Audi has unveiled the Nuvolari, a new supercar that the German marque claims is the most powerful and fastest production vehicle in its 120-year history, delivering more than 1,000 metric horsepower. The announcement, made on Friday, 5 June 2026, confirms that the Nuvolari replaces the outgoing R8 at the top of Audi’s range, inheriting a historic name from the brand’s motorsport legacy. The car’s debut follows months of speculation that the Concept Audi C would evolve into a new TT; instead, Audi has chosen to position the Nuvolari as a halo model that shares core hybrid technology with Lamborghini’s Temerario plug-in hybrid .
Engineered in collaboration with Audi’s sister brand Lamborghini, the Nuvolari uses the same high-performance plug-in hybrid architecture as the Temerario, combining a twin-turbo V8 with three axial-flux electric motors and a 106 kWh battery pack. Audi quotes a combined output of 1,025 PS and a 0–100 km/h time of 2.3 seconds, undercutting the outgoing R8’s 3.2-second figure. Top speed is electronically limited to 320 km/h, positioning the Nuvolari above the outgoing R8 V10 Performance Plus in both straight-line and circuit performance. The battery delivers an official WLTP range of 696 km in hybrid mode, a figure that underscores Audi’s push to reconcile extreme performance with everyday usability.
The Nuvolari’s name pays homage to Carlo Alberto “Tazio” Nuvolari, the legendary Italian driver who won the 1935 German Grand Prix in an Alfa Romeo P3. Audi’s chief executive Markus Duesmann described the choice as “a tribute to a driver who embodied courage, innovation and the relentless pursuit of speed.” The supercar will enter limited production at Audi’s Neckarsulm plant in the fourth quarter of 2026, with deliveries scheduled to begin in the first half of 2027. Pricing starts at €395,000 before options, placing it above the R8’s former ceiling of €215,000 and directly in competition with the Mercedes-AMG GT 4-Door Coupé, which Mercedes unveiled on the same day with 1,169 PS and a claimed 696 km WLTP range .
Industry analysts see the Nuvolari as Audi’s answer to the growing demand for electrified hypercars that can still be homologated for road use. “Audi is signalling that it will not cede the supercar segment to rivals like Porsche and Mercedes,” said Matthias Schmidt, editor of the Berlin-based automotive newsletter Schmidt Reports. “By sharing technology with Lamborghini, Audi is also leveraging the cost efficiencies of the Volkswagen Group’s modular hybrid architecture.” The first customer cars will be allocated to European markets, with North American deliveries expected in 2028.