The calling card of the Audi R8 hides somewhere behind the seats. Yes, we’re talking about the naturally-aspirated V10 engine that’s also found on the Lamborghini Huracan. This has been a trademark feature of the R8 ever since it came out but, with the electrified future lurking ahead of us, that’s not going to last.
We all know that the R8 can’t keep using that marvelous engine. It’s not because us, as enthusiasts, don’t like it, but because it’s not going to comply with the tightening emissions regulations. That said, it will be interesting to see how Audi deals with this issue.
Audi has been working on this for a while now. Various officials confirmed that if we’re going to see a replacement or a new model for their supercar, it won’t be this year and, most likely, not in 2022 either. However, making the car is not necessarily the problem, but deciding which way it should go.
According to German magazine Auto Bild, we will most likely see a new generation R8, with a twin-turbo V8 under the hood. Sounds familiar? Well, it should, because this would definitely be the easiest way to keep the R8 alive. That’s because Audi already has a great 4-liter twin-turbo V8 in production, found under the hood of cars like the RS6 or the RS Q8.
Using it on the R8 would be pretty easy to do and we could even see it reach higher levels of power. Auto Bild says to expect anything around the 700 HP figure. That would be a drastic upgrade over the current version, especially in the torque department, where naturally-aspirated mills are easily outshined by their turbocharged counterparts.
Since the launch date for the new R8 could be in 2023, it’s quite possible to see this V8 in being hybridized once it comes out, just to make sure it will be clean enough to withstand the test of time.
