I'm Bringing Sportback

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Im Bringing Sportback

The rage for the 4-door coupe continues as Audi revamps their RS7 powerhouse. Did anyone order for some speed?

by

George Kuruvilla

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Published: Thu 11 Feb 2016, 11:00 PM

Last updated: Fri 12 Feb 2016, 8:12 AM

If it's one thing movies like The Hunger Games and Divergent has taught us is that breaking free from the norm and being a rebel applies to every society and every walk of life. Even the 4-door coupe isn't spared.
The Audi A7, with its sloping roofline, is one car that challenges the status quo without the use of an elaborate paint scheme or a silhouette that mimics vehicles from the latest Batman movie. It is as subversive as Audi could get. For performance junkies and those who thrive on bragging rights, they have created the RS model. So this week, we grab the keys to the 2016 Audi RS7 Sportback and everything that comes with it. 
DESIGN & AESTHETICS
So what is a Sportback? To some, it's the 4-door coupe - the silly pseudo-name that Mercedes-Benz created to launch the CLS - to others it's just a fancy hatchback. To the rest (those lacking imagination) it's just a sedan with one less seat. Either way, this is a big car; good for show-boating, but ?not so much for compact car parks. It's almost full-size - long at 5,012mm, and considerably wide at 2,139mm. It is an average 1,419mm tall, which all equates to a planted, imposing stance for the RS7.
Clean lines dominate the A7, with inclusions for trapezoidal shapes in their various sizes and forms. It is a design that would appear to be inspired by the words of an Issac Asimov novel. Up front, there is a six-sided grille exposing an aggressive, large, gloss-black honeycomb mesh with silver lining surrounds. That's flanked by two large air intakes. Adding to the aggression are the LED-lit headlamps. The cluster shape remains the same but the detail has been changed; you now have dual-horizontal LED strip lighting like little streaks on the revamped A6.
This is the current face of Audi. The silhouette is all about the Sportback - the slanted roofline that seamlessly merges with a boot. It's every-thing the typical 3-box cars from the 1980s were not. You can literally see the aerodynamics in its pose. And, as if the A7 didn't have big enough wheels, the superlative RS7 gets 21" wheels that can be finished in matte titanium, silver or gloss anthracite black.
The truncated rear end has an LED strip lighting that mimics those of the headlights, except here they are red. Rounding, or rather oval-ing the rear end are long ovoid tail pipes.
The A7 has handsome proportions - the RS7 is just the angrier version. It is as race-ready as any road legal racecar can be. And if you choose to get one, you can option it with paint schemes in pearl, metallic and matte finishes.
Audi's selling point has always been its luxurious and cavernous interiors, and plenty of quality fixtures that feel both rich and resilient. Unlike some other luxury manufacturers, it doesn't feel like something would break if you stumbled or fumbled. Keeping with tradition, this Audi comes with a black base, and satin finish metal trims highlighting the vari-ous organs of the cabin. The RS gets plenty of carbon-fibre plastered over the dash and doors. Alternatively, there are a variety of wood veneers to choose from, and brushed aluminium as well.
The sporty 3-spoke steering wheel has the Audi rings to the centre and an RS badge to constantly justify its Dh500k price tag. The wheel, with its chunky contours, has a meaty feel, and the car's vitals are read from an instrument panel with clear black faces, white dials and red needles. The appropriately spaced pedals and shifter make for a comfortable driving position, unlike that in a supercar, where you would hurt your knee or back just trying to get in and out.
The Valcona leather-wrapped sport seats look more like thrones than a lightweight racecar seat. The decorations continue in the form of honeycomb quilting on alcantara inserts that keeps the seats soft as well as provide friction to prevent you from sliding off during speedy turns. Do note that the rear cabin is a strict 2-seater, but it is good enough for two adults.
From the technology perspective, there is plenty to entertain your eyes ?and ears. The centre-console houses a retractable infotainment screen that can be concealed and disclosed at will; it operates seamlessly. In the lower centre console is the MMI controller with a few ergonomic improvements like the use of toggles. Simple things like a centrally located hazard signal, few hard buttons on the centre-console and backlit butt-ons to identify them in the dark keep this sport luxury cabin high on ergonomics. 
