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Audi R8 with Turbo Engine Is "Inevitable", will Replace the Old 4.2L V8

One quick look at the supercar drag racing scene will reveal that some exotic car owners don't care as much about precise handling as they do the acceleration. McLaren did it right from day 1 with its turbocharged engines and other companies followed.
2017 Audi R8 1 photo
Photo: Audi
So where does that leave the Audi R8, this semi-affordable supercar infused with German reasonableness? For now, it's quite happy with its Lamborghini-sourced 5.2-liter V10 engine pushing 610 horsepower. However, turbos are on the horizon.

In an interview with Australian magazine Motoring, the head of Audi Technical Development Prof. Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg said the following: "It is inevitable that we will go to a turbocharged motor for it at some point. It would be in this model cycle, to give us a fuller range."

Earlier reports indicated that both the R8 and the Lamborghini Huracan will use downsized engines to appeal to Chinese customers. There, imports with engines smaller than 4L are subjected to much lower taxes, which is why demand for the Mercedes-AMG GT has been much higher than the SLS.

But enough talk of Mercs and Lambos, what will power the turbocharged R8? Well, we have reason to believe that it's the rumored twin-turbo V6 engine being developed for RS models coming out in the next couple of years. The old R8 shared its 4.2-liter FSI V8 with the RS4 and RS5, so it would make sense for this trend to continue.

However, we know that Audi has tested an R8 prototype with the famous 2.5-liter turbo engine of the RS3. Currently, the mill pushes out 367 PS, but an electric supercharger system has been used to increase that number to 600 PS in the TT Clubsport revealed at the Worthersee.
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About the author: Mihnea Radu
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Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida.
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