Remember when supercars ruled the go-fast world alone? Those times are now well behind us, with today's sharpest family cruisers being able to keep up with budget supercars. And the long-roof genre is preparing to welcome two new members this year, namely the 2020 Audi RS6 Avant and the 2020 BMW M8 Coupe.
None of the German performance machines comes in the tradition performance sedan form, but this is great news. For the Bimmer, it means that we get to enjoy stunning surface play, as seen on the M8 GC concept car that prefigurated the showroom model. And when it comes to the Audi, this is one wagon that will return to the US market, as it has already been confirmed. So your dog can come along for the blitzing action.
Both the RS6 and the M8 Gran Coupe tips the scales at about two tons, but modern suspension and chassis technology (think: latest-gen adaptive dampers, adaptive antiroll bars and rear-axle steering) mean the agility will be there.
Then there's the firepower. A twin-turbo V8 whose displacement starts with a "4" is what motivates the A6 Avant and the M8 Grand Coupe, with both units working with sharpened-up torque converter automatics to send the power to all four wheels.
However, there are also plenty of aspects that set the two 600+ horsepower monsters apart.
For one thing, the 4.0-liter heart of the Audi is considerably better at the decibel game than the 4.4-liter powerplant of the Bimmer - check out the soundtrack of the Nurburgring spy video below, which includes an episode that sees the Audi chasing the BMW during Nurburgring testing.
And while the M8 is expected to inherit the 2018 M5's RWD-only driving mode, we're not expecting the RS6 to cater to the need of the drifter. Oh, what a world that would be, though...
Both the RS6 and the M8 Gran Coupe tips the scales at about two tons, but modern suspension and chassis technology (think: latest-gen adaptive dampers, adaptive antiroll bars and rear-axle steering) mean the agility will be there.
Then there's the firepower. A twin-turbo V8 whose displacement starts with a "4" is what motivates the A6 Avant and the M8 Grand Coupe, with both units working with sharpened-up torque converter automatics to send the power to all four wheels.
However, there are also plenty of aspects that set the two 600+ horsepower monsters apart.
For one thing, the 4.0-liter heart of the Audi is considerably better at the decibel game than the 4.4-liter powerplant of the Bimmer - check out the soundtrack of the Nurburgring spy video below, which includes an episode that sees the Audi chasing the BMW during Nurburgring testing.
And while the M8 is expected to inherit the 2018 M5's RWD-only driving mode, we're not expecting the RS6 to cater to the need of the drifter. Oh, what a world that would be, though...