Uploaded June 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Thanks: Edition İstanbul
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Audi’s practical family car laced with supercar performance. Ever since its collaboration with Porsche in the early Nineties to investigate surprisingly spacious speed courtesy of the RS2, the folks at Ingolstadt have made a name for themselves by producing knuckle-biting, performance-orientated five-door estates. This latest iteration has added sophistication and technology to go with its speed. Boy-oh-boy, a hell of a lot of speed.
Angry-looking thing, isn't it?
Only the front doors, roof and tailgate are shared with a rep-spec A6. And it’s got heaps of attitude: blistered bodywork a whopping 80mm wider than standard, a contemptuous frown (a throwback from the ’84 Sport quattro), bazooka tailpipes and a squat muscular stance, sat low on 22-inch wheels. These features compound for unparalleled presence.
Over the years, the RS6 has had a multitude of engines, including, hilariously, a twin turbo V10. Now billed the RS6 Performance, these days it’s powered by a 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8 good for 621bhp and 627lb ft, rises of 31bhp and 37lb ft over the previous ‘non-Performance’, if you like. As a result it’ll do 0-62mph in 3.4 seconds. That’s 0.2s faster than the outgoing version.
So, it’s got pace, but how about space?
This supercar performance is paired with a boot that’s capable of swallowing 1,680 litres of stuff, making it a direct competitor for the Mercedes-AMG E63 Estate and Porsche’s Panamera Turbo Sport Turismo. It’s a size bigger than the BMW M3 Touring, which you suspect has rather put Audi Sport’s nose out of joint by nicking all the fast wagon headlines lately.
Does it have switchable 4WD like the BMW M5 and Merc E63?
No, it’s permanent 4WD – you can’t disable the front driveshafts. In real-world situations, this means you can use a ridiculous amount of that near 621bhp grunt all the time. That’s the difference quattro makes; it gives you traction and confidence. But thanks to a new active rear differential, the Performance is more entertaining at the very limit than most other Audi wagons of recent decades.
Read More topgear.com/car-reviews/audi/rs6
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Thanks: Edition İstanbul
instagram.com/editionistanbul
Audi’s practical family car laced with supercar performance. Ever since its collaboration with Porsche in the early Nineties to investigate surprisingly spacious speed courtesy of the RS2, the folks at Ingolstadt have made a name for themselves by producing knuckle-biting, performance-orientated five-door estates. This latest iteration has added sophistication and technology to go with its speed. Boy-oh-boy, a hell of a lot of speed.
Angry-looking thing, isn't it?
Only the front doors, roof and tailgate are shared with a rep-spec A6. And it’s got heaps of attitude: blistered bodywork a whopping 80mm wider than standard, a contemptuous frown (a throwback from the ’84 Sport quattro), bazooka tailpipes and a squat muscular stance, sat low on 22-inch wheels. These features compound for unparalleled presence.
Over the years, the RS6 has had a multitude of engines, including, hilariously, a twin turbo V10. Now billed the RS6 Performance, these days it’s powered by a 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8 good for 621bhp and 627lb ft, rises of 31bhp and 37lb ft over the previous ‘non-Performance’, if you like. As a result it’ll do 0-62mph in 3.4 seconds. That’s 0.2s faster than the outgoing version.
So, it’s got pace, but how about space?
This supercar performance is paired with a boot that’s capable of swallowing 1,680 litres of stuff, making it a direct competitor for the Mercedes-AMG E63 Estate and Porsche’s Panamera Turbo Sport Turismo. It’s a size bigger than the BMW M3 Touring, which you suspect has rather put Audi Sport’s nose out of joint by nicking all the fast wagon headlines lately.
Does it have switchable 4WD like the BMW M5 and Merc E63?
No, it’s permanent 4WD – you can’t disable the front driveshafts. In real-world situations, this means you can use a ridiculous amount of that near 621bhp grunt all the time. That’s the difference quattro makes; it gives you traction and confidence. But thanks to a new active rear differential, the Performance is more entertaining at the very limit than most other Audi wagons of recent decades.
Read More topgear.com/car-reviews/audi/rs6
Instagram ▶ instagram.com/cartvpress
TikTok ▶ tiktok.com/@cartvpress
Facebook ▶ facebook.com/CARTVPress
