Audi Sport has produced an innovative sedan with a coupé-like grand tourer design. The four-door high-performance model offers a design all of its own and a twin-turbo V8 with improved performance and enhanced efficiency thanks to its mild-hybrid system.
As a five-seater, the new RS 7 Sportback takes all-rounder capabilities to the next level.
The new Audi RS 7 Sportback sits low to the ground. The flared wheel arches emphasize the spectacularly sporty nature of the high-performance model. The noticeable width is no optical illusion—at 1,950 millimeters (76.8 in) at the front fenders, the tape measure has to stretch an extra 20 millimeters (0.8 in) on each side over the Audi A7 Sportback.
The RS-specific exterior design lends the 5,009-millimeter (197.2-inch) RS 7 Sportback a character all of its own. The front end features a broad, flat Singleframe with no contrasting border. The radiator protective grille with its RS-specific honeycomb structure and the distinctive air inlets add to the aggressive styling. RS-specific sills with black inserts visually emphasize the pronounced forward thrust.
The rear end has a sweeping spoiler lip and a strip of lights linking the main rear lights. At a speed of 100 km/h (62.1 mph), a spoiler will extend from the tailgate. The RS exhaust system, with a large, chrome-colored oval tailpipe on each side, sits beneath an RS-specific bumper with a rear diffuser.
The RS 7 Sportback comes with LED headlights as standard to light its way through the darkness. The optional RS specific HD matrix LED headlights with Audi laser light, dark bezels and the LED rear lights are equipped with dynamic turn signal lights.
The heart of the new Audi RS 7 Sportback is its twin-turbo 4.0L V8. The engine block is the same as you'll find in Porsche's V8-powered Panameras and Cayennes, but much of the rest—pistons, turbos, and so on—is unique to Audi Sport. The RS7 is a little more powerful than the old version, thanks to bigger turbos, a 3mm larger compressor wheel, and an increase in boost pressure from 1.2 to 1.4 bar. This all adds up to 591hp and 590lb-ft (800Nm), which is sent to all four wheels via that excellent ZF 8HP eight-speed automatic transmission I keep going on about.
Audi hasn’t released pricing information for the 2020 RS 7 yet, but we expect it will start in the vicinity of $120,000.
