Audi RS5 Spied Heading to Nurburgring

CarPix / Audi RS5 first spy photos

By Thami Masemola
March 30, 2009 9:10 PM
Filed Under: Audi, German, Spy Photos

After a short quiet period the Audi RS 5 has returned to the Nürburgring for more high-performance testing. These spy pictures reveal a very purposeful sports coupe with lots to show off. The small rear spoiler is integrated into the boot lid. The wide fenders and two massive oval tailpipes look just like those in the 426kW (579hp) RS 6. Big air intakes at the front signal the need of extra air. Our spies report a phenomenal sound coming from the RS 5.

General consensus is that the RS 5 will be powered by the 4.2-litre V8 in what may be its swansong thanks to fast-approaching emissions laws. It will be twin-turbocharged for extra power which should push it up to between 316kW (430hp) and 331kW (450hp). The coupe will have quattro AWD with either 6-speed manual or 7-speed Audi R Tronic.

The RS 5 was scheduled to go on sale in July 2010 but with the credit crunch seemingly taking more industry victims, Audi has been forced to postpone the market launches of a few new models. This could very well be one of them.

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Tags: Audi RS 5, Audi RS 5 spy

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Comments

AUDINICK

March 30, 2009 9:55 PM

i think 450 is a little less, ~470 sound better

ShinyG

March 30, 2009 10:15 PM

Naturally aspired 4.2L V8: 420hp Twin-Turbocharged 4.2L V8: 450hp These must be the smallest/worst turbos ever! The infamous rumor mill needs some aftermarket turbo also, it's been acting up lately with strange rumors...

DavyG

March 30, 2009 10:16 PM

Was the V8 in the RS4 not naturally aspirated and produced 414bhp? Why would a twin-turbo version only produce 430-450bhp?

loyo

March 30, 2009 10:47 PM

What's that on the right air intake? It looks like a light, but there's no matching one on the left intake. Night vision? radar? any guess?

catchmyshadow

March 31, 2009 12:19 AM

it`s the sensor for the adaptive cruise control

cyclist848

March 31, 2009 1:08 AM

night vision sounds more outrageously fun than cruise control to me...Im going to stick with that theory.

afterace2

March 31, 2009 10:50 AM

by the way this can be seen on many new cars lately, and I think it ruins the design of the front bumper

xenomorph

April 2, 2009 2:03 PM

I totally agree with you, you would think they could make it more discrete. Surely there is some way to hide it. I wouldn't order it just because it spoils the appearance so much. Its very expensive as well. You would be better off selecting other options like drive select.

Wickedated

March 30, 2009 10:59 PM

I love the A5/S5 however I think an RS5 version is a little too late in the game and given the current market, it's a mistake. Audi should be concentrating a little less on these RS cars and a little more on making an electric/hybrid A1 city car a reality, to compete with the Mini/Smart/Fiat 500 crowd. Think about it, how many RS6 have sold? It's great to have halo cars, but I think the R8 V8 and V10 are enough at this point.

Edited by user on March 30, 2009 at 11:02 PM

Jeff

April 1, 2009 6:51 AM

Audi has enough fuel efficient models but it is this car that has enthusiasts' blood boiling. Fuel efficient cars are necessary but lets be honest, a Prius doesn't turn heads on the street and is a big zero when it comes to excitement. Audi must release this car in the USA if they want a car (since the RS4 is gone) to play with the M3 and C63. I would bet that this will be an incredible car that exceeds the performance levevls of it's competition.

quattrosport

March 30, 2009 11:02 PM

This is the optional radar, already available on other models such as the new S4. There is no way to have a bi-turbo V8 with less than 500HP. I think that they will keep the atmo version with just a few more HP.

quattrosport

March 30, 2009 11:04 PM

... and 2 turbo means 100 additional kilos in the front of the car ! No good at all ;-)

zdenda20

March 30, 2009 11:29 PM

Seems a bit too flashy to be testing at the nurburgring, no? MAttbe black and shiny blue 2 tone, duno...maybe its not an official RS?

sub39h

March 31, 2009 1:06 AM

yeah the front and rear wings have been camouflaged because they've obviously done something to the wheel arches and they don't want to show us what it is yet.

AUDINICK

March 30, 2009 11:41 PM

The paint is not two-tone, ont the sides it has black matte stuck on to it.

kumbze

March 31, 2009 1:49 AM

Sweet Ride!! guyz, this car has the potential for more power, but more than 450hp wont be fair to the competition so am guessing it will be electronically limited.

joshg_5

March 31, 2009 4:08 AM

I consider the M6 a competitor. It's got over 500hp.

How's this going to compete...? pfsh

catchmyshadow

March 31, 2009 4:57 AM

the wheel arches wear matte black camouflage but they will obviously look like the RS6 ones, wider and angularly. the rear diffusor does also wear some camouflage.

Merc-Benz

March 31, 2009 7:40 AM

Looks good imo

fattychrisbmw

March 31, 2009 7:58 AM

boring as usual

xenomorph

April 2, 2009 2:09 PM

Dumb bmw fan as usual. Ironic.

Targa_Florio

March 31, 2009 10:36 AM

Adding 2 turbos on an high performance N/A engine (high revving / ~100hp/L) doesn't yield the same performance increase as bolting turbos on a normal N/A engine... First it won't rev as high as the N/A engine, second they would ditch the fragile high performance cam setup for a more robust one.

Also they will probably build it based on the standard 4.2L (~350hp).

Just look at the difference between the European BMW N52/N53 (N/A 265 to 272hp) and N54 (twin-turbo 306 to 326hp).

Edited by user on March 31, 2009 at 10:36 AM

Beetle

March 31, 2009 11:42 AM

The very last picture ... the wheel arches are over lapped on the rear quarter you can see a ridge, so as alot of people say this must be the body test stage of the car.