By Nat Shirley
Tuesday, Jun 12th, 2012 @ 1:53 pm
 
The 2012 Audi RS4 Avant that made its debut ahead of an officially planned unveiling at the Geneva show is now dated and priced for the UK market. The 450-horsepower station wagon will arrive in showrooms in the fall, with the on-the-road starting price set at £54,925 (or about $85,400).

This time around, Audi won't offer a sedan version, as wagons outsell the sedans in Europe. There also aren't any plans to offer the car in North America. Up front, the RS4 Avant sports a unique grille, massive lower air intakes and an aluminum look splitter. LED headlamps give the car a menacing air, while a rear diffuser hints at its sporting intentions.

To recap, the naturally-aspirated V8 makes its peak power at 8,250RPM, while its 317lb-ft of maximum torque is spread between 4,000 and 6,000RPM. The engine is mated exclusively to a seven-speed S-tronic automatic transmission, which puts down the power to all four wheels via Audi's Quattro system. The system splits torque 40/60 front to rear under normal conditions, but can send up to 70 percent to the front axle or 85 percent to the rear.

The car is said to reach 62mph (100km/h) in just 4.7 seconds, onto its way to an electronically-limited 155mph top speed. Audi will offer buyers the option of delimiting it, which will result in a 174mph top end. In the combined European fuel economy test, the car managed 26.4MPG (or about 22MPG US equivalent).

It will ride on 19-inch, ten-spoke wheels surrounded by 265-35/19 tires. The wagon sits 20mm (about 0.8 inches) lower over the rollers compared to the standard A4 wagon. Stopping power comes from eight-piston front calipers squeezing ventilated and waved discs. Carbon ceramic brake discs are optional.

A Dynamic Ride Control (DRC), sports exhaust, and dynamic steering are all optional. A Sport Package bundles the DRC, 20-inch wheels and tires, and the exhaust will be offered for £2,250 (about $3,500), and represent a £2,915 (nearly $4,500) savings compared to getting each option on its own.