We weren’t able to get the RS5 to the twisting mountain roads in the little time it was with us. But as mentioned earlier, this Four Rings grips as surreally as it accelerates. There’s a nice weight to the steering that feels natural and effortless at slow speeds. Manoeuvring the 444bhp monster through city traffic is easier than one can comprehend. Get up to highway speeds and the responsive steering helps slither through as easily as a hot knife through butter. It’s communicative too. You are aware of what the wheels are doing at any given point and this makes driving the RS5 even more fun.

Step inside the low-slung sedan and it’s a typical Audi affair here. It’s a no-fuss, no-nonsense cabin with the facade of an RS. You slide into a huggable sports seat that holds you tight in all the right places. Grab on to the meaty steering with flat-bottom steering wheel and there’s a reminiscent to the original R8 hidden there somewhere. Although there are no fighter jet-like dual-circular buttons mounted on the steering here, there’s a dedicated RS button for when one wants to wake up the slumbering monster in this ‘Sleeper’.

Usually, high-performance cars are robbed of their luxuries to save a few kilos and shave off a few milliseconds from the quarter-mile time. But not this one. The RS5 Sportback comes loaded with all the equipment and features available in the book, and then some. In terms of hardware, there are all the usual RS gadgetries like Drive Select, large steel brakes, 10-spoke star-style silver-finished wheels, Virtual Cockpit with MMI interface, and sport suspension. In terms of safety, there is a multitude of airbags, rear-view camera, park assist, TPMS, ISOFIX, head restraints for front passengers, and all the usual driver aids you could expect from true-blue sports cars.

With the 2021 update, Audi India decided to ditch the two-door coupe version of the RS5 and brought in the Sportback instead. Moreover, they decided to position it above the slightly mellow (but still ferocious enough) S5 Sportback, which is priced at Rs 79.06 lakh. Meanwhile, this – the full-blown RS – costs around Rs 1.04 crore (both prices are ex-showroom, India). That’s a viable difference of around Rs 25 lakh between these two quick Audis – that are equally unostentatious and won’t grab a second look by a passer-by.