The Audi R8 will be replaced by a fully electric, zero emission, high performance supercar in 2025/26, the manufacturer hinted. The replacement will be a significant departure from the current vehicle. Today’s R8 has a V10 engine behind its seats, 620PS, and it roars like a lion. The exhaust sounds unmistakable. In contrast, the new car will have an electric motor – or several electric motors – that work, sound, and behave in a radically different way.
Audi R8 replacement to have its own identity
The R8’s replacement will also look totally different to its predecessor. It will have a new name, too. It will not just be ‘the new Audi R8’. Such things will further emphasise that the new vehicle has its own identity. It will inherit certain traits, though. Like the R8, parts of this new supercar will be hand-built.
New platform for electric supercar
Audi is part of the Volkswagen Group that includes Porsche, Lamborghini, and Bentley so its new car could be based on a platform from its parent company. The VW Group Scalable Systems Platform is one of the options. It is a modular platform for electric models that will be widely available in the coming years.
What the Audi R8 replacement needs to succeed
The Audi R8 replacement will need many strengths to succeed. It will have to be as fun, fast, and feisty as its petrol powered predecessor. Some drivers will need convincing it is. There will still be electric sports car sceptics in 2025/26. The vehicle will also have to travel a fair distance per charge – even if driven hard. Drivers will not warm to an expensive car with a short range.
The Audi supercar will also need to handle better than its predecessor, have a modern infotainment system which panders to your every whim, and styling that makes motorists stop in the street and stare. It will need ‘x factor’, too. Specifically, a magic quality that makes drivers love, fear, and respect it. To flourish, the car will have to feel more than the sum of its parts.
Audi boss confirms his commitment
Audi Sport stressed that it is working to make its supercar a reality. Managing Director, Sebastian Grams, said: ‘I am fighting for an R8 successor. So are the board of Audi. We are looking at different concepts and the direction is electrified’, he concluded.