2024 Author: Eric Donovan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 21:13
The sportiest models from Audi have the addition RS in the model name. Like the RS Q8, an SUV with a live weight of 2.3 tons.
The RS Q8 is the brand's first large high-speed SUV: a speed of more than 300 kilometers per hour, a weight of 2.3 tons, powered by a twin-turbo eight-cylinder. American customers in particular prefer such thunderbolts; this is why Julius Seebach, Managing Director of Audi Sport, also sees great potential for conquest. The BMW X6 M or the Porsche Cayenne Coupé show what is possible.
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The Audi exceeds their 550 hp by another 50. Seebach sees, however, as with the RS6, "especially in everyday practicality" a strong sales argument. The chubby horsepower showers have never been a core clientele - although the poison green RS Q8 shown in LA will certainly appeal to such drivers.
An eight-cylinder and sustainability
Seebach also sees its models as "excellently positioned" when it comes to sustainability. After all, the eight-cylinder engines are much more efficient thanks to mild hybrid technology with sailing functions. And in the coming year the fully electric e-tron GT will also enrich its range. The brother of the Porsche Taycan will "show the Audi Sport license plates," said Seebach. 48 volt main electrical system plus belt starter generator on the one hand, a purely electric racer on the other, that does not make Audi Sport sustainable for the future.
Seebach is also aware of this, after all, some regions are now demanding longer emission-free routes for approval or entry into the city. The competitor colleagues from Zuffenhausen have therefore been using plug-in hybrids in Panamera or Cayenne for a long time.
Audi Sport should also follow up on this. The range has just been completely redesigned - so it won't be that fast at the plug-in front. Audi Sport will have offers here over the next five years. Challenge: An electric motor should not only avoid emissions, but also enable a powerful boost from the battery of an RS. “Customers want high performance,” says Seebach.
An electrical high performer is conceivable
The longing could perhaps be satisfied by similarly positioned successor models to the TT and R8, which were actually deleted from the range, with battery support or even fully electric travel. A high performer is also conceivable for the upcoming models on the MEB modular system from Volkswagen, such as the Q4 e-tron. "But even with electric cars, it is not so banal to simply increase the engine output," says Seebach. The difficult and often taller Stromers pose tricky tasks, especially for lateral dynamics.
Sustainability does not only mean motorization and consumption. In terms of manufacturing, for example, all plants should be CO2-neutral by 2025. The suppliers are now also committed to hard sustainability goals. This also includes fair wages or the mining conditions for rare earths. Specifications that also apply to Audi Sport - and in a world that is becoming more sensitive, should achieve additional advantages in the long term in sales.
Offer models faster
But the central argument will also be top sporting performance in the future. And that should be available to customers more quickly. So far it has taken an average of around one and a half years for a new A3, Q5 or A6 to become the high-speed variant. The possible sales period was correspondingly shorter.
In the future, the RS version should also come into the showrooms six months after a new Audi has appeared - and thus convince more customers. Audi Sport sold 30,000 R and RS last year; Seebach wants to double that number by 2023. (SP-X)
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