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2020, the year of plenty is what they say. For luxury German car maker Audi, it certainly is. Locally, Audi will introduce more than 15 models this year.
One of them is the focus of our story, and it's the first-ever RSQ8. It made its debut at the Los Angeles motor show in late 2019 and is the first full-size SUV to don the coveted RS badge.
Audi South Africa will introduce the RSQ8 in the third quarter of 2020.
The RSQ8 is powered by a 4.0-litre V8 TFSI with 440kW and 800Nm, which will move the performance from standstill to 100km/h in a very impressive 3.8 seconds.
As per the gentleman's agreement, the RSQ8 has a governed top speed of 250km/h.
SEE | Audi’s 2020 onslaught - Here are all the new models coming in Q1 from the German automaker
The V8 bi-turbo also leans on the mild-hybrid system (MHEV) that uses a 48-volt main electrical system as its basis.
The core of the MHEV is a belt alternator-starter connected to the crankshaft.
Audi says during deceleration and braking, it can recover up to 12kW of power and store it in the compact lithium-ion battery.
While some may think the forced induction will eliminate the V8 engine's noise, Audi says the unique 1-3-7-2-6-5-4-8 ignition sequence 'guarantees' a voluminous sound which is further enhanced by the RS sport exhaust system.
An eight-speed tiptronic gearbox does duty in the RSQ8 with a power split of 40:60 ratio to the front and rear wheels, in the event of slip the torque will be directed to the axle will better traction and Audi says up to 85% can be channeled to the rear axle.
Check out the team from Deutsche Welle put the RSQ8 through its paces in Tenerife, Spain.
Image: Newspress
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