Audi R8 production has come to an end after 17 years and two generations.
The final example of the mid-engine supercar rolled off the line at a plant in Germany last week, but it isn't destined for a customer. Instead, Audi will keep it at its official museum in Ingolstadt, Germany.
The car was an R8 V10 Performance coupe finished in Vegas Yellow, similar to the one shown here.
R8 production was originally scheduled to end in 2023, but Audi extended production after it received a flood of orders following the announcement last year of the car's demise. A special R8 V10 GT RWD model launched in late 2022 to mark the car's run.
2023 Audi R8
Audi hasn't said whether there will be a direct successor to the R8, but should there be one it will almost certainly be an electric vehicle. Audi plans to launch its final car equipped with an internal-combustion engine in 2026, after which the automaker will only launch EVs—and that commitment extends to the Audi Sport division that is responsible for the R8.
The PB18 E-Tron concept Audi rolled out in 2018 is the best representation of what an R8 successor could be. The concept featured solid-state batteries, which are lighter than current liquid-type batteries and quicker to charge. It's a technology Audi's Volkswagen Group parent is preparing for the second half of the decade.
The R8's corporate cousin, the Lamborghini Huracán, is also on its way out. A successor arrives in late 2024, and is tipped to use a version of the Revuelto's carbon-fiber platform and a new V-8 plug-in hybrid powertrain.
The R8 was conceived as a way to celebrate Audi's success in endurance racing, as well as to spread the investment cost of the Gallardo supercar from fellow Volkswagen Group brand Lamborghini. The R8 was previewed at the 2003 Geneva motor show by the Audi Le Mans Quattro concept, and reached U.S. shores as a 2008 model. It was initially powered exclusively by a 4.2-liter V-8, but a few years later Audi dropped the Gallardo's 5.2-liter V-10 into the R8, creating in the process one of the first exotic cars that could be used as a daily driver.
