2024 Audi RS Q8 review, performance, ride and handling, design, interior and features – Introduction

Beating a Porsche on the legendary Nürburgring is no mean feat, especially when the Porsche in question is the Cayenne Turbo GT Coupé. But the 2025 Audi RS Q8 Performance did just that. A full-size SUV with 640hp and enough tech for an Engineering Explained video, the RS Q8 Performance might look like a standard Q8 with some blacked-out bits, but that’s the kind of thought that will have you gasping at its performance. We had it for a whole day on a race track and in the Spanish countryside to see what all is new and how much of a difference it has made.

2024 Audi RS Q8 exterior design

On the face of it, the RS Q8 Performance continues with stern expressions and almost no emotion. There is no smiling grille or angry air vents; it’s sleek, sharp and means business.

What’s new over the older version are the LED Matrix headlamps with multiple daytime running lights (DRLs) options and a re-profiled grille finished in gloss black with a 3D honeycomb pattern. Wrapped around the grille is a massive carbon-fibre frame, and there’s more carbon fibre on the front lip and air vents.

LED Matrix headlamps are standard.

The bumpers are sportier and more aggressive than before, and what’s really nice to see is that there isn’t an ounce of chrome to be seen anywhere on the car.

Over to the side, the optional 23-inch wheels look stunning (22-inch come as standard), and these help shave 20kg off the total SUV’s weight. Hidden behind these large rims are massive 420mm carbon-ceramic brake discs (standard on the Performance version) with red brake calipers. Carbon fibre on the outside rearview mirrors finishes off the changes at the side.

OLED tail-lamps get customisable DRL designs.

At the rear, the RS Q8 Performance gets OLED tail-lamps conjoined by an LED light bar, some more honeycomb pattern on the bumper, and a gloss-black diffuser with carbon-fibre surrounds for the oval exhaust tips. Dramatic is not something you’d call the RS Q8 Performance, despite its many oversized bits and plenty of carbon-fibre trimmings (courtesy of the optional Carbon Pack). It’s the perfect look for the introverted car guy, especially in the subtle Satellite Silver paint shade.

2024 Audi RS Q8 interior and features

On the inside, the introversion is even more pronounced as there is little that will ‘wow’ you. As standard, the Performance version gets the Sport Seats Plus; these seats offer lots of bolstering and are also very comfy for long drives. And there is the same honeycomb pattern with Race-Tex and all-black upholstery. But barring all that, it’s all very simple – very high-quality, but nothing that will make it look fast while stationary. Even the steering, which was a chunky flat-bottom one on the previous car, is now a simple round unit. The racy one has been tucked away in the options list. However, you can choose between red, blue or grey for the upholstery contrast stitching. For anything more, like maybe a panoramic sunroof, you’d have to start ticking the options list.

Its interior oozes quality but lacks the drama you’d expect from a 640hp super SUV.

The centre console features the all-too-familiar dual-screen layout, and apart from the RS modes and drive settings, it’s all very simple and straightforward. At the rear, the RS Q8 Performance has enough space for three adults, and there’s four-zone climate control with electric sun blinds for added comfort. But would you want to be chauffeured in a 640hp super SUV? I think not.

2024 Audi RS Q8 performance

Performance is literally this RS Q8’s name, and it is truly mind-boggling. Sure, it has beaten the Cayenne around the Nürburgring, but what does that mean? Is it fun? Or is it a weapon to be wielded only in the hands of a professional test driver? To find out, we did a few laps around the Parcmotor Castelloli in Spain, and a few laps is all it took to showcase why and how this is the fastest SUV around the Nürburgring.

