Audi RS6 sedan to return

The Audi Sport division is set to revive the RS6 sedan after a near-15-year hiatus as part of a new range of electric performance models planned for introduction in 2025.

The new four-door is planned to be sold under the RS6 E-Tron name as a sibling to the RS6 Avant E-Tron wagon, according to senior sources at its engineering headquarters in Neckarsulm, Germany.

The impending return of the RS6 sedan to the Audi line-up has been revealed some 13 years after the internal combustion-engined model ceased production in 2010, making way for the more sportingly styled RS7 ’liftback’ at the time.

Initial plans called for the successor models to today's petrol-powered A6 sedan and A6 Avant to be renamed as the A7 sedan and A7 Avant in keeping with a new naming system developed under former Audi CEO Markus Duismann.

However, the appointment of Gernot Doellner to the head of the German car maker has led to an internal review of future operations and the naming system, say insiders at the company's Ingolstadt base.

The RS6 E-Tron sedan and RS6 E-Tron Avant build on the upcoming A6 E-Tron sedan and A6 E-Tron Avant electric cars that are already confirmed for launch in 2024.

Central to their performance is a newly-developed electric drivetrain, elements of which have been engineered in partnership with Porsche, which will use the dual electric motors planned for an upgraded version of the Taycan due to be unveiled in 2025.

While further details remain scarce ahead of their 2025 launch, the two new electric Audi Sport models are claimed to outpower the existing petrol-powered RS6 Avant Performance and RS7 Sportback Performance, with up to 450kW and more than 1000Nm.

In combination with a two-speed gearbox on each motor and a fully-variable electric Quattro all-wheel-drive system, they are shaping up as direct rivals to the likes of the BMW i5 M60 sedan and wagon as well as the Mercedes-AMG EQE53.

Like their lesser A6 E-Tron sedan and A6 E-Tron Avant siblings, the new RS6 E-Tron sedan and RS6 E-Tron Avant are based on the Premium Platform Electric (PPE) structure developed in an engineering partnership between Audi and Porsche.

It supports an 800-volt electric architecture and a silicon-carbide (SIC) inverter.

Other upcoming new models based on the PPE platform include the Audi Q6 E-Tron SUV and Q6 E-Tron Sportback mid-size SUVs, as well as the Porsche Macan Electric.

The A6 E-Tron concept revealed in 2021 provides clues to the dimensions of the upcoming RS6 E-Tron sedan. With a length of 4960mm, width of 1960mm and height of 1440mm, it is 9mm longer, 74mm wider and 18mm higher than today's fifth-generation A6 sedan.

Before the new electric RS6 E-Tron sedan and Avant arrive, Audi plans to provide the existing petrol model with a further upgrade through the launch of the car known to Audi Sport insiders as the RS6 GT Avant.

Inspired by the RS6 GTO concept revealed in 2020, its twin-turbocharged 4.0-litre V8 is claimed to develop 478kW and 900Nm – an added 15kW and 50Nm over the existing RS6 Avant Performance edition.

Prototypes of what is possibly the last non-electrified RS6 Avant model recently spied testing at the Nürburgring race track in Germany feature a revised aerodynamic package, including a larger wing element above the tailgate at the rear, as well as a newly designed diffuser.

Whether the new GT model will be offered in RS7 Sportback liftback guise is unclear, though it is claimed to be the fastest accelerating RS6 Avant ever.

Nothing is official, but Drive has been told to expect a 0-100km/h of “around 3.5sec” in combination with a top speed “limited to 305km/h”.