Perhaps more than any other car in the lineup, the new, finally-for-America embodies the classic Audi approach to performance. Yeah, the has the magic number of cylinders (five) and the delivers genuine supercar chops, but the RS 6 trounces both with a swaggering, confident incongruence.

(: Audi wanted me to drive the RS 6 Avant so bad they invited me to a hotel in Malibu, CA by the ocean, served a rooftop breakfast overlooking the ocean, and treated me to a swank dinner next to the ocean.)

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The 2020 Audi RS 6 Avant absolutely lives up to the hype, to the legend, and finally answers the question Americans have been asking for years: When can we get a performance wagon?

Do yourself the biggest favor, right now: call your friendly Audi dealer, secure a place in line, then return to this browser tab. You’ll thank me in about seven months—the first RS 6 Avants hit these shores summer 2020.

What Is It

I’m sure this point is made clear by now, but if not: the “Avant” in RS 6 Avant translates to wagon, while “RS 6” means what the hell just passed me? The ultimate allure of the RS 6 Avant, naturally, lies in its inherent paradox: this is supercar-level capability dressed up in a practical package. You’d better believe it.

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Audi has been perfecting this formula well before steroid-infused SUVs were a glimmer in a product planner’s eye, starting with the bonkers Porsche-built RS 2 Avant in the mid-’90s. In 2003, Audi upped the ante with the larger RS 6 Avant—but like the RS 2 Avant, it never made it to American shores.

While Mercedes may have been late to the beastly longroof game with the E55 AMG wagon in 2005, at least it had the decency to bring it to the US market. Now that the RS 6 Avant is finally here, the is no longer in a class by itself. On paper, it may look like an apples-to-apples comparison, but the E63 is much more of a brute, and the perfect choice for people who love to cut in line, kick sand in your face and wake the neighborhood by doing smoky burnouts in drift mode.

In contrast, the Audi’s phenomenal performance is delivered in a more civilized and refined fashion. There’s no reason why someone wouldn’t cross-shop the RS 6 Avant with a Porsche 911 as well as the E63 AMG.

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Specs That Matter

The 2020 Audi RS 6 Avant is powered by a 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 which shoves out a claimed 592 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque. That’s connected to an eight-speed automatic and driving all four wheels. It’s similar to the mill found underneath the hood of the Lamborghini Urus and just-announced RS Q8. Light it up and it sounds properly menacing.

While it’s based on Audi’s A6, that’s pretty much where the similarities stop, at least on the outside. Up front, a straked hood closes down over three prominent air inlets and brackets laser headlight clusters pilfered from the A7. The flared fenders add 3.2 inches of overall width and give the RS 6 a beefy, aggressive front stance. The rear doors are also embiggened, flowing into distinctly wider flanks. Audi says that only the front doors, roof, and rear hatch carry over from the A6 Avant.

What’s Great

Straight-line acceleration is nothing short of phenomenal. Give it the boot and 0-60 streaks by in a mere 3.6 seconds. But really, the RS 6 is just getting started.

Keep your foot in it, and it’ll snatch 124 mph just 8.4 seconds after that, with a top speed of 155 waiting just around the corner. Did you opt for the Dynamic package? Good. 174 mph is yours. If, for some reason, you own a private island (or, better yet, a congressman in Montana), the Dynamic Plus package unlocks the ultimate achievement of nearly 190 mph.

And this is what’s truly sensational about the RS 6—even at triple-digit speeds, the car hustles down the pavement with absolutely zero drama. This is a vehicle thoroughly designed for traveling at a heightened velocity for hours on end. Some cars seem to shrink the faster you drive them. Not so the RS 6 Avant. At times it feels every ounce of its approximately 4,700 pounds, and I mean that as a genuine compliment.

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Credit goes to the standard air suspension, which deftly absorbs any road imperfections, even when the suspension is on its firmest setting. But if “air firm” isn’t firm enough, the RS 6 Avant is available with optional steel springs featuring Dynamic Ride Control. It’s a system in which all four adjustable dampers are diagonally connected to a central valve by two oil lines. During cornering, the valve pushes and pulls oil through the lines, altering the volume reduces damping on one corner while simultaneously enhancing it at the opposite corner, effectively reducing roll and pitch and keeping the RS 6 Avant flatter than a Midwest vowel in a turn. Dynamic Plus is geared towards drivers who insist on driving at nine-tenths most of the time. My advice is to go for the air suspension, as it’s ideally suited to the character of the car.

With either suspension, tossing the RS 6 Avant into a series of switchbacks is like performing a barrel roll in a 747—once your passengers stop screaming, they’ll be amazed at what the machine is capable of. And in return, the RS 6 Avant is relatively nonplussed.

What’s Weak

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When it comes to styling, the RS6 is anything but subtle—a big departure from practically every RS Avant model before it. Not too long ago, Audi design was celebrated for being beautifully restrained and elegant. Even the RS models managed to communicate their pavement-stomping performance chops without resorting to look-at-me theatrics. These designs stand the test of time because there was a confidence behind them: form and function working harmoniously with one another to produce a shape that’s as cohesive as it is emotional. Besides, it’s tremendously satisfying to spank unsuspecting sports cars with a wagon.

Very little of that stealth factor exists here, as does cohesion. It seems that Audi has been more concerned with chasing industry styling trends lately than focusing on its own design language. Thankfully, it’s pretty difficult to muck up a wagon too badly, which means the side profile is deliciously long, low and taut, leaving the busywork to clutter the ends of the otherwise flowing silhouette.

Perhaps the most polarizing design element for me on the RS 6 Avant is the rear diffuser accent piece, which for some reason I want to name Carl. The way that it meanders up over the exhaust and below the diffuser makes it look like a chrome mustache that’s ripe for twirling.

Early Verdict

Look, the Audi RS 6 Avant isn’t for everyone, but for a specific few, it’s the only choice. “I have gotten more emails about this car than any other launch in recent history,” said Mark Dahncke, Audi USA’s director of communications. And Mark gets a lot of emails.

It’s incredible to think that there would be such pent-up demand for—of all things—a station wagon, but reducing the RS 6 Avant to those parameters simply doesn’t do it any justice. After all, this is the car whose launch crashed the Audi U.S. press site. Pricing hasn’t yet been announced, but my sources say that the RS 6 Avant will be priced a few grand below the RS 7. Figure about $115,000 or so to get started.

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Will the hype translate to sales? Here’s hoping. In finally bringing the RS 6 Avant to the U.S., Audi has held up its end of the bargain. Now it’s your turn.

2020 RS 6 Avant

2020 RS 6 Avant

+

(Speed+Style)Wagon

-

Subtlety has been shown the door.

TL;DR

Swaggering, confident incongruence.

Power

592 HP • 590 LB-FT

Weight

~4,500+ (Estimated)

Price

TBD