New RSQ8-LE is 1000hp 'grand finale'
Abt rounds off its limited edition 130-year anniversary cars with gratuitous take on Audi's second-largest SUV
So here we have it: the final car of the triumvirate, the three Audis celebrating 130 years since Abt’s creation, is an RSQ8. Following a 630hp RS3 and 800hp RS6 was never going to be a simple task, but then this is hardly Abt’s first horsepower rodeo. So what you’re looking at here is a 1,000hp Audi SUV. Happy birthday indeed.
As with previous 1,000hp builds straight outta Kempten, the RSQ8-LE 1000 employs indirect water/ethanol injection for maximum V8 gains. This allows for ‘intensive internal cooling of the engine’; if the air is cool, more oxygen can be combusted, and then you’re well on the way to more power. Abt says the new injection system offers ‘consistently high, reliably available power even under maximum load.’ With a new turbo and intercooler, the LE 1000 gains more than 50 per cent over a standard 640hp RSQ8 Performance. You know, the fastest SUV in the world around the Nurburgring.
There’s a chance that the Abt may even be able to improve on that lap time, for those feeling especially brave, thanks to the introduction of Abt eAWS adaptive roll stabilisation. Actuators on both axles offer ‘noticeably reduced body in corners and a composed, near-sports car feel in an SUV of this class.’ That and the 200mph top speed ought to make the RSQ8 quite handy around a track. There’d be little danger of fellow circuitgoers not seeing you…
The forged 23-inch wheels are gold, as found on the other pair of anniversary specials, but as the finale the RSQ8 ups the ante even further. Note the exposed carbon bodykit from front lip to rear diffuser (including bonnet and arch vents, too!), new badges and a gold anniversary coin on the transmission tunnel. You’re only 130 once.
Hans-Jürgen Abt said: With the RSQ8-LE 1000, we are picking up exactly where we left off with the RS6-LE 800. The trilogy is complete, and all three models stand for what Abt has represented for 130 years: passion, craftsmanship, and the courage to keep setting new standards.”
Once more, just 30 will be built, and they’ll be for only the most dedicated of Abt obsessives: the kit alone costs €165,000 (a Q8 bodykit uses a lot of carbon fibre), plus another €20k on fitting. At current exchange rates, that’s the best part of £160k. Or more than a regular RSQ8 already costs on top of buying an RSQ8. Still, people probably spend similar on an Urus - and that only has 812hp…
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