Background
The Audi RS4 ‘B7’ was built at Audi’s factory at Neckarsulm between 2006 and 2008. Available as a two-door convertible, a four-door saloon, and a five-door estate, all are fitted with the 4.2-litre normally aspirated V8 engine that develops 418bhp and 317lb/ft of torque.
This considerable power is fed to all four wheels via a six-speed Getrag manual gearbox and Audi’s proprietary quattro drivetrain featuring a third generation Torsen asymmetric torque-biasing central differential. The gives a torque split of 40:60 front-to-rear under normal conditions but can funnel up to 80% to either end depending on the traction available.
Audi’s Electronic Differential Lock can also brake a spinning wheel, restoring grip across an individual axle. Dynamic Ride Control adds variable hydraulic damping to correct pitch and roll, the track is 1.5 inches wider at the front and almost two at the rear, and the ride height is just over an inch lower all round than that of the cooking models.
The 14.4-inch Brembo front brakes come from the Lamborghini Gallardo. Rebadged with the ‘RS4’ logo, they grip cross-drilled and radially ventilated via eight-piston calipers. The rear brakes are Lucas-Girling TRW single piston jobbies with 12.8-inch drilled and vented discs.
The stylistic changes are subtle, amounting to little more than flared front and rear wheelarches and a couple of extra air intakes. Oh, and a flat-bottomed Gallardo steering wheel.
Weight savings were modest and limited to aluminium front wings and bonnet plus a few trick bits like hollow anti-roll bars at either end; thus equipped, performance is vivid with 62mph arriving in well under five seconds and a limited top speed of 155mph. The mid-range is where the punch is really felt though, with that quattro drivetrain delivering sure-footed grip and handling no matter what the conditions underfoot.
Few cars are as effective – and as subtle – as the B7 RS4, a state of affairs that led to them being instant classics from day one.
