IT'S NIGHTFALL WHEN I COLLECT THE RS4. IT'S TUCKED UP in the evo office car park, squatting menacingly in the shadows, orange sodium light from the security lamps hinting at the outline of its broad box arches. Its wheels are tucked up inside its arches too, making it clear this is not a standard RS4 Avant.
The RS4 Competition is limited to just 75 cars in the UK, bidding farewell to the B9 generation with devil-in-the-detail software and hardware tweaks, chief among which is the option of low-riding, manually adjustable, Coilover suspension. You might remember it from Evo 314, when it squared up to the BMW M3 Touring.
While the current RS4 is reaching the end of its life cycle, the Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio is gearing up for the twilight years of its own run with a 2024 model year facelift. Like its Stelvio Quadrifoglio SUV sister tested on page 24, it's been given new headlights, a 10bhp power bump, an interior spring-clean and a new mechanical limited-slip diff. The Giulia Quadrifoglio now starts from £78,195, while the RS4 Competition is £84,600, an increase of around £11,600 over the regular RS4. Tomorrow morning we'll bring the two cars together. But first the prologue: the journey home in the Audi, and my first miles behind the RS4 Competition's Alcantara-trimmed wheel.
I've just returned from an overseas launch, swapping from the Fast Fleet 911 GTS into the Audi after hacking up from Heathrow on a wiggly reroute around closed roads. It's late, I'm tired and slightly wired, my mind partly on the writing I didn't quite manage to finish on the plane, and I just want to get home. Perfect RS4 conditions, in other words. Roads mostly empty barring a few dawdling cars. Cold tarmac. Heated seats on. The B9 RS4 has always been an easy - and very swift - car in which to make fatigue-busting progress. Just not a hugely involving one.
This story is from the May 2024 edition of Evo UK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the May 2024 edition of Evo UK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
BEST BUYS AUDI RS
THERE'S NO GETTING AROUND IT: AUDI RS PRODUCTS haven't taken home nearly as many group-test trophies as BMW M cars have over the years.
BMW M3 E46
The E46 was the first M3 to be launched during evo's lifetime, and its unique. unrepeatable character ensures it remains one of the very best
XX RATED
The Spider version of the SF90 XX provides our first taste of Ferrari's track-focused 1016bhp hypercar on the road
RADICAL SR3 XXR & REVOLUTION 500 EVO
No road car pretensions here: the Radical and Revolution sit where race car meets trackday car
ANALOGUE ELISE & ALPINE A110 R
No-expense-spared restomod Elise by Analogue Automotive makes an intriguing pairing with the lightweight, track-focused A110 R
FORD FOCUS ST TRACK PACK & HONDA CIVIC TYPE R
The Civic Type R has so far seen off all challengers, but will it meet its match in the trackday-friendly Focus ST?
TOYOTA GR86 & BBR MX-5
GR86 and supercharged MX-5 look closely matched on paper; how will it prove on the twists and undulations of Cadwell?
PORSCHE 911 GT3 RS
It’s the perfect blend of speed, poise and precision: what better car than the GT3 RS to establish our benehmark lap
TRACK CAR OF THE YEAR
From hot hatches to flyweight sports cars to actual racers, 15 contenders vie to be crowned evo Track Car of the Year 2024
ORANGE RUSH
The new Vantage has the power and speed to take on the mighty Porsche 911 Turbo S, but is it all about the numbers or does it have the ability to engage and entertain too?