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Vorsprung durch RS
© AudiRS-badged Audis have been roaming autobahns and chasing down BMW M cars since 1994. That’s almost three decades of blistered wheelarches, scowling snouts and big boots, often with a menacing soundtrack to match. We tell the story of the modern fast Audi.
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1994 Audi RS 2
© AudiWith the help of Porsche, Audi brought its first RS-badged performance estate to the market, and the fast car world was changed forever. While 315hp from a 2.2-litre five-cylinder engine is modest by today’s standards, in 1994 the RS 2 was an angry ripsnorter of a thing.
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2000 Audi RS 4
© AudiThe original RS 4 picked up where the RS 2 left off, and established how Audi’s RS cars would be tiered. Its 2.7-litre turbocharged V6 delivered a mighty 380hp – enough for the RS 4 to stand toe-to-toe with BMW’s M5, let alone the M3. Unlike the RS 2, the RS 4 was also available as a saloon.
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2002 Audi RS 6
© AudiThe RS 6 has been a giant-killer since it was introduced in 2002. Packing 450hp in standard form from its twin-turbo V8, and 480hp in RS 6+ form, this thing could see off BMW M5s and nibble at the heels of supercars. It too was sold as a saloon and Avant (estate).
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2005 Audi RS 4
© AudiWhat fast Audis had yet to do, since the introduction of the RS 2, was deliver great handling. Grip? They had bags of it. Balance? Not so much. Nose-heavy Audi RS cars loved to understeer. The RS 4 changed all that, delivering balletic balance to go with its super-sweet 420hp 4.2-litre V8. In terms of styling, it enhanced the steroidal RS look, and introduced the new-look grille. The RS 4 was available as a saloon, Avant and cabriolet.
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2008 Audi RS 6
© AudiThe next RS 6 reverted to old habits. Big power: 580hp courtesy of a twin-turbo 5.2-litre V10, and brutally unsatisfying dynamics. It’ll obliterate most contemporary rivals point-to-point, but does so without delivering much satisfaction for the driver. It’ll easily push into understeer if you get eager, too. Audi’s reputation for inconsistency was born with the second-generation RS 6, but didn’t it look great? Yours in saloon or Avant formats.
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2009 Audi TT RS
© AudiA car we’d seemingly been waiting forever for: an RS version of the TT. The TT RS came along with looks to kill and an engine that thrilled. Its 2.5 litres of turbocharged five-cylinder power was a delight, but the warble was a distraction from a slightly underwhelming drive. Our advice? Get the roadster, to be closer to the sound.
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2010 Audi RS 5
© AudiThe RS 5 was no M3 fighter when it came to dynamics, but you’d arguably take it on looks alone. The cabriolet was the ultimate riviera cruiser.
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2011 Audi RS 3
© AudiAudi’s first hyper hatch picked up where the TT left off, with five-pot power and a slightly disappointing drive. The engine is one of the modern greats, though, and it survives to this day in current and future hot Audis. Praise be.
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2012 Audi RS 4
© AudiIn 2012, the mighty RS 4 made a return in wagon form only. It wasn’t quite as much of a standard-setter as its predecessor, but it was properly stylish. One thing Audi’s RS division has always nailed is style, never more so than with the B8 RS 4.
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2013 Audi RS Q3
© AudiThen Audi changed the game with an RS-powered crossover. The unassuming Q3 SUV got swollen air intakes, a big oval exhaust and fabulous five-cylinder power. It actually drove better than the RS 3 hatch.
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2013 Audi RS 6
© AudiWith the 2013 RS 6, Audi rediscovered its mojo. By far the best RS since 2005’s RS 4, this RS 6 downsized back to a twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8. It was also down on power, with 560hp, but was such a sweet drive. It was arguably the best-looking RS yet, too. We want one.
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2013 Audi RS 7
© AudiAudi’s late-in-the-game answer to the AMG-powered Mercedes CLS was, like its RS 6 counterpart, an absolute rocket, but it lacked the versatility of its Avant sibling. It replaced the option of an RS 6 saloon.
