The new, second-generation Audi R8 is launching with a 5.2-liter naturally aspirated V-10 as its sole engine offering, the previous entry-level 4.2-liter V-8 having been jettisoned from the lineup. Now Motoring is quoting two senior Audi executives as saying that the car will get a second engine offering, one that features turbocharged power.
The ten-cylinder in the 2016 R8 comes in two strengths: The standard version makes 540 horsepower and 398 lb-ft of torque, while the V10 Plus is good for 610 horses and 413 lb-ft. Even the Plus, however, is down on torque compared with its turbocharged rivals such as the Mercedes-AMG GT S (479 lb-ft), McLaren 570S (443 lb-ft), and Porsche 911 Turbo (487 lb-ft).
Audi board member Ulrich Hackenberg acknowledged that turbo power is coming for the R8: “It is inevitable that we will go to a turbocharged motor for it at some point,” he’s quoted as saying, adding that “it would be in this model cycle, to give us a fuller range.”
That last point—that a turbo would supplement the naturally aspirated V-10 rather than replace it—was echoed by Quattro GmbH chief Heinz Peter Hollerweger. Neither, however, would say what that new engine might be.
There are two possibilities. One is the turbocharged V-6 that’s in the works for the upcoming new RS4 and which will offer better than 420 horsepower. The second, and more intriguing, possibility is a turbocharged inline-five. As we previously reported, the R8 could get a version of the 2.5-liter five-cylinder that was shown recently in the TT Clubsport Turbo concept car. That engine, which actually has both a turbocharger and an electrically driven supercharger, makes 600 horsepower and 479 lb-ft of torque—meaning Audi would have to dial back the boost so that it doesn’t overshadow the V10 models.
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