Seems I'm on a lucky streak--were I a gamblin' man I'd be betting heavy right now. Despite releasing the new S5, RS4 Cabriolet and R8 in most major media outlets, an invitation to drive Audi's `Fall Performance Collection'--the aforementioned cars--arrived recently. A chance to drive fast--truly exceptionally fast--in extraordinary, low production cars with no concrete deadline or story/lead photo pressure.When I stepped out of Audi's hospitality suite near Dulles, I held the keys to an RS4 Cabriolet. Although rain was forecast over the next couple of days, the weather was picture-perfect as my partner and I put the top down and headed out into the Virginia countryside. With a closed-course performance venue scheduled for the next day, there was no need for any more shenanigans than would normally be expected from a car-loving fool with a high-revving, 420-hp V8 under his right foot. The next couple of hours were really quite enjoyable.The crab cakes at the driver change were exceptionally good, though the service suffered slightly as the caf staff stepped outside repeatedly to debate which of the exotic machines pulling up outside was most desirable. On a crisp, sunny fall day, the RS4 has to be the obvious choice. Though a little soft in the lower rev range, head for the 8250-rpm redline and the all-aluminum 4.2-liter FSI V8 sings a heady song and puts down some serious power, leaving both the chassis and driver begging for more. Oddly, while rock-solid over distressed pavement that would have sent visible shivers through most other vehicles (and some off the road entirely), hit just the right bit of roughness at just the right speed and some cowl shake will manifest. It only happened once in our three-hour loop, at 30 mph no less, and was impossible to duplicate, despite purposefully seeking out some truly poor pavement. Things like this must be maddening for engineers and one reason why they're always talking about torsional rigidity, harmonics and resonance frequencies.
By far the most visually appealing car was the S5, favorite of the caf's also quite attractive sous-chef. With classic coupe design cues--a long hood leading into a low roof whose long line fades into a short trunk--the S5 oozes confidence and class (0ur lovely chef was also a class act, manners and discretion require we pass on a description of her curves. Sorry). And with its 4.2-liter V8, this time tuned to only (!) 354 hp, but with a fat 325 lb-ft of torque peaking at just 3500 rpm (versus 317 lb-ft at 6000 rpm for the 420-hp FSI engine), the S5 has the easy driveability expected of a grand touring machine and 4.9-second zero-to-60 mph performance to back up the good looks. Whatever performance is given up at the extreme top- end is more that made up for at anything below 150 mph.