AUDI MZANSI CONFIRMS RS 4 AVANT PRICING

One of our favourite cars of all time, the old Audi RS 4 Avant, stopped production way back in 2007. Since then we’ve longed and craved, and finally that badge is back in Mzansi. But will it live up to that excellent reputation of its forebear? We don’t know yet, but plan to find out later in the year. Meantime, here’s the lowdown on specs and all.

The new RS 4 is only available as an Avant (station wagon) so please don’t phone your nearest Audi dealership asking if they are ordering the sedan version. And it’s also quite limited in numbers so you really need to get on with the order asap if you want one.

What you’ll get is the same ole’ 4.2-litre naturally aspirated V8 engine pulling out 331kW of power at 8250rpm and 430Nm of torque between 4000rpm and 6000rpm. Audi claims it can run off from 0 – 100km/h in just 4.7 seconds and top off at 250km/h, all the while averaging about 11 litres of unleaded fuel per 100km.

Some of the technical aspects of the RS 4 Avant include the fact that it has quattro all-wheel-drive (AWD), naturally, which is 40:60 split for rear-biased handling, while utilising the services of a crown-centre differential (same as RS 5 Coupe) to vary the torque between axles for maximum handling effect. All this is driven through a 7-speed double clutch gearbox badged “S tronic”, which is basically DSG from Volkswagen Group.

Because this is essentially a performance car pretending to be a mama’s wagon, it is 20 millimetres longer, 24 millimetres wider and 20mm lower than a normal A4 Avant, so that it gets as close to the ground as possible.

Some of the standard items include the likes of 19-inch alloy wheels, LED daytime running lights, xenon plus headlights, a front grille finished in matte aluminium, S sports seats (yeah!) with alcantara trim, a flat-bottomed sports steering wheel with shift paddles behind it, and the Audi Connect system which turns the whole car into a Wifi hotspot that can connect other devices to the internet.

The new Audi RS 4 Avant is now being sold at a dealership near you for the price of R875 000. Stunning if you consider that its most direct rival, in Mzansi the Mercedes-Benz C 63 AMG Estate costs R923 000 on order, while in Germany, the same RS 4 Avant is priced at around R905 000.