Audi has done it. The fast RS car — long the preserve of shouty petrol engines and mild electrification — has officially gone plug-in. Meet the new RS 5, and yes, it still very much means business.

This is Audi Sport’s first proper high-performance PHEV, and rather than tiptoeing into electrification, it’s kicked the door down. Up front sits a familiar but heavily worked 2.9-litre twin-turbo V6 pushing out 510PS, now joined by a 130kW electric motor. The promise? Proper RS pace with a side order of silent, smug electric cruising when you’re just popping to the shops.

But the real nerd bait is underneath. Audi claims the RS 5 debuts the world’s first electro-mechanical rear torque-vectoring system in a production car. In plain English: the car constantly shuffles power between the rear wheels every five milliseconds. That’s 200 times a second. Basically, by the time you’ve thought about understeer, the RS 5 has already fixed it.

There’s more chassis witchcraft too. You get bespoke RS suspension with clever twin-valve dampers designed to be both comfy and properly tied down when you’re in a hurry, plus a new quattro system with Dynamic Torque Control.

Audi reckons the result is a car that can do the daily commute without complaint and then immediately pretend it’s late for qualifying at Spa.

Visually, it’s gone full gym membership. The RS 5 is about 90mm wider than the standard A5, with swollen arches, a gaping honeycomb grille and those obligatory oval RS exhausts out back. The darkened Matrix LEDs even get a checkered-flag light signature, just in case anyone missed the point.

Tick the optional Audi Sport package and things escalate further. You’ll get angrier bumpers, 21-inch wheels, ceramic brakes, a louder exhaust and a raised top speed of 177mph — which is less “eco-hybrid” and more “autobahn missile”.

Inside, there’s new software that lets you pore over lap data and even drift angles on the 14.5-inch screen. Because obviously what every plug-in hybrid needs is post-corner bragging rights.

The new RS 5 Avant and Saloon will be built in Neckarsulm, with European order books opening in early 2026 and first deliveries expected in summer.

Big question? Whether adding batteries to the RS recipe makes it brilliantly clever… or just a bit heavier in the wrong places. Either way, the RS era has officially plugged in.