The 2027 Audi RS5 has a stated curb weight of 5,192 pounds. That’s absolutely massive for a medium-sized sedan—heavier than a battery-electric Porsche Taycan. It’s heavier than some four-door F-150 pickup trucks. It’s a whole heck of a lot heavier than its own predecessor, which weighed 3,825 pounds. That said, the new RS5 has the same power-to-weight ratio as the old one.
The new RS5 Avant wagon is porkier still—5,225 pounds. Even the mighty twin-turbo V8 RS6 Avant is lighter (5,016 pounds). A BMW M5 Touring wagon is 5,622 pounds, and that’s 16.7 feet long and has 717 horsepower. This new Audi sport wagon is 16.1 feet end-to-end, with a max combined output of 630 hp.
Earlier this week, my fellow editor Jerry Perez and I were going nuts over how cool the new 2027 Audi RS5 looks—an assessment I stand by for sure. We acknowledged that the car was heavy when we announced the specs, but it took me a minute to realize just how much heftier this car got from one generation to the next. When Joel Feder called out that the new RS5 was, in fact, a full four-figure number heavier than the outgoing car, I realized we needed to bring this observation to you, commenters, for discussion.
Of course, the first question to ask is “why.” Why the heck would an automaker let a performance car grow so much in just one model-year changeover? The short answer is that, since the new one’s a plug-in hybrid, it needs to carry a big battery. Cars tend to gain a little weight with every new iteration as reinforcements are made, safety is enhanced, and features are added. In the RS5’s case, the powertrain conversion comes with a huge weight penalty. But in spite of that, at least on paper, Audi was able to preserve the 0 to 100 kph (62 mph figure) and power-to-weight ratio while cutting emissions dramatically.
We’ll have to reserve real judgments for the first test drive of the new RS vehicle. Meanwhile, here are some comparative specs for more context. Yes, the car got heavier and larger—but the new one also pollutes a lot less.
| 2024 RS5 Sedan (Old-Gen) | 2027 RS5 Sedan (New-Gen) | |
|---|---|---|
| Powertrain | V6 TT + 8-Speed Tiptronic AWD | V6 TT PHEV+ 8-Speed Tiptronic AWD |
| Horsepower / Torque | 464 / 443 lb-ft | 630 / 609 lb-ft |
| Curb Weight | 3,825 lbs | 5,192 lbs |
| Power-To-Weight | 0.121 hp/lb | 0.121 hp/lb |
| GVWR (Max Weight Car + Cargo) | 5,115 lbs | 6,404 lbs |
| Length | 15.7 ft | 16.1 ft |
| Width | 6.7 ft | 6.9 ft |
| Height | 4.5-4.6 ft | 4.7-4.8 ft |
| 0-62 mph | 3.7 seconds | 3.7 seconds |
| Top Speed | 186 mph (ECU governed) | 155 mph (ECU governed) |
| Fuel Economy | 24.0-24.2 mpg | 54.7-61.9 mpg 23.5-24.8 mpg with discharged battery |
| Emissions | 357.3-354.1 (CO2 grams per mile) | 157.7-138.4 (CO2 grams per mile) |
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