Audi RS6 GT vs Audi RS6 (C5) | PH Origin Story

These feel like confusing times for the traditional fast estate, as everything we thought we knew is cast into doubt. With some confidence, Mercedes-AMG – long-time legends of the genre – dropped V8 power for plug-in hybrid sixes and fours. The move proved as popular with the general public as Liz Truss’ premiership, and lasted about as long, with the much-maligned C63 about to be replaced by a mild hybrid straight-six. BMW kept the V8, and resurrected the M5 Touring after a two-generation hiatus, only to miss what seemed like an open goal with too much complexity, too much weight and too many curious design features. Let’s not even dwell on the fact that the M3 Touring is better to drive, just as fast and boasts exactly the same seats-up boot capacity. Meanwhile, EVs like the Porsche Taycan Sport Turismo are all well and good, but frightening depreciation even by the standards of the segment is obviously putting people off. It’s a right old palaver.

While it’s hardly on Audi to rescue the reputation of the uberwagon, some great new RS Avants really would help restore the faith. We’ve already seen the new RS5 – and the initial response is pretty positive – and a new RS6 can’t be far away with the old one off sale. It needs to be a doozy; the electric S6 you’ve probably forgotten about certainly wasn’t Audi’s finest hour. Though if any OEM is to show the world how to do a part-electrified V8 estate, it has to be Audi. In the same way that you go to Porsche for a flat-six in the back and Ferrari for mid-engined supercar, we all know that Audi is the fast estate trailblazer. Perhaps the approach has become just a little OTT of late, but that’s an accusation that could be levelled at pretty much every manufacturer. For the most part, its track record is exemplary. So what better time for a retrospective? 

In 2026, it’s hard to imagine a car as unassuming as the Audi RS6 Plus being considered OTT, but this C5 generation was a proper turn-of-the-century monster. It launched in 2002 with 12.5 per cent more power than an M5, plus all the turbo torque on top; if the new one does that – and there’s every possibility that it will – there will be more than 800hp on tap. AMG would soon after upgrade the AMG E-Class accordingly, though conspicuously without four-wheel drive. After which the Plus arrived, with 480hp, a wider torque spread and a raised speed limit of 174mph to put those pretenders in their place. If you wanted flipping fast for all the family from Pitlochry to the Pyrenees, there really was no alternative. As discussed in the PH Heroes story, the suave, swaggering C5 really was the foundation for the modern ‘bahnstorming estate: four-wheel drive, twin-turbo V8 around 4.0-litres, a torque converter auto and a huge boot. It would only take AMG and BMW decades to latch on to how well the idea worked…

Indeed, while the C5 Plus and C8 GT might seem as similar as Malcolm X and DMX, there are common themes. There are a couple of hundred kilos between them, because everything is a couple of hundred kilos heavier than 20 years ago, yet only a couple of hundred cubic centimetres as well. A 150hp difference isn’t so much with the weight difference factored in. They both have funny little ears behind the steering wheel for changing gear, and a lever configured the wrong way around as well (pushing away to change up). Wheels may have grown three inches in diameter, though Audi’s ability to create the perfect rims hasn’t changed. Quattro still resonates in a way that xDrive and 4Matic probably never will. Both are the ultimate versions of their RS6 generations, so the fast estate – be it from 2004 or 2024 – shouldn’t really be any better than these two. But does much link this pair beyond name and powertrain? And what can they tell us about what a plug-in hybrid RS6 should be? 

Nothing makes Wales seem all too close (or the M4 all too busy) like an RS6 GT. While it may have become (in)famous for its liveried appearance, the GT really does as it says on the tin when it comes to long distances. The trick of the coilover suspension is to make you feel more connected to the surface yet somehow more comfortable as well. There’s more going on, more feel, and yet you’re also more at ease. It’s a very clever blend of supple and strict when there are hours ahead, with manual adjustability on offer as well. Plus the fact that the outside lane almost always becomes clear when this RS6 moves into it.

But the V8-powered A6s have always been pretty good in that regard, as the old timer is only too happy to demonstrate. It may feel its age in many areas – not least with a seat that perches you as high as an SUV before Audi even made one – but this RS6 can absolutely still command an outside lane. The engine is hushed, the wind noise subdued, the stability unerring and power formidable. The danger with this RS6, still, is going too fast on the way to Stoke Park (or anywhere else), rather than any concerns about the vehicle’s outright ability. It’s like travelling by bullet train rather than anything as common as the automobile, the world rushing by outside as the machine charges indomitably towards the horizon. In those moments, it feels like the whole world (as Gen Xers will probably insist) might really have peaked in 2004. 

Well, spoiler alert – it didn’t. The powerful allure of nostalgia and some very irritating new car features can sometimes lead us to believe that things really were all better in the old days – the GT is welcome proof that it’s categorically not true. Because here’s an RS6 equally happy and just as beguiling when the road has an A or B prefix, not just the M-badged tarmac. You’d never call such a hulk of Audi delicate, but it is unexpectedly deft thanks to the uprated chassis. Those 22-inch wheels, as well as a 10mm ride height drop, are not the impediment to progress that might be expected, even if you’ll never totally forget about their presence. This is a more confidence-inspiring, more direct, more alert RS6 than the standard C8, so you’re happier to push what feels like a tireless front end and a rear axle that, thanks to differential changes, is ever so slightly more willing to assist with cornering attitude. 

