Audi RS 6 e-tron is probably dead, but something else is coming

Audi has been spotted testing late-version prototypes of an S6 e-tron with bigger wheels and a more aggressive stance… but this new prototype is posing more questions than it’s answering. 

Take a look around the internet and you can’t help but notice the multitude of next-generation plug-in hybrid Audi RS 5 and RS 6 Avant prototypes testing across different conditions. 

But when was the last time you saw prototypes of the electric RS 6 e-tron, or RS Q6 for that matter? This new prototype might answer that question – as it suggests Audi has canned its electric RS models.

Instead, the brand seems set to offer an optimised version of the current Audi S6 e-tron. The decision to pull back its top-spec e-trons from being full RS models means far less scrutiny and pressure – and avoids the expensive development programs required to deliver them. 

For example, most RS Avants all feature a bespoke body which is extremely expensive both to develop and build. But there are also huge expectations when it comes to performance, range and driving dynamics. If you’re interested in proving Audi wrong and want to buy a high-performance EV, check out Auto Express’s Find A Car service for big discounts on their RRP. 

So to lower the stakes, Audi will instead create a new S6 e-tron Performance – or similar – that will bring the muscle expected from a high-speed executive EV without the need to break the bank. 

Even Audi has admitted that the high-performance EV market is just too small to support such a wide range of models, forcing the brand to consolidate its line-up. The victims of this appear to be these wide-body RS 6 and RS Q6 e-trons – despite being most of the way through their development programmes. 

For now, though, we’ll just have to make do with the plug-in powered RS 5 later this year, and the RS 6 in 2026. These are models the brand is actually confident it’ll be able to sell in sufficient numbers to justify the business case. 

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