I’ve driven the new Audi RS4 Competition – it has the same power but definitely calls everything else

REAL car fans see the birth of electric driving as the end of performance and fun.

But ironically, it’s responsible for some of the craziest petrol cars ever. Hear me out.

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Engineers used to have the CEO’s ear in the boardroom at companies like Mercedes, BMW and Audi.

But now the most important people in the room are the battery management experts and the interior engineers – pushing the engine and chassis further down.

But instead of fading into the background, they see it as an opportunity to show us what they can really do.

That’s how we ended up at the Audi RS4 Competition.

It’s faster than a regular RS4 — but not because of the obvious and increasing power and torque. That would be too easy.

Those figures remain the same with 450hp and 600Nm.

They managed it by applying every last bit of their knowledge to take even more pants-tight thrills out of a family car that was already mental.

Fully loaded

Shorter shift times, sharper steering, stiffer anti-roll bars, revised quattro sport differential, manually adjustable coilover suspension, triple-adjustable dampers, sticky Pirelli tires, modified exhaust valve controls, less sound deadening and slightly less weight.

The result is: two tenths faster off the line, top speed increased to 180 mph, mega grip and handling to corner faster than you’d ever believe.

It almost defies physics.

And it sounds damn bait.

But it’s not just the Audi guys who pull these tricks. We’re seeing this latest hurray skunkworks-style treatment elsewhere.

I think of BMW M3 Touring, developed in secret by the engineers during their lunch break – and then presented to the board.

Then there is the Mercedes-AMG C 63 SE Performance.

OK, it’s had a dose of electric but the main leg work is done by a 2-litre four-cylinder petrol engine that produces 476 horsepower. mentally.

So that’s Audi Sport, BMW M and AMG all producing their absolutely committed best four-wheel drive estates, within three months of each other.

Like I said, true car enthusiasts have never had it this good.

Now I’m not going to sit here and tell you that one of these cars is cheap. Far from. They all start with an eight.

But the RS4 Competition can be considered a steal as it’s £2k cheaper than a fully loaded RS4 Vorsprung.

That said, the regular RS4 Avant is £16k cheaper – that’s a lot of family holidays in the sun – and is just as satisfying.

You wouldn’t really go for RS4 Competition unless you wanted a family car six days a week and a serious track toy on day seven.

As for the cabin, that is typical Audi. Clinical. Tech-rich. And surprisingly comfortable. Ride quality in Comfort mode is impressive.

The luggage space is more than decent at 495 liters and will swallow all the usual family waste. Don’t forget to add luggage nets for the Friday shop. I don’t need to explain why.

Fold down the rear seats and the cargo space triples to 1,495 litres, big enough to transport just about anything and everything you want.

Audi won’t tell you this, but the next RS4 will be very different.

It will be a plug-in hybrid to begin with. Which means it will be heavier, with a smaller trunk and more expensive.

And it will be called RS5.

Forget everything you know about Audi’s naming convention, because in the future petrol cars will use odd numbers and electric cars will use even numbers.

So we get a battery-powered RS4 e-tron estate and an RS5 hybrid estate.

Confused? Do not be. Stick with the current RS4, as it approaches car perfection for true car fans.

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Farewell to the greats

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This is it. Bye. The last R8. And the last TT. Two of Audi’s greatest creations in the annals of history. But they go out with a bang.

Let’s start with the R8 GT, Audi’s latest V10 supercar.

Power rose to 620 horses, rear wheel drive, fixed rear wing, carbon everything, 399 km/h, seven levels of rear axle slip for heroic drifts. Damn.

Audi has confirmed that the successor to the R8 will be electric in 2025.

It will certainly be insanely fast, and furious, but it won’t make your neck hairs tingle like the sound of an angry, atmospheric V10. You can hear one from five miles away.

I’m just so gutted about losing the TT. My wife had the original. This farewell TT RS Coupe Iconic Edition is 400hp, 4WD and dripping in aero kit. It’s basically a baby R8, just three-tenths slower down the line, for much less than half the price. It costs £87,650.

At least that five-cylinder engine lives on in the RS3.