Audi to leave Formula E, enter electric SUV in 2022 Dakar Rally

Firm will replace Formula E efforts with entries into notorious Dakar event and new Le Mans hypercar class Audi will end its Formula E campaign after the 2021 season to make its landmark return to the world of rallying with an entry into the 2022Dakar Rally .   Technical details of the new Dakar racer remain under wraps, as does most of its final design, but it will take its power from an electric motor mated to a high-voltage battery, with a turbocharged petrol engine serving as a "highly efficient energy converter".  In essence, the combustion engine will act as a range-extender device, topping up the battery pack as required while the race is in progress. Audi claims it will be the first "viable alternative-drive concept" fielded in the 42-year-old competition. The 2022 rally will mark the first time that a factory Audi team has competed off-road since Walter Röhrl claimed victory at the 1987 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb in a Quattro S1 E2 . In line with ▶ Full story on autocar.co.uk