# Spied: Audi RS 6 Avant at Nurburgring



## [email protected] (Apr 9, 2004)

How do you know a car is nearing production? When it has its coming out party at the Nurburgring. We've seen A6 and A7 mules that we thought were RS mules before but there's no question about this Avant. Those bolstered fender flares are one easy spot but the other is a disguised fascia nearly identical to RS 4 mules before that car was revealed.

Under the hood we expect to see a higher-powered variation of the 4.0 TFSI, but power levels remains to be seen. One could guess that at the very least the car will have power similar to the S8 or Bentley Continental GT V8, but at this point we don't expect Audi to simply drop either version of that engine into the car.

Why not use S8 or Continental GT 4.0 TFSI setup? We're going on past history in devising our theory. quattro GmbH develops their own engines for their own cars. Yes, it can be a variation of a current engine (say 4.2 FSI vs. 4.2 FSI high-rev or 2.7T vs. 2.7T high output in the B 5 RS 4) but there's no example we know where a modern Audi RS car simply used an engine from Audi's (or the Volkswagen Group's) regular portfolio.

The next mystery around this car is the fenders. This car is wearing what looks like arched flares (think RS 4 B5 and B7 or RS 3), though the cladding makes it hard to tell. We'll put it out to our readers to make their guesses. Will the flares be blister fenders like the RS 5 and inspired by the ur quattro or will Audi go back to its RS roots with the arched flares of the B5?

See the rest of this photo set below.


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## tanel (Jul 26, 2006)

Never mind the fenders... whatever fenders they'll use, I'm sure it's going to look fabulous.

The main question is, will there be a sedan. I don't quite understand how Audi (or rather Quattro GMBH) justifies the hesitation in sedans with the argument of poor marketing possibilities, while the main version of M5 is the sedan (the Touring version isn't even introduced yet) nor does Mercedes have a problem with building the E63 in both sedan and estate form. The same question applies to the lower A4, 3-series and C-class segment.

t


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## R5T (Apr 7, 2010)

Audi RS models have always been Avant's RS2 and first RS4, till the american market ask for a RS4 B7 sedan.
I hope Audi will go back to there roots and starting to make RS avants only.
The new RS4 is the first and the this RS6 will be next.
If you want a sedan go buy a BMW.


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## tanel (Jul 26, 2006)

R5T;bt1778 said:


> Audi RS models have always been Avant's RS2 and first RS4, till the american market ask for a RS4 B7 sedan.
> I hope Audi will go back to there roots and starting to make RS avants only.
> The new RS4 is the first and the this RS6 will be next.
> If you want a sedan go buy a BMW.


Still doesn't justify the limitation to the Avants only. And in my eyes providing less options can hardly be called going back to the roots. Furthermore, following this argument one could say that producing no RS models at all is going back to the roots of the roots... Plus, the RS6 has also always been available in sedan and there have been only Audi Quattros (two of them RS6 sedans) in my family since 1990, hence I'm still not rushing to the BMW and hoping for new RS sedans.

P.S. There still is one RS2 sedan produced by Audi as well (sadly in the museum only though): http://www.ableitet.no/modeller/S2RS2/RS2sedan2.jpg


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## Allsops (Aug 8, 2002)

tanel;bt1779 said:


> Still doesn't justify the limitation to the Avants only. And in my eyes providing less options can hardly be called going back to the roots. Furthermore, following this argument one could say that producing no RS models at all is going back to the roots of the roots... Plus, the RS6 has also always been available in sedan and there have been only Audi Quattros (two of them RS6 sedans) in my family since 1990, hence I'm still not rushing to the BMW and hoping for new RS sedans.
> 
> P.S. There still is one RS2 sedan produced by Audi as well (sadly in the museum only though): http://www.ableitet.no/modeller/S2RS2/RS2sedan2.jpg


No one said this RS6 will be Avant only. It just so happened to be that the RS6 Avant was caught testing before the RS6 sedan. As with all previous RS6's, I'd expect this one to be available in sedan as well. 

The bigger question: Will North America even get it?


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## R5T (Apr 7, 2010)

The new RS4 is Avant only and i expect this new RS6 will also be Avant only.
btw, Sedan's are boring.


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## Allsops (Aug 8, 2002)

R5T;bt1781 said:


> The new RS4 is Avant only and i expect this new RS6 will also be Avant only.
> btw, Sedan's are boring.


If the RS5 didn't exist I don't think the new RS4 would be Avant only.

I suppose if there is an RS7 then, and only then, maybe an RS6 sedan won't happen.


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## R5T (Apr 7, 2010)

RS7 is already running as a testmule.


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## asal (Oct 12, 2007)

R5T;bt1781 said:


> The new RS4 is Avant only and i expect this new RS6 will also be Avant only.
> btw, Sedan's are boring.


All hail wagons! Though I wouldn't use the word "boring" to describe an RS6 sedan


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## OrangeA4 (Oct 31, 2000)

I'd make the RS 4 and 6 avants and the RS 3 5 and 7 sedan(coupe)
But then I don't run audi because If I did there would already be etron and tdi variants for nearly everything and I'd have greenlit a limited run of CQ from the quattro concept


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