Remember, this is Audi's backyard, and twice a day,
off the motorway, these idyllic country lanes become the
playground for Audi engineers going to and from work. It's
an environment where the RS4 and the GT-R do not pass unnoticed.
The inevitable questions at the filling station are about
appearance and ability. A peek under the Skyline's bonnet
instantly silences the batmobile talk. There is a big
metallic-red powerplant buried in there, droning and shivering
threateningly at idle speed. Grouped around it is the auxiliary
equipment which crackles and groans as the heat gets an
unexpected chance to dissipate. The struts are linked by
a silver bar, which can be adjusted by a pair of giant washers.
The Skyline's business-like underbonnet architecture
doesn't hide a tangle of wires and hoses, or a host of stickers
in English and Japanese. Pop the lid of the RS4, and be
prepared to enter a different world. This is the Hugo Boss
of engine bays: tailored, styled throughout, cleaned up,
visually and acoustically sophisticated. The arrangement
is dominated by a carbonfibre intake plenum carrying the
Audi rings and V6 BITURBO message. It's an impressive sight,
but clinical all the same. The next RS4 will probably have
a sealed bonnet that can only be removed in the shop, like
the A2. Modern times…
The Skyline GT-R is like a £999 supermarket computer
that has been loaded with expanded memory, ZIP drive, DVD,
firewire, all mod cons. It's a fabulous and competent machine,
but the basic structure still looks and feels cheap. The
doors shut with the bang of a taxi, the dashboard looks
like 1965 moulding technology, and the carpets must be a
bulk joint purchase with Japan Rail. True, the bucket seats
are trimmed in sweet-smelling Connolly hide - done by the
UK importer to give it a lift over the grey-import cars
- but the padding, the adjustment range and the headroom
leave something to be desired. The Skyline forces you into
an Italian driving position (stretched arms, legs akimbo),
and the pedals are too closely spaced for large feet. The
four main instruments are complemented by that famous dash-mounted
multi-functional display relaying, to choice; throttle
opening, exhaust temperature and the injector opening time
- interesting stuff, perhaps, in Tokyo rush-hour traffic,
but sheer overkill in the real world. The on-board computer
lets you download your personal home-to-work-and-back tele-metry,
but trying to beat the previous run may lead to a loss of
temper, sanity, control, and driving licence.
The cabin of the Audi says Avant rather than RS4. It's
an unexpectedly austere station in sombre colours, most
of which are a variation of black. Standard equipment includes
body-hugging Recaro seats, automatic air-conditioning, a
Bose sound system and six airbags. As garnishing inlay trim,
the choices are tacky carbonfibre and black piano lacquer,
which is much nicer but even…blacker. Like all Audis,
the RS4 is available with the useful Navigation Plus system.
Beside the stripped-out Skyline GT-R, the 380bhp Avant posits
a far sweeter driver environment of comfort, quality materials
and failsafe ergonomics, even if it is a much less exciting
place to be than the Skyline's all-hell's-going-to-brake-loose-any-minute-now
ambience.
Japan and Germany seem to agree that a twin-turbo six-cylinder
is a pretty good recipe for the ultimate evolution of a
sports saloon, even if Audi's is a V6 and Nissan's in-line.
Audi fitted the RS4 with a hot version of the five-valve
S4 engine, at an identical 2.7 litres, but the cylinder
heads have been reworked by Cosworth
Technology since it became part of the VW Group. Bigger
intake and exhaust tracts, more substantial turbochargers
and intercoolers, a more ambitious boost pressure and a
new free-flow exhaust system helped to increase the maximum
power output from 265 to 380bhp at 6100 to 7000rpm. In the
process the maximum torque climbed from 289 to 318lb-ft,
which is available all the way from 2500 to 6000rpm. The
RS4 uses the same six-speed transmission as the S4, but
it is now spaced more aggressively in third and fourth.
The performance is near-magical: the 1620kg estate car will
hurl itself to 62mph in 4.9 sec. It'll also reach 125mph
in 17 seconds - that's to 125mph, note, not 100mph. Fuel
economy? Thought you'd never ask. Audi claims an average
23.7mpg, but when you floor it and keep it floored, 14mpg
is a more realistic figure. Since the tank holds less than
14 gallons, pit stops are required every 200 miles or so.
The GT-R
engine is a direct descendant from the 500bhp-plus GT1
racing unit. In its latest R34 metamorphosis, the 2.6 litre
straight-six has a pair of smaller, low-inertia turbochargers,
a new exhaust with reduced back pressure, a modified lightweight
valve train to allow the revs up to the mania of 8000rpm,
and stronger con-rod bearings. For political reasons, the
maximum stated power output remains an unchanged 280bhp
at 6800rpm, but the torque curve is now fuller. It peaks
at 4400rpm, where 289lb-ft are on tap. Mated to a six-speed
Getrag
gearbox, it pushes 1540kg of Skyline to 62mph in 5.2sec.
The top speed is a self-restrained 155mph, but the claimed
fuel consumption is an unrestrained 20.3mpg, and when the
road is clear this car, too, will happily dwell on the wrong
side of 14mpg. The pronounced thirst isn't only down to
the driver's right hoof, but also the drag of both cars.
All those panels, wings and deflectors are aimed more at
reducing lift and getting cooling air to engines and brakes
than cutting drag. Against any other A4,
even the S4,
the RS4 has lowered suspension, bespoke springs and dampers,
and a quicker steering rack. Besides, much of its four-link
front axle is replaced by aluminium components. The nine-spoke
cast-alloy wheels are shod with 255/35 ZR18 tyres. Offering
a limited variation in torque split between the axles -
from 25:75 to 75:25 - the quattro 4wd system is supported
by ESP, EBV (electronic brake force distribution), ASR (traction
control), EDS (electronic diff lock) and MSR (drive-by-wire
throttle).
