We’re well past the halfway point of 2017 and the first half of the year has brought us plenty of exciting cars to look forward to. One new car that hasn’t gotten as much love as it probably deserves is the Audi RS5 Coupe. It was introduced at the 2017 Geneva Motor Show, and while it had a good run in the spotlight, it hasn’t had the same kind of sustained exposure the German automaker wants. Well, that changes today because Audi Sport's Head of Technical Development Stephen Reil dropped a juicy bit of information about the sports coupe in an interview with Car Advice. In so many words, Reil is claiming that the RS5 Coupe is even faster than Audi’s own published claims.

Reil specifically singled-out the RS5 Coupe’s acceleration time in the interview. Apparently, the automaker’s claim that the performance coupe can clock in a 0-to-62-mph time is conservative to what it can actually do. According to Reil, the car can actually accelerate from an idle position to 62 mph in “as little as 3.7 seconds under ideal conditions.” Now the caveat of “ideal conditions” will raise some eyebrows, but Reil added that “even under the worst conditions,” it can do its published 3.9-second acceleration time.” This is interesting because if the RS5 Coupe can really do 3.7 seconds going from a full stop position to 62 mph, it will separate itself from its competitors, namely the Mercedes-AMG C63 and the BMW M4, at least as far as this comparison is concerned.

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It's an impressive claim if proven true, but still not enough to really matter

To be fair, there are many different ways to look at the Audi RS5 Coupe, Mercedes-AMG C63, and the BMW M4 relative to each other. Thinking along those lines means that even with Stephen Reil’s claims, a faster acceleration time than the published number probably won’t move the needle as much as Audi would probably like. It’s a good claim to have, but it still won’t paint the whole picture of what the RS5 Coupe is relative to its rivals from Merc-AMG and BMW.

That said, remember that this is the auto industry, arguably one of the most competitive businesses in the entire world. Automakers routinely try to draw blood from a stone in hopes to gain an advantage over their rivals. That’s the kind of competitive landscape we’re dealing with here and there’s arguably no fiercer competition anywhere in the business than among these three German automakers.

So let’s take a look at how Stephen Reil’s claims that the Audi RS5 Coupe can go from 0 to 62 mph in 3.7 seconds “under ideal conditions” will affect its position against the Merc-AMG C63 and the BMW M4.

Even if the prices in euros are relatively competitive, there’s no denying that buyers will have better bargains if they get either the BMW M4 and the Mercedes-AMG C63. The Merc, in particular, stands out because not only is it cheaper than both the M4 and the Audi RS5 Coupe, it also has more power and a higher top speed than the others. The Audi RS5 Coupe does separate itself with its supposedly “faster-than-advertised” acceleration time, but I don’t think it’s enough to compensate for the lack of power – not as bad as the M4 though – and the extra cost that comes with it.

Stephen Reil’s comments will attract some buyers to Audi’s side, particularly those who put a premium on those numbers. But taken as a whole, it’s unlikely that even if the RS5 Coupe can hit 62 mph at 0.2 seconds faster than the Mercedes-AMG C63, it’s not going to be enough to say that the RS5 Coupe is a better car for their respective values than its Silver Arrows rival.

References

Read our full review on the 2018 Audi RS5 Coupe.