GARAGE

ASTON DB12 · BMW M5 MG CYBERSTER · VW ID.7. BMW M135 · PEUGEOT 3008 · SKODA KODIAQ · RICCI'S GARAGE · LAND ROVER DEFENDER 130 · DACIA DUSTER · CUORA BORN

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What's an RS7 like as a cross continent cruise missile?

AUDI RS7 PERFORMANCE

£116,200 OTR/£122,250 as tested/£1,490 pcm WHY IT'S HERE: Why is our new Audi RS7 Performance such a hit with the public? DRIVER: KOWAN HORNCASTLE

IF YOU READ LAST MONTH'S MAG, you would have seen that Ollie Marriage and I tagged onto Team GB's slalom Kitzbühel effort in an Audi A6 e-tron. Well, for that shoot we needed a support car. So I thought I'd fulfil that role, then do a bit of skiing off the back of it before heading to the wonderfully eclectic FAT ice race the following weekend in Zell am See. A 2,000 mile tour that would show what the RS7 is like as a cross continent cruise missile. So I filled the RS7 with bags, many Head skis, a SeaSucker rack and posted it into the first Thursday morning train LeShuttle could serve up to be in Kitz for dinner. Proper grand touring.

The RS7 is a great cruiser. The seats give no issues and you sit low in the car. And where contemporary Audi interiors are getting overly complicated, screen filled and (if the A6 e-tron is anything to go by) cheaper in quality, the RS7's touchpoints feel rugged, like they're honed from stone and wrapped in leather. After six months, the cabin and seats now feel more like well worn lederhosen - familiar, durable, and surprisingly supple. The steering wheel is thick but not cumbersome whereas the e-tron's feels skeletal and light in comparison. There are also lots of scratchy plastics and menus to get lost in the new A6.