GENEVA – Audi unveils a second concept based on its upcoming Q8 at the 2017 Geneva auto show, previewing a 469-hp variant of the luxury SUV running a newly developed gasoline hybrid-electric driveline.
Audi claims the powertrain boasts 0-62 mph (100 km/h) acceleration of 4.7 seconds, along with a range of up to 746 miles (1,200 km) in combination with a 22.5-gallon (85-L) fuel tank and 0.9 kWh lithium-ion battery pack.
Called the Q8 Sport Concept, it is set for production at parent company Volkswagen’s assembly plant in Bratislava, Slovakia, in 2018.
The new Q8 will act as a range-topper in the model lineup. Although officials at Audi’s Ingolstadt, Germany, headquarters initially hinted the new 3-row SUV would wear RS Q8 badges, it now appears the new model will be marketed under the SQ8 name.
The Q8 Sport Concept is distinguished from an earlier Q8 Concept by a series of stylistic upgrades aimed at endowing it with a more sporting appearance than its more mildly powered sibling, such as a restyled single-frame grille featuring a black frame and honeycomb lattice insert.
The new grille is set within a more heavily structured front bumper housing enlarged air ducts and a more prominent splitter element in the form of a black blade along its lower edge. The headlamps also have been modified with darkened inserts but retain the same distinctive X-shaped LED graphics as the earlier concept to give the new Audi a rather sinister face.
Farther back are black exterior mirror housings and black sills underneath the doors. Compared to the Q8 Concept revealed at the North American International Auto Show in January in Detroit, the wheel housings also have been widened 0.5 ins. (12mm).
The rear of the new SUV is dominated by a full-width tail lamp graphic set within a black panel. On the Q8 Sport Concept, the lower section of the bumper adopts a black diffuser rather than the silver element used by the original Q8 Concept. It also eschews the earlier trapezoidal tailpipes for oval exhausts typical of Audi’s performance-orientated models.
Rounding out the visual upgrades are new 23-in. alloy wheels with intertwining spokes. Some 11 ins. (279 mm) wide, they come shod with 305/35 profile tires and hide sizeable 20-in. (508 mm) carbon ceramic brake discs. The first official photographs of the new Audi also hint at a lowered ride height for the Q8 Sport Concept to reflect its sportiness.
At 197.6 ins. (5,000 mm) long, the Q8 Sport Concept is a scant 1.2 ins. (30 mm) shorter than the Q7, with which it shares its platform, quattro all-wheel drive and air suspension.
The hybrid driveline is expected to migrate to a number of new Audi models, including future incarnations of the A6, A7 and Q8 as well as the Q7 and the production version of the Q8. It is based on a twin-turbocharged 3.0L gasoline direct injection V6, which borrows engineering solutions from the twin-turbocharged 4.0L diesel V8 used by the SQ7 such as a 48V electrical system and an electric supercharger that operates at up to 70,000 rpm. Alone, it delivers 444 hp and 391 lb.-ft. (530 Nm) of torque.
The combustion engine is mated to a disc-shaped electric motor mounted within the front section of the Q8 Sport Concept’s 8-speed, torque-converter-equipped automatic transmission delivering 27 hp and 125 lb.-ft. (170 Nm) of torque. Together, they provide a combined system output of 369 hp and 516 lb.-ft. (700 Nm) of torque.
Energy used to power the electric motor is stowed in a 0.9 kWh Li-ion battery mounted within the floor of the luggage compartment. Audi says the operating strategy of its new gasoline-electric hybrid system allows the big SUV to move slowly in stop-start traffic with the combustion engine idled, as well as enabling maneuvering and parking exclusively under electric power. During braking, a newly developed energy regeneration system employs the electric motor as a generator to recharge the battery.
“The drive system of the Q8 Sport Concept is a major step towards optimizing efficiency,” Audi Chairman Rupert Stadler says. “The combination of mild-hybrid technology and combustion engines sets a new benchmark. In the future, it will be used in many Audi models.”
