Audi Packs In A Whole Lot Of Car In The New RSQ8 And RS3

Barrelling down the rain-washed main straight of Spain’s Parcmotor Castellolí circuit, in a sub-3 tonne SUV isn’t suggestive of excellent self-preservatory instincts. Especially when said SUV is packing 640 horsepower and 850 Nm of torque. But Audi’s proprietary Quattro all-wheel drive tech is the most diligent electronic nanny there is, so when the phenomena of aquaplaning rears its ugly head, the car won’t spiral out of control. That is among the many virtues of the Audi RSQ8 – a fire-breathing, ‘roided-out variant of the Q8 that balances its roles as a luxury grand tourer and supercar with unnerving precision.

The Audi RSQ8 Performance I’m piloting is an even more powerful version of the existing RSQ8. Because it’s 2024 and there’s no such thing as too many derivatives of a flagship luxury SUV. Despite its size and tonnage, it’s no stranger to racetracks, bearing the distinction of being the fastest internal-combustion SUV around the dreaded Nurburgring circuit in Germany. The ‘ring is a sort of anvil all serious carmakers must temper their performance cars on. It’s so long, tricky and unrelenting in its assault of g-forces that it was deemed too dangerous a venue for F1 races. It’s yet another bright feather in Audi’s cap, given how rapidly the super-SUV brigade has proliferated in the last decade. It’s also a way to showcase the fact that there is little this car cannot do.

What was supposed to be a sunny day in Eastern Spain has turned into a very soggy affair quickly. But nothing fazes the RSQ8 which encourages you to push its limits, with the Drive Select mode having brazenly been set to ‘Dynamic’ and the RS Mode having loosened the Quattro’s adhesive powers to make room for some tail-snapping action. Sure enough, hard braking into the first corner gets the tail out but only momentarily. Audis are inherently friendly, even when they are playful. But Audi knows that this reputation for being friendly and approachable to novices has come at the cost of being perceived as a formidable, track-ready force and so the brand has gone to some lengths to address this.

The new one is essentially a facelifted version of the current-gen RSQ8 but it does receive some crucial updates. Both the front and the rear bumper have been redesigned to look more aggressive, with wider air-intakes, a carbon-fibre goatee at the edge of the bumper, new signature patterns on the LEDs and a larger diffuser with RS Performance exhausts sticking out of it. The requisite flared arches, wide track and beefed-up side skirts continue to remain the same but this is a more shredded machine. For instance, Audi has reduced insulation at the front and back, which means the sound of that twin-turbo, 4.0-litre V8 goes straight to your ears and isn’t artificially fed to you through clever acoustics. But in terms of weight-shedding, that’s pretty much it. Audi has ensured, save for the ‘RS’ logo embroidered onto the seats and a sprinkle of RS badges, there isn’t much distinguishing the cabin from the Q8’s. Not until you press the ignition button.

Make no mistake, this thing is built for comfort. On the B-roads around the Spanish countryside, it handles like a hot estate, aided by all-wheel steering, which makes it a sharper handler. This is particularly evident on the track where its active roll stabilisation and all-wheel steering make it handle a lot like the RS6 estate which is a much lighter and hunkered-down car with an inherent advantage in terms of a lower centre of gravity. It’s no longer a simple tool for linear bursts of speed. The fact that an SUV can match the dynamism of a much sportier car should come as a huge source of relief for those who have wanted sharper performance from their cars but stuck with an SUV because of the practical advantage it offers on Indian roads. The best kind of performance is the sort that’s at your disposal at all times.

Enter the Audi RS3

But the RSQ8 is simply one portion of Audi’s performance spectrum. A very visceral, superlative portion that enjoys the patronage of Premier League footballers. If the RSQ8 is a bombastic, in-your-face super-torpedo, the Audi RS3 is its antidote. Heading for India for the first time, the RS3 marks a new entry point for fast Audis. If the RSQ8 is a sledgehammer, the RS3 is a scalpel. It shrink-wraps itself around you and ensures that every throttle input pulses through your synapses. It packs a 2.5-litre, five-cylinder engine, producing 403 hp of power and 536 Nm of torque. Available in, both, hot hatch and sedan form, it’s a lithe pocket rocket compared to the likes of the RS6 and the RSQ8.

The RS3 is a lot sportier too, with the show to match the go that its widebody frame and sharp-edged front splitter are suggestive of. Through some nifty tech wizardry called ‘torque vectoring’, it can be calibrated to send most of its power to the rear wheels. The feature allows for variable torque distribution to individual wheels at the rear, which means goodbye understeer. As a result, it takes on the corners of the circuit with renewed vigour. It also has an inherent advantage over its hot hatch rivals in that it’s got a 2.5-litre flat 5-cylinder turbo-petrol engine as opposed to the smaller 2.0-litre four-pots found on rivals like the Mini Cooper JCW or the Mercedes-AMG A45S. Sure the latter makes more power, but this engine has a lot more character and sounds practically like a flat-six. It’s a small leap for Audi, but a major one for hot hatches. Except it’s also available as a sedan. One that isn’t just an afterthought because that massive rear diffuser with trademark RS exhaust pipes, looks even better when attached to the underside of a sculpted boot.

Even the interiors pack a greater sense of occasion than the RSQ8. Unencumbered by the need to tend to the whims of luxury car buyers, the RS3 can afford to be and look more purposeful. It’s got proper Alcantara-bathed bucket seats and a single-screen layout with actual tactile buttons. Speaking of which, this one gets two massive red ones, flanking the central spoke on that flat-bottomed steering. Pressing the one on the left engages ‘RS Torque Rear Mode’ prompting the headlamps to flash an 8-bit chequered flag LED signature, making the car more rear-biased and allowing the driver to initiate drifts on the racetrack with effortless ease. Throw the car sharply into a corner, mash the throttle, initiate counter-steering and Voila! You are now going sideways in an Audi, which historically speaking isn’t a common sight unless you’re driving one on ice.

In the relentless march towards electrification, the likes of the RSQ8 and the RS3 serve as a much-needed interlude. Both cars sit on the very opposite end of the RS Performance power band and yet, they aren’t entirely dissimilar. Both offer usable, everyday performance. Both feature an immensely customisable ride, and so, make for long-legged grand tourers with excellent suspension damping that makes the ride a lot more supple than a lot of its competitors. In a world where you’re spoilt for choice when it comes to everyday performance, these two fast luxury Audis can switch personalities so completely and eerily that it warrants a Netflix documentary because it’s honestly unsettling at times. Be it the RSQ8 or the RS3, they both have a lot of cars rolled into one package. Depending on your need for cargo storage and they are both, all the car you will ever need.