It’s four-wheel drive system is pretty much exactly how you’d want it to be, secure without feeling overly safe. And with the body control to ensure that two tonnes is never a burden. It all makes for an RS6 as entertaining to hustle through the corners as it is to sprint between them. If not quite the transformation achieved by the M5 when it became the CS – because it still wants for a bit of feedback – this GT is absolutely a fitting farewell for the most recent RS6, with all its best bits made even better. And then painted like a Stormtrooper’s company hack. 

The old one, by comparison, is as up for turning as Mrs Thatcher. Obviously, the AWD setup is less sophisticated here, and the suspension rather less motorsport-inspired, yet it really is the C5’s sledgehammer weight distribution that does for its ability. Hardly a new discovery, if doubly exposed here against its descendant. That Cosworth-fettled V8 up front is epic, no doubt – powerful, musical, relentless – though it does make for a stubborn handling car. Turn-in lacks immediacy, there’s nothing to be done about the cornering balance, and the damping struggles with so much weight so far forward. 

Some fresh components would undoubtedly tighten the experience up, though the gulf in ability here – and enjoyment – is vast. Not to mention significant: we’re used to old cars having less grip and less braking power, then compensating with greater feel and raw excitement. Not the case here. The new RS6 is obviously hugely more capable, yet it’s also a more engaging, more thrilling performance car to drive in every scenario. And that wasn’t entirely expected.

Certainly, the passage of time felt kinder when it came to the RS4 comparison. There, a manual gearbox and lower kerbweight conspired to keep the classic feeling fresher, not just looking fantastic (a knack old Audis seem to pull off better than any other). Gearboxes of the early ’00s, be they automated manuals or torque converters, do tend to age cars badly, and in the C5 its torpid five-speeder really does stymie progress. Like dial-up internet, you’ll get your gear eventually, just probably a lot later than desired. And best not attempt anything else at the same time. What’s great about just the five forward gears, at least, is appreciating each ratio (or a couple of them) like acts of a great play, rather than eight stacked together like TikToks, building and building to a thunderous, almighty 7,000rpm finale every time. Still, it seems a shame that a DSG (available in the TT from the year before this Plus) couldn’t have been paired with the V8. Though it probably would have made for another thing to worry about in the RS6 ownership story.  

All of which may be true – and arguably something badged GT rather than merely Plus ought to be more special – though there are definitely areas where old still surpasses new. And which could, perhaps should, be incorporated into what comes next. Even sat atop it rather than in it, the interior remains more attractive as well as simpler; the newer car is fussier, seemingly no better built despite its finer tolerances, and no easier to operate. Much harder, in fact. Carbon inlays haven’t become any more stylish in 22 years. Just because more is possible doesn’t always mean more is better, in case a reminder was required.

Finally, unlikely though it seems having now seen the RS5, a more discreet take on the ultimate Audi family estate would be nice. The old one is cool because it only hints at its potential with the wheels and arches; the new one could hardly be more overt if it had numbers on the doors and tape across the lights. But the important thing is that both have their place. Such was the enthusiasm for the IMSA homage that to have the GT in any other colour would surely miss the point. Those knowing nods towards the blue car were in their own way just as satisfying as the shouting and waving. If another RS6 can cater to both aesthetic choices, there would surely be an appetite for both. As these two demonstrate, Q-car and wannabe racing wagon can both be cool. 

Perhaps most significantly, the experience of RS6s three generations apart was emphatic proof that, actually, the likely future of this iconic badge is to be embraced. Because it really has improved with time. The original Plus is a lovable old thing, handsome and stoic and heroically fast, but its array of talents is hardly made to seem cohesive. The GT, on the other hand, is as broad-batted as they come, and still the class of the field despite those aforementioned new arrivals. It’s honestly hard to think of a scenario that it wouldn’t suit, from track day to open day, such is its enormous scope of ability. We’d expect nothing less from the ultimate RS6, of course – which makes it a formidable act to follow. 

Engine: 3,993cc V8, twin-turbocharged
Transmission: eight-speed automatic, all-wheel drive
Power (hp): 630@6,000rpm
Torque (lb ft): 627@2,300-4,500rpm
0-62mph: 3.3 seconds
Top speed: 189mph (limited)
MPG: 18.5-19.5
CO2: 289-277g/km
Weight: 2,075kg
On sale: 2024
Price: £176,975

Engine: 4,172cc, twin-turbo V8
Transmission: 5-speed Tiptronic, four-wheel drive
Power (hp): 480@6,000-6,400rpm
Torque (lb ft): 413@1,950-6,000rpm
0-62mph: 4.6sec
Top speed: 174mph
MPG: 19
CO2: 350g/km
Weight: 1,865kg
On sale: 2004
Price new: £66,675
Price now: £15,000+, good luck finding a Plus…