The Audi RS Q8 is one of the most practical supercars in India and the SUV has got a mid-life facelift which makes the exterior look sportier and the performance has also gone up a little. This follows the launch of the facelifted Q8 which actually got very minor changes. What’s the updated RS Q8 all about?
The face of the 2025 Audi RS Q8 is more aggressive now thanks to its revised bumper and new grille. The red colour looks very attractive and the vehicle’s sporty styling grabs a lot of attention on our roads. The vehicle looks quite sexy and has large proportions giving it amazing street cred.
The vehicle gets 23-inch alloy wheels and fat tyres. The design of the wheels, unlike most other Audis, is quite snazzy. At the rear, you get large exhaust outlets and a redesigned bumper. The entire combination of the bright red body colour and gloss black body inserts is excellent.
The layout of the cabin is very similar to that of the regular Q8. The RS Q8 gets a blacked-out interior colour theme with red-coloured stitching on the seat belts and upholstery and that’s about it. There’s no extra sportiness or drama as such, but quality levels haven’t been compromised at all. The SUV is also loaded with features like a large touchscreen with a banger of an audio system (but who listens to music when you have the growl of a V8?), Virtual Cockpit, heated/ventilated seats with massaging and a lot more.
Since the RS Q8 is similar in size as the regular Q8, cabin space isn’t an issue. The vehicle is roomy enough for 4-5 passengers and the width also helps. The SUV also comes with a large boot but unfortunately misses out on a spare well. The RS Q8 is equipped with 23-inch wheels so you will have to be careful with them on longish drives, or better yet, buy a space saver spare wheel and store it in the boot.
While the V8 engine under the hood is the same as the pre-facelift RS Q8, the power plant now gives an additional 40 HP, taking the total figure to 640 HP and 850 Nm which is sent to all four wheels via quattro. The beauty of the RS Q8 is that it adapts to all the different driving modes really well which means in Comfort mode it feels very much like a regular Q8 – responsive and yet subdued. In Dynamic mode, the SUV really transforms its character and becomes another beast altogether.
The vehicle is quite heavy weighing above 2 tonnes yet it feels really quick on its feet going from 0-100 km/hr in 3.6 seconds. The V8 symphony is amazing and the whole driving experience is super engaging. The top speed is electronically limited to 250 km/hr but you can remove the limiter through an additional pack and bump up the speed to 305 km/hr.
The Audi RS Q8 has brilliant road manners. The handling is spot on and the car sticks to the road really well. You can push the car really hard and yet feel super confident while at it. It really is stupendous to drive and the suspension does its job very nicely. I feel Audi should have given a nice flat-bottom steering wheel to dial up the sportiness in the cabin.
The carbon ceramic brakes do great justice to the kind of power on offer and most importantly, the high ground clearance is a boon on the kind of roads that we have these days. The suspension, tuned well, absorbs bumps with ease even though firmer bumps are felt in the cabin.
The 2025 Audi RS Q8 is possibly one of the best supercars for Indian roads. It looks stunning, has great driving manners and the V8 engine is almost perfect. Priced at a little upwards of Rs. 3 Crore (On-Road, Mumbai), the RS Q8 is likely to find a pretty decent number of buyers. Sure, the Lamborghini Urus comes with the same engine and underpinnings, but it costs almost Rs. 2 Crore more than this Audi!
