an RS 6 GT, and it’s a staggeringly silly thing.

Exterior

For one, the best paint job it comes in is inspired by an IMSA racer, so it comes with bright white wheels and has Audi racing stripes over gleaming white paint. In direct sunlight, you’ll need sunnies. In the gloom, it looks like a white hot flash is silliness. It comes with carbon fibre wings and a carbon bonnet, as well as a truly massive mouth and a whacking great double spoiler.

Performance

Under the carbon hood is a 4.0-litre turbocharged V8 with 621bhp and 627lb ft, enough to get you from 0-62mph in 3.3 seconds and up to 190mph - a touch more than Audi’s usual 155mph limit. It's got tweaked diffs for more rearward power delivery, a revised gearbox, and rather than air it sits on adjustable springs ‘n dampers to tune your ride to your liking. There are programmable RS modes, too, so you can set the car up to be as shouty, or calm as you like.

Unlike the ‘normal’ RS 6, the GT can never be called subtle, or discrete. It’s big, brash, and ludicrous. People will stare at you in traffic, they’ll wave and take pictures. A post on social media will be endlessly liked by people who ‘get it.’ This is a good thing. Also good is how savagely fast it is. A gentle prod of the throttle will surge you forward delightfully quickly, lean on it and all 627 pounds and feet will shoot themselves to all four wheels with such urgency your spine feels like it’ll be forced through the back of the GT’s finely bolstered seats.

Driving experience

Now, the RS 6 isn’t a light car. It’s the unfun side of two tonnes, even with carbon fibre on board, but it hides its chunk well in the bends. Firing yourself into a corner, the car doesn’t lean or wallow like it’s carrying undue heft around; it feels flat enough to make you feel like it’s doing a good impression of the race car its look so brilliantly apes. The ride is a little on the lumpy side, though that’s adjustable if you’ve the right tools to hand, it’s the sacrifice you make for having the jazzy GT car and its springs. If you’re buying an RS 6 for a smooth ride, GT or otherwise… why?

The same thought, oddly, applies to its drive modes as well. There’re normal ones, sporty ones, choose your own adventure ones, and, bizarrely, there’s an ‘eco’ mode. Let’s be real - if you’re not jamming it into ‘dynamic’ or a pre-programmed RS1 or RS2 setting with all the stops pulled out you’re kinda doing the whole Audi RS thing wrong. A 4.0-litre V8 should not be purchased if you’re going to worry about MPG. Just be grateful when/if the thing gets more than 20mpg on a run.

Its gearbox can, if you play with the paddles, feel a little on the violent side, but in a car like that, it’s to be expected. If you set everything to auto and leave it alone, it’ll imperceptibly whip you up and down the ‘box happily. Audi’s popped carbon ceramic stoppers on the RS 6 GT as standard, which is a neat touch as carbon discs are always a nice flex, but here they hark back to VAG products of old: they’re bitey. A glance at them at low speed and the car jerks. Pottering about in traffic you may look a little learner-y if you’re not careful. At speed they’re a different ball game - they’re smooth and do exactly as intended.

Interior

The RS 6 GT’s cabin is keen to tell you it’s a special car. There are badges pretty much everywhere. It’s a little full on, but look past them and the ‘ol A6’s interior is still a fine thing. Ok, the piano black surfaces can get in the sea, but the infotainment isn’t a pain to use, gives haptic feedback, and generally makes your life a little easier.

The Verdict

It’s not often that eras end. It’s less often that they’re supposed to end, don’t, but sort do all at the same time. Whatever the RS 6 GT was supposed to represent led to one of the most exciting Audi RS cars out there. Let’s hope the next RS 6 is half the car the GT is. It’ll be stonking.

words: Alex Goy
pictures: Henry Faulkner-Smith

Alex Goy

Alex Goy is a journalist, scriptwriter, and presenter. He's been covering fast, silly, plush, and shiny cars for fifteen years, and is increasingly concerned when he spots something he's driven in a museum (it's happened more than once). He's covered cars for Top Gear, The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, Autocar, Carfection, CNET, GQ, Motor1, Road and Track, and plenty more besides. You're likely to find him with a cup of tea in hand opining about the brilliance of British sports cars, or the Dacia Duster. And the odd Porsche.