Currently reading: New 2019 Audi RS7 Sportback to break 600bhp barrier
Audi Sport's range-topping five-door coupé will use Porsche derived 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 to pack M5-baiting punch

Audi is developing its new Audi RS7 Sportback ahead of a 2019 launch, with the flagship five-door coupé due to put out more than 600bhp.

Prototypes have been spotted testing on German roads with styling details in line with other Audi Sport RS models, including enlarged honeycomb air intakes at the front, bigger wheels and the trademark oval-tipped twin exhausts at the rear.

Revealed: We've seen the new RS7 at Frankfurt. Check it out here.

Set to be built alongside the forthcoming RS6 Avant at Audi's Neckarsulm plant in Germany, the RS7 Sportback will feature the latest 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged petrol V8 found in the Porsche Panamera Turbo and Lamborghini Urus SUV. The engines power output is expected to be around 605bhp, which is 53bhp more than the outgoing RS7 and 8bhp more than the run-out RS7 Performance. A torque figure of 590lb ft is also cited by Audi insiders.

 sb30226

That gives the RS7 the edge in the output race against the 600bhp BMW M5, although the 604bhp Mercedes-AMG E63 S still produces more torque, at 627lb ft. 

As before, drive will go through all four wheels via an eight-speed automatic gearbox and Torsen torque-sensing four-wheel drive system. To aid performance and handling further, the Audi A7's second-generation MLB architecture will bring a weight reduction of around 80kg over the outgoing RS7. 

The resulting 0-62mph time is set to come down to around the 3.5sec mark, while the derestricted top speed will top 190mph. Cylinder deactivation tech will also ensure incremental improvements in quoted emissions and fuel economy.

Before the full-fat RS7 arrives, an Audi S7 is expected to warm up the A7 range in mid-2019. It will trade in the old V8 for a twin-turbocharged 2.9-litre V6, shared with the RS4 Avant, delivering around 450bhp. The engine is significantly lighter than the eight-cylinder unit, which should aid agility, while it should also be more efficient.  

Advertisement

Read our review

Car review

New all-wheel-drive RS7 Sportback mixes 552bhp punch of the RS6 with sleek looks of the A7, but rivals like the Porsche Panamera offer a more composed and complete package

Back to top

Join the debate

Comments
5
Add a comment…
405line 16 November 2018

Another audi

dragster, with few if any mitigating factors

NoPasaran 16 November 2018

405line wrote:

405line wrote:

dragster, with few if any mitigating factors

Times have changed, but you are still stuck in the past. 

As for steering feel, not many have steering feel these days, that's not Audi-specific.

eseaton 16 November 2018

Heavier, bigger, more

Heavier, bigger, more powerful.

Is there a duller story out there?

And how could it possibly only do 190 mph de-restricted?

Peter Cavellini 16 November 2018

Tiger...?

 Judging by the size of those Wheels and the overall shape, the impression you get is?...this is a heavy Car, I’d have thought that Audi would be leading the way with lighter stronger components and Bodywork, but, alas, this is going to be another Tank with, and this isn’t just my opinion, numb steering....

FMS 16 November 2018

Peter Cavellini wrote:

Peter Cavellini wrote:

 Judging by the size of those Wheels and the overall shape, the impression you get is?...this is a heavy Car, I’d have thought that Audi would be leading the way with lighter stronger components and Bodywork, but, alas, this is going to be another Tank with, and this isn’t just my opinion, numb steering....

 

You shouldn't worry too much about any of this cars driving characteristics, or indeed the size/weight of it...you can't afford it and you will never own it.