UPDATED GRAND TOURER FLEXES ITS MUSCLES
Second generation has serious look
The original Audi RS 7 could be likened to a gentleman dressed in a fine tuxedo — it was classy, refined and impeccably well mannered. However, when the tuxedo came off, it was transformed into a martial artist, ready to kick serious butt.
The 2020 second-generation grand tourer takes this description to heart and adds more muscle to both the look and what’s underneath the suit, so to speak.
In this case, each of the front fenders grow by 20 millimetres to give it a substantial 1,951 m between the bulges. Throw in the three-dimensional honeycomb grille, optional matrix LED laser headlights (sadly, the matrix portion of the headlights will not come to Canada) and the large air openings needed to cool the engine bay, and you have a serious look.
These visual cues speak to what’s beneath — a 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 that makes 600 horsepower and 590 poundfeet of torque. The original RS 7 was no slouch, taking just 3.9 seconds to reach 100 km/h. The new engine drops that time to
3.6 seconds. In the mid-range, the previous RS 7 ripped off 80 to 120 km/h passing times in a phenomenally fast 2.7 seconds — the new car promises to be faster, and it has a top speed of 305 km/h. Mercifully, the front rotors are huge and use 10-piston calipers to scrub off speed.
The engine works with an eight-speed automatic transmission and an RS-tuned version of quattro. In this application, the system sends 60 per cent of the power to the rear wheels and 40 per cent to the front, which gives the RS 7 a rear-drive feel. However, the system can send up to 85 per cent of the power rearward, or up to 70 per cent to the front wheels if the conditions demand.
The engine also works with a new 48-volt-based battery/alternator/starter (BAS) mild-hybrid system. It’s used to cut needless idling and speed the engine’s restart when the idle-stop system kicks in. Factor in the cylinder deactivation system, which shuts down four of the eight cylinders when loads are low, and
Audi says the combination cuts consumption by 0.8 L/100 km in everyday driving.
The RS 7 is available with two suspension choices. The air suspension arrives with adaptive dampers and a 20-mm reduction in the ride height compared to the A7. At speed, it drops another 10 mm to improve stability. The optional suspension — the RS setup with Dynamic Ride Control (DRC) — replaces the air springs with steel springs and adds special dampers that are hydraulically linked diagonally front to rear.
The DRC’s ride is tauter and it cuts body roll to basically nothing. As used on the previous model, this setup was almost too firm for everyday driving, given the RS 7’s grand touring thrust. As such, the adaptive air suspension is going to be the more popular choice.
There are four regular modes — comfort, auto, dynamic and efficiency — along with two customizable RS modes. The driver can alter the engine, transmission, steering, suspension, quattro sport rear differential with realtime torque vectoring, exhaust tone and, when equipped, the dynamic all-wheel steering. Once the individual settings have been selected, they can be stored in one of the two RS buttons.
Inside, the RS 7 is all A7, down to Audi’s two-tier MMI infotainment system. The differences are found in two key areas. First, the RS has some very serious front sport buckets that hug without confining — an essential ingredient given the power and lateral forces at play. Second is a slick version of Audi’s Virtual Cockpit. It allows the driver to display everything from torque, horsepower and g-forces to oil temperature, boost pressure and lap times within the instrument cluster.
The 2020 Audi RS 7 will go on sale in Europe in the first quarter of next year, and it will hit Canadian roads shortly after.