B9 RS5 Reviews are coming in
06-23-2017, 04:51 PM
#1
AudiWorld Senior Member
Thread Starter
B9 RS5 Reviews are coming in
Reviews of the new B9 RS5 are coming in and the consensus is that Audi Sport has achieved to out-perform the B8.5 RS5. However, the reviewers keep harking back to the joy and thrill of the 4.2L V8 engine of yore. I cannot blame them and Superswiss and Eric Strauss can attest to that, being B8.5 RS5 owners. But, advance technology and efficiency is the name of the game so onward we must go!
All three reviews confirm that the same old numb steering is, well, still uninspriring. But, it is precise.
Autocar UK: https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review...pe-2017-review
EVO Magazine: 2017 Audi RS5 review - Audi's most entertaining coupe yet? | Evo
Top Gear: https://www.topgear.com/car-reviews/...ic/first-drive
All three reviews confirm that the same old numb steering is, well, still uninspriring. But, it is precise.
Autocar UK: https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review...pe-2017-review
Where the minuses occur, they do so with a predictable sense of inevitability. It hardly needs saying that the new RS5 is quicker than the old, and it feels it (there’s simply too much torque fermenting in the engine bay for it not to be) but there isn’t the same accompanying theatrical fizz to its high-rev function, nor the same pockmarked mechanical shunt to its paddle-operated gear changes.
That it proves less than mesmerising in such moments is hardly a shock, and it feeds into the RS5’s wider major shortcoming; specifically in handling which still gently refuses to ever come enthralling to life. That’s not to say that progress hasn’t been confidently made: with less weight over the front axle and the locking rear differential in play, the car is plainly more agile than it’s ever been and can at least be goaded into delivering more drive to the outside back wheel.
That it proves less than mesmerising in such moments is hardly a shock, and it feeds into the RS5’s wider major shortcoming; specifically in handling which still gently refuses to ever come enthralling to life. That’s not to say that progress hasn’t been confidently made: with less weight over the front axle and the locking rear differential in play, the car is plainly more agile than it’s ever been and can at least be goaded into delivering more drive to the outside back wheel.
Yet on the move the RS5 never feels as dramatic as the figures suggest. Make no mistake; the Audi is a seriously quick car that can cover ground with truly indecent haste. Yet the extremely linear power delivery (peak torque of 443lb ft is delivered at 1,900rpm) means it feels, well, just a little flat. There’s not the high-end frenzy you get in a BMW M4 or the instant, sledgehammer blow of the AMG.
So I’ve suspected since driving it that the S5 had been deliberately neutered, and shifted into a mini-GT role, so the similar-on-paper RS5 could grow devil horns and be much more aggressive. To have its own space, and own character.
06-23-2017, 05:41 PM
#2
AudiWorld Super User
Motor Trend has one, too.
2018 Audi RS 5 Coupe First Drive Review
Largely, the reviews are as expected. I'm still not impressed. There are certainly many improved things about the new RS5, but it is a very different car from the old one. I don't agree with several of the assessments these journalist made. Maybe it's because I tightened up my front end with the Alu Kreuz and gave it a wider track, but I find the old RS5 very adjustable and the steering has feedback. Getting on the throttle tightens up the line as opposed to what one journalist claims just makes the car wash out more. However he said that of the new RS5.
Final judgment will depend on a test drive through some of my favorite roads, but so far I'm underwhelmed. The car is quieter, less drama and more comfy. If those were my criteria, I might be looking elsewhere to begin with, but we will see. Waiting for Audi on Demand to get one for their fleet, so I can rent it for a day and decide.
2018 Audi RS 5 Coupe First Drive Review
Largely, the reviews are as expected. I'm still not impressed. There are certainly many improved things about the new RS5, but it is a very different car from the old one. I don't agree with several of the assessments these journalist made. Maybe it's because I tightened up my front end with the Alu Kreuz and gave it a wider track, but I find the old RS5 very adjustable and the steering has feedback. Getting on the throttle tightens up the line as opposed to what one journalist claims just makes the car wash out more. However he said that of the new RS5.
Final judgment will depend on a test drive through some of my favorite roads, but so far I'm underwhelmed. The car is quieter, less drama and more comfy. If those were my criteria, I might be looking elsewhere to begin with, but we will see. Waiting for Audi on Demand to get one for their fleet, so I can rent it for a day and decide.
06-23-2017, 07:39 PM
#3
AudiWorld Senior Member
So far, the closest I can get is the S5/S5 SB...
The car is nimble but the steering is sooo numb. Maybe the B9 RS5 will be better. For comparison, I had the chance to take a 2017 BMW M3 with the Competition Package on a 20 mile run through the twisties. The steering felt alive and responsive with at least some information feeing back through my hands. As my lease winds down, I am still struggling with the next step (I know, a 1st World problem - no sympathies requested). My RS5 just went in for its 35K service and came out with failed catalytic converters and a damaged steering rack. The total bill was over $6K, but I was on the hook for only about $2.5K as I bashed the rack a while back. Unlike the S4/S5, ECS does NOT make an aluminum skid plate for those sensitive parts. I am not encouraged to keep it past the lease as the costs will skyrocket.
So, the RS5 SB is on the list as is the M3. The RS3 is not forgotten either, but the mark-ups will initially be heinous - just like the M2's.
