Audi may have only just launched its new A6 saloon and A6 Avant, but they’re already hard at work on bringing a more performance-focused variant to bring more smiles per mile. Development mules wearing A6 Avant bodies are presently roaming around Europe, while speculations on what lies beneath are roaming the inter webs.
Word is that the new S6 will ditch the old V8 TFSI unit from the outgoing S6, in favour of the new 4.0-litre V8 that’s presently employed in the Porsche Panamera Turbo. This mill is expected to be used liberally across the Volkswagen Group’s elite brands, and the S6 may be one of the smaller cars to use it.
However, while the Panamera Turbo is rated at a healthy 404kW output, the less-expensive positioning of the Audi S6 means that it’ll likely be tuned down to a figure somewhere around 370kW. This assumption is further highlighted by the fact that an even hotter RS6 could use the same engine in a different tune, meaning that the S6 has to leave enough room between itself and the Porsche Panamera Turbo for an Audi RS6 to (eventually) live, without great threat of cannibalisation across the brands and models.
There was discussion about utilising the plug-in V6-hybrid powertrain from the Panamera E-Hybrid, as noted by UK publication Autocar. However, those rumours have been shot down, as sightings of the S6 development car have not yet shown off an ‘alternative’ fuel door which would hide a charge port. Further, the UK publication noted that the Porsche-developed V8 was chosen due to its “more muscular character.” And if that was a priority for Audi, they definitely weren’t looking at a PHEV.
When it arrives, the Audi S6 will take pride placement as the most potent Audi A6 available, before the RS6 arrives in due course. Quattro all-wheel drive will be a given, while a century sprint time of near 4-seconds is being discussed. Should be interesting. The A6 is also lighter in this iteration, thanks to a hybrid aluminium chassis that sees a reduction in structural weight and an increase in rigidity. So the new S6 should be faster, and lighter on its feet. Score.
Expect to find a thoroughly more aggressive design to go with the newfound-poke in the S6. Revised bumpers, enormous alloys, and visible (and loud) exhausts are expected. With preliminary reviews of the new Audi A6 reporting a surprising level of driver engagement and agility (and not just for an Audi), we have high hopes that the Audi S6 might just be the sleeper you never realised you wanted.
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