Understated Audi is a rev-happy weapon

In this magazine's road test of the 2010-15 Audi RS5, our testers noted that, but for some subtly flared wheel arches and a restyled front bumper, few would know the car was the most prestigious sports model in the German marque's range.

- JOHN EVANS

Ditto the interior, which, it said, looked to be pretty much straight out of any A5 cabin.

None of this bothers RS5 owner Neville Greenhalgh (pronounced Greenhoush). “I love that people don’t know what it is or what's under the bonnet,” he says. “Only when you open the taps up do they put two and two together. It looks special but doesn’t shout its potential.”

He bought his RS5, registered in 2012, from a specialist two years ago: “I'd been looking for a ‘B7’ RS4 [2006-08] but couldn’t find one for my budget. Then my brother told me to look at an RS5, which he reckoned had a better engine, transmission and electronics. I looked at a few, and what would become mine - in Sprint Blue, a rare colour for the RS5 - leapt out.”

"Race mode is perfect for the track: very stiff-riding and with a hairtrigger throttle"