KEY POINTS:
Audi's RS-Series machines are pretty special cars, which is why the German maker has a policy of only producing one such model at a time. That should keep things nice and simple, but it can cause quite a lot of confusion because, with the arrival of the RS6 super-estate, we say goodbye to the highly regarded RS4.
But that doesn't mean the RS6 is replacing the RS4. It's a different size (based on the A6 rather than the compact A4), sits in a different price structure (nearly $100,000 more expensive) and it's simply a different kind of car.
The RS4 was rapid, nimble around the corners and arguably the most involving Audi ever made.
The RS6 is a two-tonne-plus monster, designed to take you from A-to-B as quickly and easily as possible. It's not a sports car like the RS4 - it's the ultimate Audi grand tourer, with surreal overtaking ability and space for five plus the family pet.
That's not to diminish the thrill-factor. Audi claims the RS6 is the fastest estate car on sale. I'll say this much - 0-100km/h in 4.6 seconds (as quick as the R8 supercar) has never seemed so easy. With a new quick-shifting six-speed auto gearbox and the traction of quattro four-wheel drive, you just press the go-pedal and suddenly you're there.
It's the same with high-speed cornering. The RS6 is a huge, heavy car, so you can't throw it around. But drive smoothly, adopt a fast-in, even-faster-out technique and the thing slingshots from corner to corner.
Press it too hard and the car will understeer, the nose pushing wide in a slightly undignified manner. But do that and you only have yourself to blame - with a twin-turbo V10 engine under the bonnet and seemingly limitless traction, there's nothing to lose by waiting for the apex of corner to engage maximum-attack mode.
The suspension has three selectable modes, which you can access via the multi-media interface controller.
I was happy to stay in Comfort mode on bumpy Kiwi roads, and be more circumspect about how and when to go fast. But the driver can also click on to Dynamic for more body control, or Sport to stiffen things up.
The RS6 was launched as an Avant (wagon), but there's now also a sedan version available at $245,000.
But why would you? From the first RS2 of 1993, Avants have dominated this series of super-fast Audis. A four-door just doesn't seem right.
Do we really need to be sensible about this car? Okay, just for a minute.
In real-world Kiwi driving, the A6 3.0 TDI Avant is probably just as rapid in the hands of anybody but an expert driver, costs half as much and will slip six litres of fuel less per 100km.
But the RS6 is the most powerful Audi built, the most accelerative station you can buy and the most expensive of the A6 series.