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2015 Audi RS 3
© AudiIn 2015, the RS 3 came of age. With a 2.5-litre turbocharged five-cylinder and 360hp, the new hot hatch had a charming powerplant, and now had a chassis with half a hope of complementing it. It also looked suitably special, to distance it from the go-faster Golfs of this world.
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2016 Audi TT RS
© AudiWith near-on 400hp, the TT RS, in coupe and roadster form, is a proper little supercar slayer. First-generation R8? Not a problem. Audi RS models, as always, can keep supercars honest.
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2017 Audi RS 3 Saloon
© AudiIn 2017, Ingolstadt released the RS 3 Saloon, creating one of the best looking modern RS Audis. What it lost in hatchback practicality, it gained in style.
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2017 Audi RS 5
© AudiWhile the last RS 5 was a bit of a letdown, the latest one is a formidable all-rounder. Its turbocharged V6 engine isn’t the heartthrob the old V8 was, but it’s devastatingly effective. It’s still a beauty, too.
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2017 Audi RS 4
© AudiThe current RS 4 shares that versatile 450hp V6 engine and is a formidable family car. Our review said: ‘As a means of swiftly shifting your golf clubs, suitcases or labradors (delete as applicable), it’s almost without equal. And way cooler than any hotted-up SUV’.
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2018 Audi RS 5 Sportback
© AudiIf the RS 4 is a bit too utilitarian for you, but the RS 5 coupe isn’t practical enough, Audi has the solution. Meet, for the first time, the RS 5 Sportback. Four doors, RS 5 styling, and a practical hatch. It’s almost a no-brainer.
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2019 Audi RS 6
© AudiNow then, the new generation of Audi RS is here. Mild-hybrid tech, four-wheel steering, and a new generation of ultra-sharp looks. Would it be an Audi RS if it wasn’t the best looking performance car in its segment?
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2019 Audi RS 7
© AudiYet again, there is a less practical and more expensive flavour, in the form of the RS 7. Note that the 6 has borrowed the 7’s sharper snout.
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2019 Audi RS Q3
© AudiHere’s the latest version of the SUV that once seemed so controversial. The current RS Q3 is available in both regular and sleeker Sportback forms. Thankfully, the five-cylinder engine has survived. And it lives on in the latest RS 3, too.
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2019 Audi RS 3 Sportback
© AudiHere’s a hot hatch with 400hp and a 174mph top speed: figures that would frighten a Ferrari Testarossa. Amazingly, the Mercedes-AMG A 45 S still has the edge in terms of raw numbers, but the RS 3 is a fiercely fast and desirable car. As you’d hope for around £50,000.
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2020 RS Q8
© AudiThe RS Q8 is a Lamborghini Urus in a more sober suit. That means a 600hp 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 and 0-62mph in 3.8 seconds. Not bad for something the size of a bungalow. Super-SUVs like this aren’t really our thing, but you have to admire the engineering involved.
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2021 Audi RS E-Tron GT
© AudiThis is more like it. The fully electric RS E-Tron GT is the latest Audi to wear the hallowed RS badge. Sister car to the Porsche Taycan, it can blast to 62mph in 3.3 seconds and deliver a 300-mile range. It also looks utterly stunning, especially in this new Tactical Green colour.
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2022 Audi RS 3
© AudiAudi has facelifted the RS 3 for 2022. It still has a 400hp 2.5-litre five-cylinder engine, and now costs well clear of £50,000 (take it either in saloon guise or the Sportback pictured here). You can also have it in this brilliant Kyalami Green: well, if the world is going electric, why not celebrate one of the last super-powerful petrol-powered hot hatches in style?
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The future of RS
© AudiThe E-Tron points to an electric future for the RS brand, but the era of uproarious combustion engines isn’t over just yet. Whatever comes next, it’s sure to be fast and four-wheel drive. And RS devotees wouldn’t have it any other way.