Audi appears to be working on another RS-branded electric vehicle, this one based on the upcoming A6 e-tron.
The Audi RS6 e-tron will follow the RS e-tron GT but offer a more practical upright sedan body, and give the Ingolstadt brand a rival to the Mercedes-AMG EQE and an electric counterpart to the combustion-powered RS6.
Our spy photographer believes this is an e-tron RS6 based on its large brake discs and red brake calipers.
If this is a prototype for the upcoming Audi RS6 e-tron, it will be the first time the RS6 has been available in non-wagon form for over 10 years.
Unlike the BMW M5 and Mercedes-AMG E63, the RS6 has been a wagon only since the second-generation model was discontinued in 2011.
The core e-tron A6 range, including the Avant wagon, will launch in 2024 per reports from Autocar.
The range of electric sedans and wagons will arrive shortly after the Q6 e-tron crossover, with which it will share the new Premium Electric Platform jointly developed by Audi and Porsche. PPE also supports the upcoming Porsche Macan EV.
“At the end of the year, we will launch the Q6 E-tron, and then a few months later the A6 E-tron,” said Audi design chief Marc Lichte.
“The A6 E-tron is exactly three years after we launched the e-tron GT, and on the A6 E-tron – as you can see on the concept car, which is very, very, very, very, very close to the production car – you can see that we will be sleeker and simpler.”
There appears to be one major difference between the A6 and RS6 e-tron model spy prototypes, and that’s the front lighting – the electric model appears to have split-level lighting, a design trend that’s becoming increasingly popular in the industry.
Using the Porsche Macan EV as a guide, the RS6 e-tron can produce up to 450kW of power and 1000Nm of torque.
For reference, the current Audi RS6 puts out 441kW and 800Nm from its twin-turbocharged 4.0-litre V8 engine, while the RS e-tron GT produces 440kW of power and 830Nm of torque from its dual-motor all-wheel drive powertrain. This is good for a 0-100km/h acceleration time of 3.3 seconds.
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Audi A6 e-tron concept and A6 Avant e-tron
The core A6 e-tron range will be offered with a choice of single-motor rear-wheel drive and dual-motor all-wheel drive powertrain.
The concept sedan uses a 100kWh lithium-ion battery with a claimed range of 700km on the stricter WLTP standard, 800V technology and a charging capacity of 270kW.
The Avant concept also uses a 100kWh battery, along with a dual-motor AWD powertrain with 350kW of power and 800Nm of torque.
The concept’s suspension consists of a five-link axle at the front optimized for electric vehicles, with a multi-link axle at the rear. It also has air suspension with adaptive dampers.
The same size as the combustion-powered A6, the electric sedan and wagon have drag coefficients of just 0.22 and 0.24, respectively.
Audi chose not to reveal the interior of either concept, and the spy photos don’t give us a close look.
However, we can expect to see a tablet-style infotainment touchscreen instead of Audi’s more classic integrated screen if the upcoming Q6 e-tron is any guide.
Audi is expected to shift more of its S- and RS-branded performance vehicles to electric powertrains as it plans to launch at least 20 electric vehicles (EVs) by 2025 and launch its last internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle by the same year.
Audi has committed to becoming an all-electric brand by 2033 in every market except China, with the European Union locking in new rules that will ban sales of petrol and diesel cars, SUVs and light commercial vehicles from 2035.
MORE: It’s all Audi RS6