The badges at the back may say it’s a fairly standard Audi A7 Sportback in the “55 TFSI” flavour, but in reality we’re dealing with an entirely different type of animal. Even though the Four Rings from Ingolstadt haven’t revealed the S7 yet, they’re eager to put the full-fat RS model through its paces around the many corners of the challenging Nürburgring.
The most obvious clue betraying the true identity of the prototype can be easily noticed at the sensuous posterior of the Sportback where the RS-specific pair of oval exhaust tips grabs all the attention. There are actually more signs that point towards the direction of an RS7 if you look at the side profile where the wings stand out thanks to the chunkier wheel arches.
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Speaking of wheels, although not exactly pretty, those massive black alloy rims further denote we’re dealing with the hottest member of the A7 family. The only piece of camouflage has been applied at the front where it looks like test vehicle had the production-ready bumper with those mean side air intakes, which may look like they’re shaped like a triangle, but that’s probably because of the disguise.
The Audi prototype seen testing the other day at the Nordschleife had a full roll cage front and back, but obviously the final RS7 won’t have that, so you’ll still be able to carry friends or members of the family on the back seats of your stylish saloon mimicking the silhouette of a coupe.
Regarding the identity of the engine hiding underneath the bonnet, a biturbo 4.0-litre V8 shared with the Porsche Panamera Turbo is a safe guess and it’s expected to pump out somewhere in the region of 650 horses. The icing on the cake will be a hybrid RS7 with a massive combined output of 700 bhp by putting to good use the electrified powertrain of the Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid.
Chances are we might have to wait a while for hardcore version as Audi could decide to launch it later like it was the case with the previous-generation RS7 that went on to spawn a Performance derivative.
Photos: Automedia
Gallery: New Audi RS7 Sportback spy photos
