Audi’s 2019 RS4 Avant is a True Super Wagon
Slideshow: If you need space and don't wish to sacrifice speed or snow-driving ability, Audi's latest RS4 Avant is the solution.
A legacy of supercar chasing station wagons
No other automotive brand has a legacy of lustful wagons to compete with Audi. The German all-wheel-drive performance car experts have been making fast family transport for decades, starting way back in 1994, with the legendary RS2 Avant – a project jointly engineered with Porsche.
Since the RS2, there have been many more mid-size super wagons by Audi, with another classic being the B7 RS4, with its phenomenal high-revving 4.2-liter V8 engine. The latest Audi RS4 Avant continues this proud tradition of blending station wagon utility with driver appeal and the year-round drivability of all-wheel drive traction.
The latest RS4 reverts to a similar engine configuration to what was seen in 1999 with the first RS4: a turbocharged V6 engine.
Images courtesy of Audi AG media
A station wagon with supercar stance
The latest RS4 proves that a family wagon can be as good-looking, if not more attractive, than a sedan. Just under an inch wider and slightly more than an inch lower than a standard A4, the RS4 has a terrific stance, balancing its proportions perfectly on those 20-inch wheels.
Larger exhaust tips and blackened-out taillight edges give the rear-view lots of attitude too. And truth be told, there simply isn’t a bad angle to view the RS4 Avant.
In fact, the Avant version of this go-faster A4 looks so attractive and well-harmonized as a design, one could nearly imagine that Audi’s designers meant for the A4 range to be a wagon first and sedan second.
>>Join the conversation about the Audi RS4 Avant right here in the Audi World Forum!
Classy cockpit, with virtual everything
Audi is renowned for the coherence and excellence of design when it comes to interior vehicle architecture. The RS4 Avant builds on that reputation, with some performance upgrades.
The overall flow and shape of the dashboard, center console, and steering wheel are beautifully symmetrical. Instrumentation shows Audi’s extremely clear and lucid digital TFT interface with some RS4 specific features such as a digital boost-gauge, tire pressure monitor, power and torque output indicator, and G-force meter.
Beyond the comprehensive digital instrumentation, RS4 also has a sophisticated head-up display that projects useful information such as oil temperature, vehicle speed and sat-nav instructions directly into the driver’s field of view.
>>Join the conversation about the Audi RS4 Avant right here in the Audi World Forum!
Boosted six quicker than most V8s
Powering the latest RS4 Avant is a 2.9-liter twin-turbocharged V6, boasting 450hp and surging 442lb-ft of torque to all four wheels.
The V6 engine’s performance is mediated by an eight-speed automatic transmission and with Audi’s sophisticated Quattro all-wheel-drive system. Acceleration is startling. RS4 Avant can run 0-60mph in 4.1 seconds. Let all 450hp keep boosting through those eight gears and RS4 Avant will clock a true top speed of 174mph. Deeply impressive for a vehicle which can accommodate your kids and dogs.
Balancing the RS4 Avant’s performance are optional carbon-ceramic brakes, which keep its 3946lb mass in trim when you need to decelerate or trim some speed into-and-through corners. Counteracting body roll during high-speed cornering, are dynamically active hydraulic dampers – which can continuously vary compression settings.
>>Join the conversation about the Audi RS4 Avant right here in the Audi World Forum!
Having your performance car cake, and eating it
Aside from the striking looks and rampant performance, the RS4 also has plenty of room. That is something you won't find in many performance cars.
The configuration gifts an RS4 Avant owner the unbeatable combination of speed and storage space. With the rear seats in place, the RS4 Avant boasts 17.8 cu ft of space and with those same seats folded flat, utility space inside this super wagon grows to 53.3 cu ft.
Looks good. Sounds great. And the RS4 is superbly easy to pilot thanks to its intuitive Audi driver control ergonomics and cleverly adaptive eight-speed automatic transmission. The RS4 Avant is proof that having a vehicle that can accommodate the dogs, skis, or surfboards does not require a sacrifice in performance.
>>Join the conversation about the Audi RS4 Avant right here in the Audi World Forum!
For help with service on your car, check out the how to section of AudiWorld.com.