The horsepower war between German automakers has turned into a cold war of sorts, in the sense that they don’t openly admit to it but do everything they can to outdone the competition. This is the new Audi S8 Plus and it has a new V8 engine developing 605 horsepower and 700 Nm of torque.

That means this unassuming, rather dull-looking Audi is more powerful than the Mercedes S63 AMG and is now breathing down S65’s V12-powered neck. Audi has always been good at extracting big power from small engines, but still, that’s an insane amount of power to get from a 4.0 liter production engine.

Mind you, Audi S8 Plus is still a heavy beast, which means that even with the help of all-wheel-drive and one of the transmissions in the world, the performance is only marginally better than that of the rivals. Zero to 62 mph in this car takes 3.8 seconds and the top speed is limited to 155 mph. But if you pay extra for the optional dynamic package, top speed increases to 189mph, and you also get fade-resistant carbon-fibre reinforced ceramic brakes.

Visually, Audi S8 Plus is distinguished over the normal, 520 PS models by power door closure, unique 21-inch alloy wheels and carbon fibre front spoiler lip and side flaps, as well as a sport exhaust system. Available to order from October, the car is priced at £97,700 in the UK which sounds reasonable for the amount of power you get.