2026 Audi RS6 spied – over 700bhp of hybrid power for M5 Touring rival
Audi’s next RS6 Avant super-estate is very much on the way
The new Audi RS6 Avant is due to arrive next year and we’ve received some exclusive images of it testing on the road. The car is thinly disguised, meaning it can be easily identified as the upcoming high-performance estate. Here’s everything we know so far.
The disguised car is recognisable as an RS6 rather than an RS5 thanks to the front lights, which are from the latest A6, as are the more distinctive rear lights, which feature a split design. What’s definitively RS and entirely in line with what we’ve seen from the test cars of its smaller sibling, the new RS5, are the vents and exhausts. At the back, two prominent ovals are, like those on the RS5, more centrally mounted than on previous RS Audis. These are mounted up in the bumper, which appears to feature diffuser-esque styling elements.
At the front we see similar large vertical flanking vents to those first seen on the RS5 prototypes, with large radiators visible behind the mesh. On the front wings there’s flared ventilation similar to what we first saw on the current RS6 GT.
Not so obvious is what powers this RS6 prototype. It’s all but confirmed that the V8 will live on, albeit with significant hybridisation, though there are no warning stickers visible alluding to this prototype being electrified. The hybrid system itself is expected to be similar in nature or related to the Ultra and High Performance Hybrid systems of the latest Bentley Continental and Flying Spur range.
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These combine a new version of the long-serving 4-litre twin-turbo V8 with an electric motor sandwiched between it and the transmission. Feeding the motor is a 25.9kWh battery mounted behind the rear wheels. Should the RS6 borrow these powertrains wholesale, it would sport either 670bhp or a whopping 771bhp output. The latter would give the RS6 a healthy lead over the new 717bhp hybrid BMW M5.
With a V8 augmented by a motor and big batteries, it’ll probably have a kerb weight to match the 2475kg M5 Touring too, which means Audi will be exploring its options in terms of how to suspend the RS6. The current car is air sprung, with the optional RS Sports Suspension Plus system swapping that out for springs and three-way interconnected dampers with pitch and roll mitigation.
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The RS6 could get the active suspension system from the Audi RS E-Tron GT Performance and Porsche Panamera, which use air springs and adaptive dampers connected to hydraulic pumps for roll control. Expect four-wheel steering for added agility too. Whatever the next RS6’s constitution, we won’t know anything for a while yet. It’s set to be revealed in the second half of next year.
