Performance wagons are the securely on the list of items that make our enthusiast hearts go pitter-pat. Sadly, there is a distinct lack of options in this segment, and some of the very best products never make it here to the States. One such long-roof that long ago joined the Forbidden Fruit category is the Audi RS4 Avant, whose successor has been spied racking up the test miles at the Nürburgring this week.
Esquire's 2010 COTY is the 2010 Audi S4 – Click above to watch video after the jump
Avus Performance Audi S4 – Click for a high-res image gallery
2010 Audi A5 – Click above for high-res image gallery
2010 Toyota Prius – MotorWeek Drivers' Choice Award winner for Best of the Year
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To many people, Audi is replacing BMW as the go-to yuppie-mobile of choice. For one thing, Walter de'Silva's designs are almost universally lauded (Q7 notwithstanding) whereas the new crop of Bangled Bimmers are... controversial to put it as nicely as humanly possible. But it's not just down to looks and interior -- it can't be.
Opel's Insignia OPC is one of those "available elsewhere" cars that's got us licking our chops. The Insignia is headed to North America as a Buick, and enthusiasts everywhere hope the hotshot OPC version gets widely propagated. What's not likely to make any trans-Atlantic journeys is a wagon version
Audi Sportback Concept - Click above for a high-res gallery
The 2009 Audi S4 has some serious performance chops. The four-ringed sports sedan can hit 60 in 5.1 seconds, thanks in part to its 330-horsepower, supercharged, 3.0-liter V6. Some of the credit also goes to Audi's excellent quattro AWD system, which helps keep the S4 planted in most any situation. Just for kicks, Audi decided to test the S4 on a mountainside, complete with plenty of snow and some well placed flags.
Click above for high-res gallery of the Audi S5
