AUDI

Ingolstadt brand intends to throw the sporty R8 in 2025, but electrified

After only 100 units sold and just over a year on the market, Audi decided to end production of the Audi R8 e-tron electric at the end of 2016. A very exclusive car, which cost a million euros, and which was quickly forgotten 

Now, however, Audi is working on an electric successor to its mid-engined supercar, and according to British Autocar(in the projection above), it should be ready by the middle of this decade, within three years. Of course, it will offer top-notch performance, above the current R8 with a naturally aspirated V10 engine.

According to the British, sources from the Ingolstadt brand say that the successor to the Audi R8 will have a different name, but will remain faithful to the two-door coupe recipe. It is said to be the most powerful Audi in history.

Production of the electric super sports car is scheduled for Bo¨llinger Ho¨fe, Germany, where the gasoline-powered R8 is currently assembled, whose commercial life could end at the end of 2023, according to rumors. In any case, as a farewell, a more aggressive, rear-propelled special edition should be launched.

In principle, the future electric model will be based on a platform of Porsche origin, but it is not known if it will be the so-called SSP (Scalable System Platform) that will be used by the next generation of the Porsche Taycan and the e-tron GT, or if it will be the platform being developed for the future electric 718 Cayman and Boxster.

In any case, the replacement of the R8 should be faster than that of the e-tron GT, which is not precisely slow, since thanks to its 646 hp, it accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 3.3 seconds. It should also outperform the R8 V10, which advertises 3.1 seconds.

Audi Sport Managing Director Sebastian Grams told Autocar staff that while the successor to the R8 is a priority, the smaller and more affordable sports TT, also electric, remains in the company's plans.

Although the future R8 will be electric, losing its spectacular V10 engine, its Italian 'cousin', the Lamborghini Huracán, will keep the combustion block, at least for now, as its successor is slated for 2024 with a plug-in hybrid system.

Autonews