It appears that Audi is looking to Rimac for help to develop the all-electric successor of the R8 sports car, and the two companies could give birth to the RS e-tron, Car Magazine reports.

Early details suggest that Rimac will be supplying the four-motor powertrain and fast-charge batteries for the RS e-tron. According to several senior insiders, the new zero-emissions supercar’s output could be around 700 kW (950 horsepower), enabling the all-wheel drive car to sprint from zero to 100 km/h in 2.5 seconds.

It’s tipped to get a 95 kWh solid-state battery pack providing up to 482 km of range, and the battery can be charged wirelessly via inductive charging. As for the platform, the RS e-tron is widely rumoured to utilise the same J1 architecture as the Porsche Taycan, featuring a lightweight aluminium monocoque chassis which seats two.

Other notable features include Active Aero Assembly (AAA) that is said to give the RS e-tron the lowest drag coefficient in its class. Production will take place at Audi’s Bollinger Höfe factory near Heilbronn, home of the A6, A7 and A8. However, due to budget concerns, a large chunk of the RS e-tron’s development work may be done by Rimac. The Croatian company is already allies with Porsche and is in partnership talks with Bugatti and Lamborghini.

As for timeline, expect the Audi RS e-tron to be launched by mid 2020s, carrying a starting price of around 200,000 euros (RM937k). Audi R&D boss Hans-Joachim Rothenpieler said: “Audi Sport must have e-mobility, and our icons for the brand must become electric. We are in discussions regarding the sporty cars and the RS vehicles – they will need a change towards e-mobility.”

“The e-tron GT will come towards the end of 2020 – that’s the first step. Electrically, you can control things more, and have more of an emotional influence on driving behaviour,” he added. So, what do you think of an all-electric Audi R8?

-paultan