The drag strip is a battleground for the Audi family.
The second-generation is the oldest high-performance Audi model in the range. It was introduced in late 2015. It was the fastest Audi model at the time, almost seven years ago. But performance goals have changed since then.
Now the question is: How does the R8 compare to the current Audi RS models during a drag race. What cars does it need to beat? It will race the RS 3 Sportback and RS 5 Sportbacks, RS 6 Avant, RS e-Tron GT and the RS Q8.
Let’s first look at the competitors. This test was conducted on the V10 Performance model. It has a 5.2-liter engine, which means it delivers more power. This mid-engined sports car produces 612 horsepower (456 Kilowatts) and 428 pound-feet (580 Newton meterss) of torque. The turbocharger does not help it produce all this power. Let’s now move on to the challengers.
Although the RS 3 Sportback is not the most powerful, it is still a great hot hatch. The straight-five turbocharged 2.5-liter engine packs a powerful punch. The five-pot boosted engine produces 400 horsepower (398 Kilowatts) as well as 369 lb-ft (500 Newton-meters), of torque. This is also the lightest of this group.
Next up is the RS 5 Sportback, which features a 2.9-liter twin-turbo V6. It produces 450 horsepower (331 Kilowatts) as well as 443 pound-feet (603 Newton-meters) torque. These specs may look familiar because they are similar to the Porsche Panamera 4S.
The Audi RS 6 Avant is a heavyweight with a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8. The RS Q8 shares the same engine with its station wagon counterpart. Both cars produce 600 horsepower (441 Kilowatts) as well as 590 pound-feet (801 Newton-meters) of torque.
The R8’s biggest challenger may be the electric RS e-Tron. The dual-motor arrangement produces 590 horsepower (440kilowatts), but can be increased to 637 horsepower (475kilowatts). The electric motor’s torque at rest is the advantage. The RS e-Tron GT is capable of generating 612 pound-feet (830 Newton-meters in boost mode).
Although we won’t reveal which car won, we can tell you that it was close. Six cars were less than one second from the finish line, with the last car being the first. There were some surprising performers, and even an upset. You can watch the entire video to see which performer had the best performance.