I am hoping we get an RS5 to drive before the end of the year. A rep brought an RS5 to an Audi event about six months before the U.S. release, so I drove it then. That sealed the deal for me - it was 1.5 years later that I finally got one.
With the restored cats and steering, my RS5 feels like a beast again and my full week away from the University starts next wednesday - so at least six days of sport driving across Southern and Central CA is in store. I can't wait... I will fall in love again and forget the damn time in service.
There is money on the hood of S6's and I have driven them twice. ECS linkage parts, Alu-Kruz bracing and it would seem OK. At least has the right sound ;-)
Best to all
Eric
So, the RS5 SB is on the list as is the M3. The RS3 is not forgotten either, but the mark-ups will initially be heinous - just like the M2's.
I am hoping we get an RS5 to drive before the end of the year. A rep brought an RS5 to an Audi event about six months before the U.S. release, so I drove it then. That sealed the deal for me - it was 1.5 years later that I finally got one.
With the restored cats and steering, my RS5 feels like a beast again and my full week away from the University starts next wednesday - so at least six days of sport driving across Southern and Central CA is in store. I can't wait... I will fall in love again and forget the damn time in service.
There is money on the hood of S6's and I have driven them twice. ECS linkage parts, Alu-Kruz bracing and it would seem OK. At least has the right sound ;-)
Best to all
Eric
06-27-2017, 08:07 AM
#4
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New from Car & Driver
Here's a new one from Car & Driver in case you haven't seen it ... 2018 Audi RS5 First Drive | Review | Car and Driver
It's got a lot of the same sentiments from previous reviews: sophisticated, accurate, predictable, capable ... a stoic beast. Maybe not everyone's cup of tea, but exactly what I'm looking forward to. They also include a lot more $ information and talk about some standard features like the Black Optics package. Unfortunately, I think those weird 20" wheels are also standard. And like the RS3, it'll have a "Dynamic" and "Dynamic Plus" package options.
It's got a lot of the same sentiments from previous reviews: sophisticated, accurate, predictable, capable ... a stoic beast. Maybe not everyone's cup of tea, but exactly what I'm looking forward to. They also include a lot more $ information and talk about some standard features like the Black Optics package. Unfortunately, I think those weird 20" wheels are also standard. And like the RS3, it'll have a "Dynamic" and "Dynamic Plus" package options.
06-27-2017, 08:51 AM
#5
AudiWorld Senior Member
Thread Starter
Nice review from C&D. Thanks for sharing! Their review does confirm what other reviewers have said about the RS5 so far. I agree about the RS5 wheel choices. None of them are to my liking.
06-27-2017, 09:46 AM
#6
AudiWorld Super User
Still doesn't move my needle. C&D sounds a bit more enthusiastic as others.
This is what it comes down to me largely. While I don't clamor for a manual transmission, the dual-clutch was the sweet spot between convenient daily driving and fun, rewarding manually gear changing on mountain roads etc. For somebody who just wants to putter around with the transmission doing its thing, this is a great move, but we are talking about an RS here and not a Range Rover.
There is no manual transmission available, and the ZF automatic’s programming is so good and the plasticky shift paddles so unsatisfying to use that we simply let it work on its own the majority of the time.
06-27-2017, 12:40 PM
#7
AudiWorld Senior Member
When I talk about waiting for my now ordered S5, my wife keeps saying "Are you sure you want to get rid of the RS5?" I am not sure, but don't have to decide until the S5 arrives. Mixed emotions. Love the V8!
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06-27-2017, 02:16 PM
#8
AudiWorld Super User
Still doesn't move my needle. C&D sounds a bit more enthusiastic as others.
This is what it comes down to me largely. While I don't clamor for a manual transmission, the dual-clutch was the sweet spot between convenient daily driving and fun, rewarding manually gear changing on mountain roads etc. For somebody who just wants to putter around with the transmission doing its thing, this is a great move, but we are talking about an RS here and not a Range Rover.
This is what it comes down to me largely. While I don't clamor for a manual transmission, the dual-clutch was the sweet spot between convenient daily driving and fun, rewarding manually gear changing on mountain roads etc. For somebody who just wants to putter around with the transmission doing its thing, this is a great move, but we are talking about an RS here and not a Range Rover.
Fahrbericht Audi RS 5 (2017): Der Softie unter den Coupés - AUTO MOTOR UND SPORT
06-27-2017, 04:47 PM
#9
AudiWorld Super User
Your fears seem well founded. Basically, an amped up S5:
Fahrbericht Audi RS 5 (2017): Der Softie unter den Coupés - AUTO MOTOR UND SPORT
Fahrbericht Audi RS 5 (2017): Der Softie unter den Coupés - AUTO MOTOR UND SPORT
Last edited by superswiss; 06-27-2017 at 04:53 PM.
06-27-2017, 05:04 PM
#10
AudiWorld Super User
Thanks for the link. Yep, that pretty much sums it up. For those whom the old RS5 was too harsh, this is probably a welcome change, but again that's what the S models are for if you want something more comfy and cushy, but still have some oomph. Kind of a shame to be honest. I guess it's just the good old chasing those with more money than driving skills. Cars are getting less exciting. Same thing over at BMW, everything is getting softer and watered down every generation. If you want an exciting, emotional car with character, the R8 is the only thing left in Audi's lineup for now or perhaps the RS3 and TT RS, but I just can't get past the Haldex system.