Ingolstadt's station wagon from hell is back with a vengeance. We're talking, of course, about the new generation of the Audi RS6 Avant, the first pictures and preliminary specifications of which hit the interwebs today.
From what we're told by our Russian comrades at Autowp, the new RS6 Avant waves goodbye to the previous model's 571hp (579PS) and 650Nm (479 lbf·ft) 5.0-liter bi-turbo V10 and gains Audi's brand new twin-turbocharged 4.0-litre V8 TFSI engine, which is said to deliver 552hp (560PS) and 700Nm (516 lb-ft) in this application.
An eight-speed automatic drives all four wheels through Audi's quattro system with a sport differential. The Ăśber station wagon is claimed to go from zero to 100km/h (62mph) in just 3.9 seconds and top out at 304km/h (189mph), all while being able to fit up to 1,680 liters of goods.
By comparison, the older V10-powered RS6 Avant, completed the sprint in 4.6 seconds and had a de-restricted top speed of 274 km/h (170mph).
The design of the flagship model of the A6 series is exactly what you would expect from any member of the Audi RS family with blistered wheel arches, honeycomb inserts on the upper and lower front grilles that work together with a redesigned bumper, side skirts and a wide rear diffuser with large pipes on either side.
The RS6 Avant also gets a silver finish on the mirrors and the roof rails, a roof spoiler, larger alloy wheels shod in performance tires, and just to make sure you won't confuse it with another A6 model upon seeing it on your rear view mirror, a sizeable "quattro" logo enclosed in a silver frame on the front grille.
Inside, Audi has adorned the RS6 with all the usual bits and pieces such as a flat-bottom steering wheel, red needles on the revamped instrument panel gauges, tons of carbon fiber trims, and sports seats in a mix of leather and Alcantara.
We still don't know if Audi will introduce the new RS6 Avant in Detroit next month, or more likely, at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show in March.
