Audi has developed an electric off-road racing utility vehicle used by the German factory team's drivers in the 2023 Dakar Rally Raid. The press service of the automaker published the first teaser of the new car.
Even though the car in the picture is covered with a blanket, it is a classic sports prototype with a Dakar's streamlined body characteristic. Also, the image shows high ground clearance and large "toothy" tires.
Audi is still giving a few details about the future novelty. However, we know that the SUV will not be an electric vehicle but a hybrid. Electric units will drive the prototype, but a compact gasoline turbo engine will act as a generator to recharge the batteries while driving.
Audi will withdraw from the Formula E electric car championship and focus on the Dakar. The rally-marathon will become a platform where the company will test various electrical technologies that the company can subsequently use on "civilian" cars.
The Germans had already experimented with electric high-mobility vehicles. For example, in the fall of 2019, Audi unveiled an electric concept SUV called the Al: Trail at the Frankfurt Motor Show, designed to give an idea of the "green" car for extreme long-distance travel.
Each of the wheels of the Audi Al: Trail is equipped with one electric motor, which gives a total of 435 hp and 1000 Nm of torque. Batteries allow the electric car to travel up to 400 km on a regular road and up to 250 off-road. The maximum speed of the car was 130 km per hour.
The Germans had already experimented with electric high-mobility vehicles. For example, in the fall of 2019, Audi unveiled an electric concept SUV called the Al: Trail at the Frankfurt Motor Show, designed to give an idea of the "green" car for extreme long-distance travel.