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Audi fans dismayed at the electric Concept C acting as an R8 successor will find comfort today. The upcoming electric sports car is in fact not the R8 replacement. More over, Audi’s CEO just hinted we might indeed be getting a proper third act to the R8.
Earlier in May, in Austria, days ahead of the 2027 RS5 media launch Audi CEO Gernot Dollner told journalists, “It’s a great V8 engine in the Temerario. 10,000 rev, really outstanding engine” when asked about producing a third-generation R8.
That wasn’t a no, and the CEO seems to know the Lamborghini V8’s redline number off the top of his head. Weird.
Dollner continued without pausing, “And as I said, I mean, we have these opportunities at Volkswagen group to come up from the different technical solutions and combine them. And I mean, the C sport is an example that we build a car with character based on a Porsche platform. And the result is a clear Audi and that’s our approach to have our customers in mind and come up with the right solutions.”
Dollner closed the topic by saying, “Good idea,” while laughing. It was one of those “I’ve got a secret” kind of laughs, not an awkward “stop asking me questions” laugh.
Seconds before the question of a third-generation R8 The Drive had asked Dollner about the future of the V8 engine at Audi. “I’m a big fan of [the] V8,” Dollner said.
Putting the pieces together, Dollner’s a big fan of the V8, called the Temerario’s engine “really outstanding” and knew its redline off the top of his head, and understands the opportunities to borrow different “technical solutions” and “combine them” from within the Volkswagen group’s arsenal of vehicles, platforms, and powertrains.
The path towards a third-generation R8 seems clear and Dollner made zero effort to throw cold water on the idea or say no when the opportunity was handed to him in a room full of journalists.
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As Director of Content and Product, Joel draws on over 15 years of newsroom experience and inability to actually stop working to help ensure The Drive shapes the future of automotive media. He’s also a World Car Award juror.
