And 5.5 0-60 On an RS car? What is going on? I feel like the RS lineup is significantly watered down and not special like it once was.
sorry, I'll get back on topic. Just really frustrated and surprised with the brand right now.
And 5.5 0-60 On an RS car? What is going on? I feel like the RS lineup is significantly watered down and not special like it once was.
sorry, I'll get back on topic. Just really frustrated and surprised with the brand right now.
It's probably the answer to Americans asking for the RS3 and RS4 Avant. Just like the RS7 is the answer to us asking for the RS6 Avant. Hell I wouldn't be surprised to see a RS Q7 if RS7 sales aren't good in NA. Audi has completely lost it's way....I'm really getting sick of this crap! If they really try to send this horrible eyesore to the US it will be the end of my support for the brand. My RS6 sold at least 2 people new Audi's this last year, and I've only had it for 8 months. And 2 more I know of bought used ones because of my championing the brand. And this is from a 10 years old car! But it has presence, something lacking from the RSQ and RS7.Originally Posted by Dr99
C5 RS6 - Daytona Grey/Silver, Carbon Fiber, RNS-E, O.CT ECU/TCU--sold :(
DD: 02 G500 - 35" Nitto Trail Graplers, baja roof rack, 52" LED light bar
Business Car: Gulf liveried 01 996TT w/ Tial Alpha A28 turbos + supporting mods - 700hp
What's wrong with you guys? RS is more present in the present than in the past and therefore is a good thing! M had many more cars in the range, AMG as well and RS only 2 maximum in somewhat 10 years! You need to see the big picture here! RS3 Sportback and TT-RS are "low" on power but much faster even than the R8 V8 before facelift and you don't need to make 150.000 euro's to own an RS! I need local tax at minimum but the best design ever created and the best technology and that only an "small" RS can do...a big RS need a lot of cash to cope with the consumption! My friend in Europe petrol is much more expensive than in the US and therefore if you pay there a fillup with 80 dolars here is 300 euros an RS7 Sportback so don't compare apple to peaches! And an RS must drive like is on fire and definitely all the RS are going as Audi can manage to produce...technology at it's best! We need more RS's because sometimes you only need a small car with high power like an A1 Quattro that's a bullet...and RS7 Sportback is the most complete machine ever created! Is a monster!
This is one of the best posts made here in a while.
Respectfully, I disagree. RS7 only has 4 seats (I need the 5th seat for children), limited trunk (how many golf bags in there?), coupe-like rear doors (headroom), lack of RS distinction (weak fender flares). RS6 Avant has all of those, thus is more complete (and better looking to boot, but that's subjective).
Bringing the RS across the range of models is a good thing for Audi - but for purists, it's diluting the moniker. Personally, I like the idea of having it across the range as it brings name-recognition and thus better resale (very few people I've run across even know what an RS is). I prefer "unique" to "elite" myself.
I agree with AOA missing the boat. with not bring a complete lineup. But I still don't see the fascination in station wagons, from my childhood it doesn't bring anything like sports/luxury/performance into my mind.
1: They offer the practicality of an SUV with the drivability of a car. They are the original crossover. Yes there are people who actually need a 4wd SUV like a Tahoe or suburban or on the high end RR's but its a limited market of people who live in the country...for everyone else they would be better off with a wagon. Just look at Europe.
2: what about an SUV "brings anything like sports/luxury/performance into mind"? Luxury cars existed for nearly a century before the first luxury SUV was made. And don't get me started about "performance" SUV's. they may have good straight line speed, but even the best (Cayenne Turbo S) would struggle to stay near any of the German hot wagons. Throw out a couple curves and game over.
Then there is this RSQ crap. That 0-60 time isn't even 90's RS/M wagon times...glad that in 2013 they are able to make a CUV that is 1s slower to 60 than an RS2 and simultaneously less practical....'truth in engineering' my ass. More like more like 'truth in accounting'.
also the to echo one of the previous comments, the RS7 is an engineering masterpiece no doubt. But the most complete machine ever created? Not a chance. Even Qisha made comment that the RS6 is better. (Before ChicagoAudi tries to pick a fight over me miss quoting I believe the exact comment had to to with his pride in the RS6 or that it was engineered to be a world beater, and that then the accountants got involved in the RS7.)
end of rant...for today.
