The German carmaker has unveiled the RS Q8 Performance, its most potent SUV to date, one week after revealing its most potent model to date, the 912-hp RS E-Tron GT Performance. The 2025 model is now competitive with the car’s sporty cousin, the Lamborghini Urus, thanks to a significant power increase.
The Q8 update started last fall and includes the RS Q8 Performance. It has the same basic features as the normal RS Q8, including an eight-speed automatic transmission, Quattro all-wheel drive, and a twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V-8 engine. The RS Q8 Performance’s new exhaust system, which increases output from an already decent 591 horsepower and 590 foot pounds of torque to a whooping 631 horsepower and 627 foot pounds of torque, is what separates the two vehicles.
This increase in performance makes the model Audi’s most potent SUV as well as its most potent exclusively gas-powered automobile (including the R8 supercar of the second generation). Additionally, it now places the RS Q8 in the same ballpark as the Urus, whose non-hybrid variant yields 657 horsepower (but the new Raging Bull electric version boosts it to 789 horsepower).
Audi RS Q8 Performance in 2025
With all that extra power, Audi claims the RS Q8 Performance will be able to reach a top speed of 190 mph and accelerate from zero to sixty-two miles per hour in just 3.6 seconds. The car is also said by the manufacturer to be the fastest production SUV in the history of the infamous Nürburgring Nordschleife, having completed a full lap in 7:36.69 seconds. This makes it an even more potent performance on the racetrack.
The full-size model, which was already the sportiest SUV in the brand’s lineup, has undergone the most understated changes. The most noticeable change is the redesigned front end, which sports a matte grey accent piece exclusive to this model and a three-dimensional honeycomb-style grille with a larger bezel. With Matrix LED headlights and OLED taillights—the latter of which has a few programmable light signatures—the lighting package has also been adjusted.
The 2025 RS Q8 Performance Interior
Interior differences are also not that great. The RS design option, available in red or grey, adds contrast stitching to the perforated leather seats, center console, and floor mats in the same color. Alcantara covers the shifter and steering wheel, however.
In Europe, the RS Q8 Performance will go on sale later this month. Later this year, the American version is anticipated to arrive. The European version will start at €155,700 (about $167,000), though pricing details still need to be confirmed.