POWERTRAIN & PERFORMANCE
Having a car with an RS badge to a petrol head is like saying you have an F15 fighter jet parked in your yard. So what is all the fuss about? Over the front axles, we have eight cylinders in a V-formation spilling out 4L of displacement. To pep things up, they have bi-turbos strapped in the valley of the cylinders, helping boost torque and your heartbeat to unhealthy levels depending on which side of 50 you are on. All of that means 560 horses, which is quite not the thunder of an AMG, but still plenty.
You're probably thinking that an RS7 with so much power must have the fast-est, most sophisticated transmission, right? Wrong. You get an 8-speed auto. It's not what we expected, but the good news is that it's smooth and doesn't degrade your performance either.
Getting off the line is easy in the RS7; simply trust the thrust of launch control. Audi claims that from the bustles of a traffic signal it will get to 100km/h in 3.9 seconds. The actual experience is surreal, especially if it's your first. Your ears will be buzzing from the raised rpm, followed by the tyres scratching for grip before the transfer of mass from the front to the back pins you to your seat as you fly off the block. Before you know it, you're at 100 and beyond.
The gentleman's agreement in Germ-any means that Audi has to electronically limit top speed to 250km/h, but as an option, Audi allows you to raise your bragging rights to 280km/h. Those who would like to honour their ego further can clock it up to 305km/h; at which speed they might as well attach two wings and take off.
Unlike muscle of the past, you're not squirming for traction while fishtailing, burning rubber, smashing into road curbs, etc. This is thanks to the quattro all-wheel drive system. The rear-bias keeps the spirit of the conventional sports car well and truly alive. The steer-ing communicates well and is precise. It's also worth noting that the base runs on air suspension, which is obviously sport sprung and provides a cushy ride. Quick directional changes expose some body roll and the low-profile tyres gives a thud as you hit a road bump at speed.
There are four enormous internally ventilated brake discs with 6-piston callipers that provide instantaneous stopping power. You can opt for optional carbon fibre/ceramic brake discs that are bigger in dimension and are lighter by 10kg. But the latter is only worthwhile if track days are in order.
We are not quite sure how much the 65L tank will stretch your dirham, but with the low oil prices, that should matter even less. In fact, it is burning oil that justifies this car's existence. If driven sanely, it will accomplish 9.6L/100km and pollute in a commend-able 220g/km of C02.
FEATURES & FUNCTIONALITY
The new Audi RS6 Avant, which is an estate, offers from 564-1,680L of cargo capacity, compared with 535-1,390L in the new Audi RS7 Sportback. That's plenty and good for at least a couple of suitcases and extras.
We like the new MMI controls and interface with the toggles adjacent to the central controller. With a data package on - achieved by adding a SIM to the slot - you can hook up with Google Maps. MMI also provides a touchpad control that recognises handwriting input for navigation and other controls. Passengers can also surf via a Wi-Fi hotspot that can connect up to eight units.
Our test drive came with the optional high-end Bang & Olufsen Advanced Sound System with 15-speakers, inclu-ding pop up tweeters producing as much as 1200W of output. The sound quality is rather nice, but comes at a pretty steep price. Alternatively, you could go for the cheaper Bose unit with 14 speakers and 472W output. Either way, you can now finally connect your devices via USB if not streaming through Bluetooth.
Leaning into the A8 territory, the RS7 gets massaging and ventilated seats and 4-zone automatic A/C, but the fact is, normal folk don't know how to operate auto climate control. What matters is that on the hottest day, with max occu-pancy on board, the system shouldn't fail you, and we don't think it would. Do note that our testing was during winter weeks, though.
Audi, like the other German manu-facturers, give high priority for human life, and insure it by providing many driver assistance systems, including adaptive cruise control with Stop&Go, night vision assist, heads-up display, parking sensors and a rear camera. 
VERDICT
Our testimony of the 2016 Audi RS7 reads more like that of a grand tourer. It is highlighted by silly, if not ludicrous, straight-line speed and handling that doesn't give away much even around ?the curves. The endless feature listing is also a big boon, but ultimately, it's a great car. for only four passengers.
 


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