C5 RS6 - Daytona Grey/Silver, Carbon Fiber, RNS-E, O.CT ECU/TCU--sold :(
DD: 02 G500 - 35" Nitto Trail Graplers, baja roof rack, 52" LED light bar
Business Car: Gulf liveried 01 996TT w/ Tial Alpha A28 turbos + supporting mods - 700hp
Meh. The U.S. still need to sell whatever product is imported, and this is the key. Station wagons, no matter, how capable, do not sell in any appreciable volumes. Look, as an example, to the Cadillac CTS-V Sportswagon. The fan base wanted this car, and over its entire production life, I've managed to see two - one at the Chicago Auto Show and the other one being rolled by a Swiss driver at Road America during last year's One Lap of America event.
One factor that virtually everyone posting on this thread fails to acknowledge is that AoA, like all manufacturers/importers, spend time querying the dealer network on what products best meet the intended market. So, the dealers helped cement the deal of the RS-6 Avant as a non-starter for the U.S. market. After all, the dealers make the investment to place the product on their forecourts. If they feel it wont sell, they don't want it.
RS7 is the most complete RS...because it's a coupe and stands on the road like no other Audi (except R8), has presence in the eyes of the street people. has better drag coeficient than an avant or even saloon, it's sleeker design never get's boring, it has bigger boot than an saloon, it's way much faster even than an R8 V8 but it cost less, it has fuel consumption much less than an R8, it's cheaper to buy and own than the R8, it has the best 4 seats available, why need 5?When 4 people can stay comfortable on massage seats and multimedia entertainment? A coupe will never be uglier than an saloon or avant it's the best in class machine for the owner and dreamers...it has everything!And please understand for good that you don't need to make 100k per month to own an RS, you can have RS3 for sure and so own...
Any clue when rs6 can be ordered?
Youry
RS QUATTRO
www.rsquattro.com
Yep...most people don't go to the dealer asking for a high performance wagon..you either know what you want when you go to a dealer, or you buy used...no way for AOA to know what we want...unless you read this forum...
2013 Audi S8
Absolutely correct, we shall see if Cadillac will even bother with the CTS wagon in the next gen that is about to debut soon. No one buys wagons in America unless they look like SUVs. I do believe that there is a case for an RS6 sedan for the US but it has been theorized and partially explained why one does not exist (hopefully positive RS7 sales make one happen).
And I believe that the RS Q3 is good news because that means that quattro is given more money for more products and hopefully that means that they are able to make an RS6 sedan if things go well.
All rs4 b5 b7 and b8 and rs6 c5 c6 and c7 have wider fenders front and rear. Rs5 and rs3 has wider fron fenders....
and now rs7 has standard fenders.... For me its not a true RS....
Youry
RS QUATTRO
www.rsquattro.com
Mercedes is bringing in the E63 AMG as a wagon only in the S trim - so that's a six-figure 577bhp AWD station wagon. So Mercedes thinks that their wagon will sell only at the higher price (and not the base $90K E63AMG spec), and Audi doesn't think the RS6 in either form will sell. Talk about a competitor jumping into a market niche Audi left wide open!!
Das Silberkugel - Eurocharged Stage 2/MTM/Level 10/Hotchkis/Koni/H&R
2015 Ducati 1299S Panigale
2014 Ducati Multistrada Granturismo
I used to cover the auto industry on the sell side and do a little investment banking in the industry, so take my following comments with the requisite level of skepticism.
By and large, this is the history of the auto industry globally: it's an extremely risk-averse industry where it's better to follow the herd off the cliff instead of take risks that just might fail (and fail alone), even if they are small in magnitude. Audi has some particular organizational challenges with respect to its ownership structure, and my impression has always been that there is a large organizational hangover from the 80's problems with the Audi 5000 in the US that continue to cause them to act in an extremely cautious fashion in this market. In all my discussions with with AoA over the years, I always though they'd rather follow the lead of their German competitors than try to lead. Part of this is because their dealer network in this country still lags, but that's another topic altogether. Suffice it to say, dealers don't really care about new car sales except for the volume. They might make a few bucks selling them if they're lucky, but they make almost 100% of their profits from used car sales, part & service, and finance/insurance; with some marquees, it might actually still be more than 100%. Volume feeds that machine. For cars like RS vehicles, they're really not using their working capital to inventory a bunch of them, as most are probably factory orders. If I were to guess, the bigger issue for AoA is probably the potential risk to their subsidiary's p/l if something like the RS6 Avant doesn't sell. They would simply prefer line a line extension to the 7-series as a "safer" alternative to try (no need for new crash testing, probably) and increase volume and, versus trying to grow a new luxury segment (even if it could add brand-equity and profit if successful).
