Audi R8 to reportedly lose V10 and go all-electric by 2022 [Updated]

The Audi R8 is a very cool car and is far from common. It's rare to see them on the road in most areas. The R8 is currently powered by an Audi V10 engine. That will change with word surfacing that by 2022 Audi plans to ditch the beloved V10 in favor of all-electric propulsion.

The demise of the V10 is no big surprise, Audi is also starting to end the use of V8 engines in its cars with rides like the RS4 and RS5 adopting turbo V6 engines instead. There are still some V8 rides in the Audi line with the A6, A7, and A8 as well as Audi's SQ7 SUV. It would be no surprise to see the V8 in these cars get discontinued in the future, much as Audi has discontinued the manual transmission in the US.

Word is that when the next R8 launches around 2022 there will be no combustion engine offered in the car, Autocar reports. Audi is expected to use liberal bits of the PB18 e-tron concept that was seen in Pebble Beach this year. That concept car was interesting packing 764bhp with three electric motors. It had a wagon-style rear end and aimed to be more daily practical than the current R8.

Many will lament the loss of the V10 in Audi's supercar, but the new electric model will still perform well. The PB18 e-tron claimed a top speed of around 186mph and a 0-62mph time of around two seconds. Audi has seen sales slump for many of its models in recent years, including the R8.

The company is trying to reinvent itself as an electric car maker and plans to sell lots of EVs to the tune of about a third of its overall sales by 2025. Figures being tossed around for the EV R8 include as much as 1000bhp, a 0-62mph time of around two seconds, and AWD.

Update: We've been digging, and the word among people familiar with Audi's plans – early as they may be considering how far out we are from a new R8 – is that the drivetrain situation isn't so clear cut. As it stands, so we're hearing, things are still very much at the discussion phase as to what Audi might do for the new R8's powertrain. As such there are a few possibilities, including the chance of an "R8 e-tron" alongside a more conventional V10 R8, rather than an either/or situation. In short, nothing has been decided finally, so don't get disappointed prematurely if you're a fan of internal-combustion still.