Powering the RS Q8 Performance is a 4.0-litre, twin-turbo V8, as before, but it now makes 40hp more, bringing it to 640, while max torque is 850Nm. The 0-100kph sprint takes an astounding 3.6 seconds, and the SUV can haul all the way to the good side of 305kph. The increase in power is the result of the catalytic converter’s repositioning, which, in turn, has reduced exhaust back pressure. The turbo boost pressures are also higher now, and the end result is an engine with virtually no lag. To add to this instant boost is a 48V mild-hybrid system that lends a hand during acceleration, which means no matter how tight the corner, you can exit it with all the brute force available.

The real star is the nimble chassis.

The 8-speed Tiptronic gearbox is rapid, too, but select Dynamic Plus or any of the RS modes, and it shifts with lightning-fast speeds. The paddle shifters are also quite responsive, and in manual mode, you can have total control of the shifts.

On straightways, the acceleration is a blur, and given the SUV’s driving position, it’s hard to believe that you can be seated this high up and travel this fast. The sense of speed is immense, and the engine sounds terrific at full pitch. Audi has a reputation for making silent cars, but in this, it actually removed some of the sound insulation so you can hear even more of the engine noise on the inside! After all those e-trons, this sure comes as a welcome change.

Out on the public roads, however, the engine changes character in a flash. Swap from the Dynamic or RS mode to Comfort mode, and it puts the leash and muzzle on the engine instantly. You can amble through town without being noticed and in comfort. The engine has a soft burble, which only amplifies post 4,000rpm and, of course, through tunnels. The ease of driving it as a daily driver takes you by surprise, especially if you’ve been hooning it around a racetrack an hour ago.

2024 Audi RS Q8 ride and handling

Speaking of hooning around a racetrack, pin-point handling is not something you expect from an SUV the size of the RS Q8 Performance. Yet, thanks to all the wizardry under the skin, it corners like it has an identity crisis. It refuses to acknowledge it is an SUV; instead, it identifies as a hot hatch. Many things are at play here – active roll stabilisation, all-wheel steering, Adaptive Air Suspension Sport and the new Quattro Sport differential – words you’d find in engineering textbooks but with the effect you’d find in comic books.

The RS Q8 Performance holds the lap record on the Nürburgring for the fastest production SUV.

The RS Q8 Performance corners with absolutely no body roll or understeer, and despite the power and torque available on tap, it always has the grip to save you. A lap record definitely needs precision, which the RS Q8 has, but even for mortals with not even a fraction of the pro talent, it is very hard to look bad on the track. The power split is 40-60 as standard, but in case of slippage, it can send up to 70 percent power up ahead and 85 percent to the rear wheels.

Then, there is the electromechanical active stabilisation, which is basically a motor between two halves of the anti-roll bar. On long, straight highways, the two halves are disconnected, which reduces pitching and vertical movements, but as soon as you get to the corners, they link up and twist the bar in the opposite direction to the turn, thereby reducing roll and keeping the car as level as possible. It sounds complicated, but when you notice the steering is on full lock and you haven’t keeled over in your seat, it makes sense.

Ride comfort with large 23-inch wheels is surprisingly good.

Ride comfort is also surprisingly good, given the weight and, more importantly, the large 23-inch rims with low-profile tyres. The adaptive air suspension is compliant in Comfort mode and tries its best on broken patches, but for Indian conditions, the 22-inch ones will undoubtedly be more comfortable.

2024 Audi RS Q8 verdict and India launch details

Audi has not confirmed the RS Q8 Performance for India as of now, but given the strong response to the older version, it is likely to make it back to home soil in 2025. Prices would be slightly higher than the outgoing version, but you can expect it to be extremely competitive against its arch-rivals, the Lamborghini Urus S and Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT.

As a performance SUV, the RS Q8 ticks all the boxes. It is large, mighty fast and loud enough to shake up the mountains, and best of all, incredible to handle, too. It does not have the flash of a supercar or super SUV, but not everyone wants that kind of attention all the time. For those who love the concept of a ‘sleeper’ or discreet performance, this is what you should get your hands on – enough space and comfort to drop the kids off to school or do an airport run and enough power to never be late.

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2025 Audi RS Q8 Performance video review