For whatever reason, neither Audi nor BMW followed in the footsteps of their star rival Mercedes and its S63 and S65 AMG cars, with Ingolstadt being content with its S8.
Audi has no plans for a future RS8 that we know of, but German tuner MTM has come up with the next best thing: the S8 Talladega, which might as well be the RS8 in everything but the name and the pedigree.
In stock form, the S8’s 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 puts out 520PS (510hp), 40hp less than the RS6 that gets the same engine, but after MTM’s hardware and software changes, the eight-cylinder lump gains 240PS (237hp) pushing the tally to 760PS (750hp) at 5,950 rpm and 945Nm (697 lb-ft) between 1,700 and 5,500 rpm.
The S8 Talladega booms from zero to 100 km/h (62mph) in 3.48 seconds, passing the 200 km/h (124mph) yardstick in 10.51 seconds before reaching its top speed of 325 km/h (202mph), with MTM stating that its maximum speed is limited because of the road-legal tires, otherwise it would exceed 350km/h (218mph).
MTM also gives the S8 Talladega new carbon and ceramic brakes on both axles, an electronic module to lower the air suspension, an aerodynamic kit that mimics the looks of Audi’s RS models together with RS-style twin oval, instead of the S8’s four pipes, and a set of 21-inch Bimoto alloy wheels shod in 295/30 Michelin Pilot Super Sports rubber.
A brand new S8 will cost you €115,800 (US$144,000) in Germany, to which you’ll have to add €35,000 (US$43,500) for the engine tune, €2,200 (US$2,700) for the suspension module, €6,300 (US$7,800) for the wheels, and €15,000 (US$18,700) for the aero kit. All told, a new MTM S8 Talladega will cost you €189,708 (US$236,000).
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