The upcoming generation of the Audi R8 may take a complete lane-change to an all-electric powertrain as the brand prepares for an EV strategy across the global market. This would be a drastic revolution from its current naturally aspirated V10 mill.
According to comments sourced by Road Show, the next-generation Audi R8 has been described as the “next challenge” as the brand attempts to adopt the halo supercar into its E-Tron family. Linda Kurz, Audi Sport’s head of product marketing, confirmed with the publication that the next car will not feature an internal-combustion engine.
Not mentioning the cars under the R segment, RS badged cars will be introduced to electrification, Kurz confirmed. By 2026, 80 per cent of the RS lineup will feature some sort of electrification, and that includes forthcoming purely electric RS-badged models such as the E-Tron GT. This doesn’t quite come as a surprise, but the rate at which we’ll start to see electrified Audi R vehicles and RS-badged cars will be faster than we initially expected.
The Audi R8 in its current state maintains its V10 Performance model with a Quattro drivetrain. The “entry-level” R8 V10 Quattro was discontinued last year.
