Not content with its petrol-powered R8, Audi is reportedly pondering an all-electric supercar. Yep, another one, despite the short-lived R8 e-tron only being killed off late last year.
According to Audi research and development boss Peter Mertens, the German brand is eager to have another halo electric model in its range, most likely in the form of a high-performance supercar.
“The question is ‘would I like to make it happen soon?’ and the answer is yes, of course. For a brand like Audi, a supercar is always interesting and it’s a segment in which we have been playing. We have been a very serious player,” Mertens said.
During a chat with Autocar, Mertens hinted that any future electric supercar could be developed alongside Porsche in a bid to accelerate its development and combine the EV expertise from the two VW Group companies. If this were to happen, the new vehicle would feature 800-volt fast-charging like the Porsche Mission-E.
“800V puts a significant extra cost on the bill. We need to evaluate whether customers will be prepared to pay that… In segments like super-sports cars, the answer will be yes, no doubt about it,” Mertens said.
The Audi R8 e-tron endured a tumultuous history and was first conceived almost a decade ago. Numerous concepts were presented and in 2012, the car was given the go-ahead for production. However, then Audi development boss Wolfgang Durheimer killed the project in 2013 before it was restarted by Durheimer’s successor, Ulrich Hackenberg. After 19 months on the market, production of the supercar ended last year with less than 100 examples sold.
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