Don’t expect an RS version of the Audi R8 anytime soon.
Anyone who saw the Lamborghini Huracan Performante’s Nurburgring lap record video and became excited, not because of the incredible achievement, but because of the possibility for an R8 equivalent, should prepare for some disappointing news.
Asked point blank by about Audi Sport’s priorities, Stephan Winkelmann, the sub-brand’s CEO, answered that an SUV was more important than an R8 Performante.
“Once you create a brand, you have to create a lineup,” he told . “We have the R8, and we will do derivatives in different directions. But we have to create a lineup which is more worldwide-sellable than today’s.”
And while that’s deeply disappointing for a variety of reasons — with some publications describing it as “selling out” — it’s also probably a good idea.
Winkelmann used to lead Lamborghini, a company that was in constant financial trouble before it started selling the Gallardo, which, by the standards of the brand, was a hotcake. And that increased cash flow allowed the brand to make the Performante.
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Now Lamborghini is going back to that well with the Urus, which they hope will bankroll a Le Mans campaign and a Miura successor.
Earning more money with SUV sales means more Audi Sport. As Winkelmann put it: “We’re a small manufacturer, and we have to prepare the boat to sail in safe waters.”
Safe waters also apparently mean electrification.
“My priorities are preparing for the next decade,” said Winkelmann. “I’ve only been in the job a year. Matters like electrification and the other things […] are what are consuming 100 percent of my time.”
No need to worry about what made the sub-brand great, though. Winkelmann assured that the R8, the RS4, and their ilk will continue to be produced.
“We will not stop doing ‘the icons’. They are part of what we’re all about,” said Winkelmann. “It’s not just about numbers, it’s about emotions.”
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