It debuted on the baking sands of Saudi Arabia, had a guest appearance on snow and ice in Austria at the GP Ice race, and now the RS Q e-tron has hit the streets of Hamburg as a star of a digital technology festival. One of the standout attractions at the FUTURE MOVES New Mobility Summit – part of the OMR Festival – the cutting-edge race car hit the streets in a run right through the harbour city.

With champion Audi driver, Mattias Ekström at the wheel and his co-driver from Dakar, Emil Bergkvist riding shotgun, the RS Q e-tron made a grand entry worthy of a Ken Block video.

Indeed, Ekström recently spent time in the RS Q e-tron in Austria with Block, putting the hybrid race through its paces, so perhaps Block’s influence rubbed off on the Swedish champion.

After touching down at the port in a container, the pair gave a taste of just what the highly-specialised racer can do, turning heads as it made its way right through the heart of the city to the festival HQ. Audi is a partner of the event which returned to Hamburg after a two year absence due to the pandemic. New to the program this year was a congress on the future of mobility – a perfect stage for the Audi RS Q e-tron with its futuristic technology and absolute eye-catching appearance in the conference hall.

“Our car is simply made for campaigns like this,” said an enthusiastic Ekström after the blast through the city. “It inspires people and shows that electric cars are not only useful, but also fascinating and lots of fun.”

With its innovative electric drivetrain with a high-voltage battery and energy converter, the RS Q e-tron pushes the limits of what is possible under some of the harshest race conditions on earth. It made its debut at the Dakar Rally in January and impressed with four stage victories. Then in March, it achieved its first overall victory at the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. Audi Sport in Neuburg is currently developing an updated version of the car to take on the 2023 Dakar Rally.