Just remember a few things about light vehicle sales in the US: SUVs didn't sell in appreciable numbers...until they did. Minivans didn't exist..until they did. Crossovers, either. The point is that just because demand doesn't exist in a certain segment doesn't mean it's permanent or intractable. CAFE regulations have certainly helped push consumers towards SUVs, but it does't explain the dearth of high-performance wagons: above $50k, consumers are presumably less sensitive to price and/or have different utility functions. Otherwise, we'd all be driving SUVs due to their economic advantage (otherwise called a subsidy for US car companies, but that's another topic, too). The reality is that luxury vehicle purchasers in the US who need a little more space and/or space flexibility don't have choices other than light truck/SUVs.
At this juncture, the number of luxury high-performance wagons in the US with AWD is zero. The RWD E63 AMG is nice, but the demographic is definitely a touch older (personally not a fan of the styling inside or out), and I would guess that most people looking at the E63 AMG (or RS6 Avant) wouldn't even consider the RWD CTS-V Wagon. It's just not an apples-to-apples comparison, and I think that's been the case for decades: luxury vehicle buyers shopping the vast majority of foreign marquees aren't cross-shopping against Cadillac. For those of us who live in snowier areas and/or simply prefer putting all that power down to all four wheels, the segment is entirely void in this country and has been for a few years, at least in the larger wagon category. I know the counter-argument is something along the lines of "but the Audi A4/S4/A6 Avants never sold too well, and neither did the BMW 3/5s;" I would strongly argue looking at historical trends in isolation misses the point: those models didn't enjoy as much commercial success precisely because of the rise of the SUV (along with cheap gas). But gas is far more expensive, and SUVs have continued to trend smaller...all trends that would suggest that the market is becoming more receptive to wagons. I don't know whether we've reached any sort of tipping point for improved US wagon sales, but I do know that US consumers won't buy crappy products just to move segments; unless there is a viable alternative in the luxury wagon space and some marketing money, we'll just never know. Personally, I'd prefer an S6/RS6 Avant over any of the Audi Q-series offerings -- and the Mercedes E-series wagons -- but I don't have any real choice in the German luxury marquees. In fact, I might actually choose the powertrain of the BMW M550d xDrive Touring over anything else, but it would be nice to have the choice.
We're about to find out whether US consumers have any appetite for AWD luxury wagons with the E63s AMG 4Matic in this country; I know that the demand isn't zero, as I'll be queuing for one when it arrives in August. From a global product perspective, it's not even close to my first choice; from the perspective of this US consumer, it's my only choice in this segment.
Not in the market for a wagon myself (I need a sedan), but I agree with you on the matter of choice.
It's a real shame that Mercedes, and potentially BMW get it, but Audi has completely missed the boat. I am certain if Audi had brought over the RS6 avant to North America they would still have sold every last one.
Not having the RS6 in sedan form just compounds the issue. In NA we are left with the RS7. So in essence the message from Audi is, "Like this sport back which lacks the presence of a typical RS product, or go to some other brand," which sadly is the choice some will make.
I'm sorry but RS7 Sportback as shown in Detroit anihilated the competition, everybody was there to see it and they love it! It was the sexiest new supersaloon coupe launched ever! Everybody was talking about how does it's robotic design si very appealing to the customers and the performance are way out of the Universe! And if CLS 63 AMG S on paper is faster, tests will clearly dismiss that and RS7 will win the acceleration numbers as always and don't forget that an RS7 Sportback Plus it will launch soon as an "special pack" like AMG S! So Audi will never go down...RS7 has so wide fenders that can accomodate 22" tyres easly so why modify them?They are gorgeus in real life on any A7 and with that greater looking machinery of RS7 definitely will rock the streets with power, design, technology and fun from every pore...it doesn't matter if one of you don't like RS7 buy something else, BUT they will sell like hot candy's everywhere! And when you'll drive an CLS 63 AMG S or M6 GranCoupe and your passengers will look outside and see a beautiful RS7 Sportback don't complain! Audi in the past 8 years never had an "boring car", only avangardist cars that sells and makes the driver like is on firecrakers...
+1. I'm not excited. If the RS6 was coming, I would be trading in the C7 S6. I will be keeping the S6 over the RS7.
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