The upcoming Audi R6 e-tron caught the attention of our spy photographers last month, and the shots they fired off and fired back to us confirmed that Audi will be carrying over one important ICE RS6 design feature to the electric version. That feature is the wider fenders, which won’t only help the RS6 stand out from BMW and Mercedes rivals but will also make it easy to distinguish from its S6 little brother.
Maybe the S6 e-tron’s ears were burning because this month a prototype of the second-stringer performance sedan ventured past our photo team’s lenses, showing off its stealthier, narrow-body look ahead of its official reveal in 2024.
But even without the fat fender flares, there’s no mistaking the S6’s performance pedigree. It sits incredibly low over wheels that must be at least 21 inches tall, and though the brake rotors are plain, and not drilled, like the ones on the next RS6, you can still clearly make out its large six-piston monobloc calipers at the front end.
Obviously, with this being an EV there’s no sign of the quad tailpipes we’d expect to see on an ICE-powered S-branded car from Audi, and we’re curious to see what Audi will do with the blanked grille to differentiate the S6 and RS6 from regular A6 e-trons, which will share the split headlight arrangement visible here.
Related: 2025 Audi Q6 E-Tron Previewed With 100 kWh Battery And Up To 510 HP
We can still make out some classic S honeycomb mesh in the lower bumper at the front, and there also appears to be some kind of diffuser at the rear, along with a small lip spoiler at the trailing edge of the liftback hatch. Though these pictures only show the sedan, we’re expecting Audi to offer the A6, S6, and RS6 in both sedan and Avant wagon body styles.
The A6 e-tron family is based around the same Premium Platform Electric architecture going into the Q6 SUV and that car’s Porsche sister, the Macan EV. And while the S6 won’t make as much as the 805 hp (600 kW / 816 PS) the RS6 is rumored to put out, if it gets the same drivetrain as the SQ6, it will have a respectable 483 hp (360 kW / 490 PS) that can be temporarily bumped up to 510 hp (380 kW / 517 PS) in boost mode. Audi quotes 4.5 seconds to 62 mph (100 km/h) for the taller and heavier SQ6 SUV, so expect the sedan to knock several tenths off that time and get to 60 mph (97 km/h) in a whisker under 4 seconds.
