Spied Audi R8 Prototype Sounds kind of Turbocharged

At least this is what comes to mind when listenting to the adjavent video, which brings us a series of Nurburgring tests for the next generation of the R8. Coming from the ‘Ring-obsessed crew over at BridgeToGantry, the clip comes with a soundtrack that indicates there could be turbocharged engine in the middle of this Audi.

With all the “wush”es and the “sush”es in the clip, it’s hard to tell if we are actually dealing with forced induction or not. Still, this isn’t the first time when talks about such a future for the R8 emerge.

As you know, the current R8 comes in two main flavors: V8 and V10. At least one of these powerplants could be replaced by a turbo unit. We’ll start with Junior and the naturally-aspirated 4.2-liter V8 may be axed in favor of a twin-turbo V6. Audi has been rumored to be developing such a mill for the next-generation RS4 and RS5 and since the current models share the aforementioned V8 with the R8, this pathway doesn’t sound all that unusual.

The other possibility would be for the 5.2-liter V10 to make room for Audi’s twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8 from the RS6, RS7 and S8. Still, we’d like to remind you that the 5.2-liter V8 only differed from the Lamborghini Gallardo’s engine in terms of intake, exhaust and ECU mapping, with Lamborghini refreshing that unit for the Huracan.

If we are to place a bet, we’d put our dollars on the version that sees the entry-level R8 going down the downsizing road. Either way, the second-generation Audi R8 should make its debut next year as a 2016 model, but we’ll certainly get closer to its combustion secrets by then.