Remember when Audi was the quirky choice of German luxury brands? After rebounding from a near-total collapse of U.S. sales in the late-1980s, the Ingolstadt-based automaker rebuilt its image on a blend of clever engineering, elegant exterior design and, compared to its nearest rivals, a good deal of value, too.  Driving the Audi RS7, it becomes clear how some things have remained remarkably the same, and how others are extremely different from Audi’s not-so-distant past. For starters, the engineering prowess is there, and stronger than ever.  Under the hood of the RS7 is a twin-turbocharged and direct-injected 4.0-liter V-8 engine that produces 560-horsepower from 5,700 to 6,600 rpm, along with 516 lb.-ft. of torque from 1,750 to 5,500 rpm. Take a moment to digest that torque plateau, because it’s one of the defining characteristics of the car.  The power and torque of the RS7 is nothing short of supercar-like. Audi quotes a 0 to 60 mph time of 3.7 seconds and, if anything, that sounds conservative after having spent a week with the RS7. Step on the gas and the car’s Quattro all-wheel-drive system digs the 21-inch wheels into the road, and launches this near 4,500 lb. sedan with a precision that’s borderline freaky.  The ZF 8-speed automatic fires off shifts with incredible ease, the RS7 routinely fooled me into traveling at MUCH higher speeds than anticipated. That’s not a bad thing, so long as no blue-and-red lights appear in the rear view mirror.  The car is so balanced and hunkered down, I found myself purposefully trying to ruffle its feathers (within reason), by getting hard on the power mid-corner, or on road surfaces that were particularly rough and uneven. The RS7’s adaptive air suspension, sport differential and electromechanical power steering was having none of it. There was a hint of the car’s heft (and the quickest wiggle here and there), but nothing was going to coerce this Audi into doing something stupid – the same can’t be said of its test driver, apparently.  Relax a bit, and enjoy the rest of what the Audi RS7 has to offer. Yes, the driving experience is absolutely dominated by that twin-turbo engine (no wonder, since you’ll find it in the Bentley Continental GT and mid-engine Audi R8 supercar, too). Yet the talent of this car resides in its balance of luxury and speed, not to mention a cabin that I really and truly miss sitting in…it was that stunning!  It has been said over and over, but it’s true that Audi has a talent for crafting a gorgeous cabin. The black leather seats on my RS7 included a quilted pattern, while the dashboard had just the right amount of metal bright-work to liven up the business class-like layout. The gauges are crisp, clear and, unlike some other reviewers, I found no fault with Audi’s MMI infotainment and navigation interface.  Standard cabin features found in the RS7 include 12-way power front seats with four-way lumbar adjustment, four-zone climate control, a multifunction sport steering wheel with paddle-shifters, sunroof, 14-speaker Bose surround sound system, front and rear parking sensors with rear view camera, light and rain sensors for the headlights and wipers, heated front seats, and power tilt and telescoping steering wheel.  I want to find some flaws in this cabin, if only to avoid sounding like an Audi fan-boy. Alright, head room in the back is a tad precious at 36.6 inches – though it wasn’t a problem for my 5’9 frame. That’s the price you pay for the sloping roofline of the RS7, or any variant of the A7 for that matter. The pinstriped wood trim in my test car was bold but, if you don’t like it, there are plenty of other finishes available.  Stretching 197.3 inches long, the RS7 is actually marketed as a coupe, due to the car’s fastback shape – the Mercedes CLS and BMW 6-Series Gran Coupe play the same misleading name game. The RS7 adds muscle to this appealing shape, in the form of larger front air intakes with matte aluminum highlights, a gloss black rear diffuser, massive exhaust pipes, speed-sensitive rear spoiler (you can also raise it yourself with the push of a button), and those aforementioned 5-spoke alloys.  You could even argue that the RS7 is a practical choice, considering it offers a power tailgate and 24.5 cu. ft. of cargo room. Fold the 60/40 split rear seats down, and you have the equivalent of a mega-horsepower and big money Saab 9000 for a new generation! The available load-lugging space about doubles in size, and access to parcels is incredibly easy thanks to the large tailgate and low entry point.  So I love the looks, the engine, the all-weather performance, and even the versatility of the RS7. This really is a supercar that happens to have four doors – five, if you count the hatch. Remember the mention of value earlier in this review? Yep, here comes the hard part.  Minus any options, the 2014 Audi RS7 starts at $106,500 (excluding destination charge). My as-tested RS7 ended up being priced at more than $120-grand, or about what you’d pay for Audi’s own R8 supercar. That’s a huge chunk of change, to be sure. Then again, the RS7 resides at the pinnacle of the sport sedan segment, and the price reflects it.  Audi is no longer quirky and, yes, sometimes I miss that a lot. But whenever I pressed the gas pedal and got pushed deep into the RS7’s driver’s seat, those misty memories quickly receded.
Four-wheel-drive, a twin-turbo V-8 engine, and pinstriped wood-grain trim; the 2014 Audi RS7 is impeccably refined and incredibly fast.