Sports utility vehicles, they dominate our new car market and have done for the better part of a decade. But not many of them offer both the ‘sports’ and the ‘utility’ parts in equal measure, the new Audi RS Q8 Performance certainly does though.
What are its sporting credentials? How about the fastest SUV lap around Germany’s Nurburgring, 7m36sec, two seconds quicker than the Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT.
And when it comes to utility, this is based on Audi’s largest SUV platform, offering space for the whole family and their luggage.
Of course, it would want to be incredibly capable, given its $255,800 (plus on-road costs) asking price. But when you compare it to its rivals on speed, it looks surprisingly competitive on price, the Cayenne Turbo GT starts at $370,600 and the Lamborghini Urus from $457,834.
While Audi’s four rings badge may not have the same cache as the Porsche or Lamborghini, for those who value performance over posing, the RS Q8 Performance has a lot to offer.
For starters, it’s packing the most powerful internal combustion engine Audi has ever offered in a production car. The twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8 petrol engine makes a potent 471kW of power and 850Nm of torque, which is a significant increase over the incoming 441kW/800Nm RS Q8. And it’s only a few kilowatts down on the Porsche and its similar engine, which makes 485kW/850Nm. So on a bang-for-buck ratio, it makes a pretty compelling case.
It’s not all on-paper performance too, Audi has worked to make the RS Q8 Performance a more emotive SUV to drive, going so far as to remove sound-deadening material from around the cabin to allow more natural engine noise in.
Stopping power is important when you have so much power, so behind the new 23-inch forged alloy wheels are standard RS ceramic brakes. These offer strong and reliable braking performance to match the speed and size of this Audi Sport hero.
Audi has also made sure that this new performance hero isn’t just built for the drag strip. To achieve its record-setting Nurburgring lap time and ensure it can handle as well as a sports sedan, Audi Sport turned to technology.
The RS Q8 Performance is equipped with active air suspension, adaptive dampers, active roll stabilisation and all-wheel steering. It would take too long and be too complex to explain each system in detail, but the end result is a big SUV that handles like a much smaller car.
In particular the all-wheel steering makes a huge difference, turning the same direction as the front wheels above 80km/h, this system helps the RS Q8 change direction quickly and directly. You won’t mistake it for a compact hot hatch, but the faster steering makes the RS Q8 feel like a much smaller, more agile vehicle that its size suggests.
That’s all the ‘sports’ parts covered, so what about the ‘utility’? Well, it’s an Audi, so there’s plenty of luxury, with premium leather trim and genuine metallic finishes, inside of a spacious cabin.
There’s room for a family of five, or four adults, with all outboard occupants treated to a comfortable and supportive sports seat. There’s also four-zone climate control and a 17-speaker 730-watt Bang & Olufsen sound system to complete the family friendly cabin experience.
As SUVs go the RS Q8 Performance is hard to beat, providing you have the money. Sure, there are more famous badges, more powerful SUVs and even more luxurious offerings, but for its balance of sports and utility, this new Audi is hard to beat – especially around the Nurburgring.
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