Any thoughts of a truce in the unofficial power war waged by the big German manufacturers has been put to rest with reports suggesting the all-new Audi RS6 will have 420kW. That’s slightly more than the current BMW M5 and also tops the competitors wearing a Mercedes-Benz AMG badge.
Power for the next RS6 will come in the form of a 4.0 litre V8 with a pair of turbochargers. In the S8 luxo-express the same engine is good for 382kW, so it shouldn’t prove to tricky for quattro GmbH to turn up the wick and find an extra 30-odd kW or so.
We expect the RS6 will be a fair chance to use the new 7-speed S tronic now found in the facelifted R8 range. Although, it’s worth noting the best the normally aspirated R8 can come up with is 404kW/540Nm in the 5.2 litre V10 Plus model. The RS6 will top that torque figure by a healthy margin—the S8 has 650Nm—so if the S tronic isn’t up to the task, expect to see an 8-speed slush box used.
Word is we’ll be seeing the RS6 debut at the Geneva Motor Show next March.