2027 Audi RS6 Avant Makes Big Sounds On The Nurburgring

We'd also like to direct you to this latest spy video, showing the new RS6 PHEV tearing up the Nürburgring. It's doing what Audi's family-friendly beast is built for, and it won't suffer the fate of its competition from Mercedes-AMG. It might, however, share the biggest critique of the latest M5.

When we learned that Audi would be building an electric RS6, we were worried about what Ingolstadt had planned for one of the best wagons ever built. When it was announced that Audi would be building a gas model alongside it, we suddenly became more hopeful.

Audi Will Make Gas And Electric RS6 Models

It's not that performance EV wagons can't be good (Taycan Sport Turismo, we're looking at you), it's just that, well, there's already one out there and it's not exactly selling well.

So when a new report came out of the UK saying that Audi was going to build both gas and electric RS6 models, on two different platforms, we were excited. Better yet, Audi was planning to keep its wonderful 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 to go with that PHEV motor and battery. Audi would not drop down to a four-cylinder like the forgettable Mercedes-AMG C63. Audi also wouldn't do what Mercedes-AMG did to the E63 and kill it off completely.

Seeing and hearing the RS6 at work puts us at ease. You can hear the engine roar as the test mule emerges from the carousel and some of the other more notable corners on the track. You can also see that this Audi is, in fact, going very quickly through those corners.

Expect Well Over 700 Horsepower

Audi hasn't confirmed it, but we're expecting the 621-horsepower V8 from the current car to carry over into the new one. That gives it more power than the M5's gas engine, but since the M5's PHEV system boosts it to 717 horsepower, Audi will need a bit more than it has now.

Most high-end Euro PHEVs use very similar motors, and they make around 180 horsepower. Add that to the Audi's gas muscle, and you're looking at a final figure of more like 750. This is more than we were expecting from the full EV, which reports have hinted will make 670 to avoid conflicts with the RS e-tron GT.

Our last worry about the RS6 Avant PHEV is weight. The RS6 Avant is already a hefty 5,000 pounds. It doesn't take much battery capacity to push it beyond the 5,530 pounds of the M5 Touring, a car already so heavy that BMW won't tell us the weight next time around. Then again, Audi's midsizer has been heavier than the equivalent BMW for generations now, so its customers might not care that it's as heavy as a Chevy Suburban.

Expect the RS6 Avant to make its debut later this year, and we anticipate it going on sale in early 2026.