Noisy neighbour

Noisy neighbour
While you're being enthralled by whoosh and burble coming from under the bonnet, you're relatively oblivious to the mayhem created by the RS twin exhaust note.

Outside, it's a different story, however, as the rattle of windowpanes in the next postcode will bear testimony to the cracks and bangs the RS emits every time the engine rips into the rev limiter.

In true Jekyll and Hyde fashion, no-one will ever suspect when you come trundling through their village that the RS is a rebel-rouser, as it's really rather civilised when driven sedately.

With fewer revs, the decibels of that barking exhaust are reduced to a mere murmur, while road and wind noise become negligible interlopers.

What's more, although the suspension travel is strictly controlled, what movement there is, is so smooth that the ride's actually pretty comfortable.

In fact, were it not for a thirst more ravenous than a bunch of rugby players on a stag night (30.5mpg is claimed, but it likely to be more like half that amount if you use it in anger), the RS would make a perfectly civilised long-distance tourer.