2008 Audi S5 Coupe Quattro MT6

2008 AUDI S5 COUPE QUATTRO MT6

Base Price: $50,500

As Tested: $58,490

Type: Front-engine, all-wheel drive, 4-passenger, 2-door coupe.

Engine: 4.2-liter V-8

Power: 354 hp, 325 lb-ft torque

Transmission: 6-speed manual

MPG: 14 city/21 hwy

source:foxnews

When a company paints a car "meteor gray" with a "magma red" interior, certain expectations are raised. They could just as easily call the colors "cloud and rose" or "dolphin and lipstick."

Clearly Audi has something else in mind.

The 2008 S5 is the company's first foray into the compact sport coupe segment since it stopped selling the legendary Quattro nearly two decades ago. Since then Audi has been taking on BMW's vaunted M3 with a lineup of sedans, wagons and even convertibles, avoiding a direct confrontation with the two-door king of the hill.

Let the battle begin.

The S5 comes loaded for bear with a 354-horsepower version of Audi's 4.2-liter V-8 and a brand new all-wheel drive chassis that also underpins the more pedestrian A5 on which it is based.

This being the sport model, it has an angrier-looking face, rubber-band-thin high-performance tires mounted on 19-inch rims and an interior dressed up with lots of go-fast bits. A pair of the kind of sports seats you dream about having every time you see one of those beautiful winding road signs with the S-curve painted on it give you a place to enjoy it all from.

Sitting there you'll find a six-speed manual transmission close at hand (an automatic is also available) and a black, leather-covered steering wheel dressed up with some spicy red stitching. The materials are of the high quality we've come to expect from Audi, and the dashboard takes on a much more driver-oriented demeanor than past efforts.

The shapes of the instruments are modern, but chrome accents add a touch of old-school sports car. With a single cowl taking in the instrument panel and center stack, the S5 has a serious cockpit feel to it, though the driving experience is more B-2 bomber than F-22.