Road to Dakar 2023: Audi RS Q e-tron E2: lighter, more aerodynamic and even more efficient

Winner of four stages at the 2022 Dakar Rally, the Audi RS Q e-tron comes back
with a new body and airflow, improved operating strategy and optimised control
concept
Second evolution of the rally winner competes for the first time this October

The Audi RS Q e-tron won its first desert rally in Abu Dhabi
back in March 2022, after a discipline-defining debut at the 2022 Dakar Rally in the Kingdom of
Saudi Arabia, and now the next evolution is ready. The Audi RS Q e-tron E2 presented itself
significantly improved for the 2022 Morocco Rally in September, as it gears up its preparations
for the 2023 Dakar Rally.

During the 2022 Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia, the season-opening round of the World Rally-Raid
Championship, the Audi RS Q e-tron won four stages and clinched a total of 14 podium wins in
the daily classification, the only entry to feature the innovative power delivery system. The RS Q
e-tron exceeded expectations during its debut Dakar Rally participation and this year, the team is
looking to go in even more prepared for what’s to come, with a lighter, more aerodynamic and
upgraded energy converter like never before. Following these changes, the RS Q e-tron now
bears the abbreviation E2, and is reminiscent of the legendary Audi Sport quattro in its final
development stage for Group B rallying in the 1980s.
“We’ve managed a good debut at the Dakar with the Audi RS Q e-tron and even our first stage
victories in a motorsport discipline that is new to us,” said Rolf Michl, Managing Director of Audi
Sport GmbH and responsible for motorsport at Audi. “The entire team is working well together
and, as is usual at such an early stage, the drivers, codrivers and technicians quickly agreed on
the next development targets. We have summarised the result in a new evolution package – the
RS Q e-tron E2.” This marks the beginning of the second phase of the development
programme, and October will see Team Audi Sport preparing for the 2023 Dakar Rally with the
new prototype in Morocco.
Carsten Bender, Managing Director of Audi Middle East, said, “We are excited to make history
once again with the new Audi RS Q e-tron E2. The team is looking forward to building on our
success from our debut run with four stage wins. This time, starting in Morocco and on to Saudi
Arabia for the Dakar Rally 2023. Progress has taken on a new shape and we are looking
forward to witnessing Audi Sport take over the desert again.”

INTERNAL

“The Audi RS Q e-tron E2 does not take a single body part from its predecessor,” explained
Axel Löffler, Chief Designer of the RS Q e-tron. The cockpit, which was previously narrowly
recessed towards the roof, is now significantly wider and the front and rear hoods have also
been redesigned. Given that the first generation of the RS Q e-tron was overweight, it was
necessary to save several dozen kilogrammes, as well as lowering the vehicle’s centre of
gravity.
The aerodynamic concept in the area of the body below the hoods is completely new too. Audi
has now dispensed with the part of the fenders that was behind the front wheels and formed the
transition to the door. As a result, the designers saved more weight and optimised the airflow.
“The aerodynamic aspect should not be underestimated in desert rallying,” says Löffler. It was
possible to reduce the overall aerodynamic drag by around 15 percent. The top speed remains
limited to 170 km/h as per the regulations.
The electronic control system of the complex electric drivetrain proved its worth in the first rally
events, and the Audi and Q Motorsport rally team gained valuable experience. The electric
drivetrain of the Audi RS Q e-tron E2 comprises an energy converter consisting of an internal
combustion engine and a generator, as well as a high-voltage battery and two electric motors on
the front and rear axles.
The Audi drivers Mattias Ekström / Emil Bergkvist, Stéphane Peterhansel / Edouard Boulanger,
and Carlos Sainz / Lucas Cruz can look forward to their new workplaces. The displays are still in
the driver’s field of view and located in the centre console in the usual style, and the central
switch panel with its 24 fields has also been retained. Following initial testing led by Arnau
Niubó Bosch, Head of Test Engineering, Audi Sport unveiled the RS Q e-tron E2 in Neuburg an
der Donau on September 1.