Not the next R8? Audi reveals mid-engined plug-in hybrid V8 Nuvolari.
A couple of weeks ago, we learned from Audi CEO Gernot Döllner that the automaker was likely working on a replacement for its R8 supercar. We now know what it will probably look like, as the brand unveiled the Nuvolari concept in Southern France yesterday on the eve of the Monaco Grand Prix.
The Nuvolari's styling is a departure from Audi's current design language, though it remains consistent with the Concept C, a more compact coupe that will use the same underpinnings as Porsche's electric Boxster. Similarly, the Nuvolari leverages another of Audi's stablemates within the Volkswagen Group empire: Lamborghini. As with both generations of R8, the Nuvolari uses Lamborghini's smaller mid-engined platform.
In the past, that meant a wonderful-sounding naturally aspirated V10 lived behind the cockpit within the aluminum space frame chassis. But the Huracán is gone now, and with it, that engine. Now it's time for the Temerario, which amazed our reviewer when we tested one in February due to the accessibility of its performance and the improvements over its predecessor. The Nuvolari may even eclipse the Lamborghini for performance; with 987 hp (736 kW), it equals the Bugatti Veyron's output.