It ’s problematical to find someone who would n’t like an alien supercar . Even if you do n’t know much about car , you ’d in all probability enjoy the envious looks as you cruise down the street ensconced in the indulge cabin inside a futuristic automotive shell . And if you had the chance to launch the throttle , to feel those 400 - left horses take off while the machine clingstone to the curves – well , you do n’t need to be a auto enthusiast to appreciate that .
Now , imagine you could have all that at about half the price of most exotics . You just imagined the Audi R8 .
Sure , the R8 still runs you more than $ 100,000 – but regard that most exotics set forth at about $ 200,000 , by husk out $ 114,000 for the base R8 , you ’re saving money . correct ?
The R8 is the marquee car from German car Almighty Audi , which has recently been enjoying a successful sales run , even in the late economical downswing . That ’s due in part to the halo issue of the R8 , a supercar work up to showcase the best of what Audi , and its parent company Volkswagen , can do .
VW own a moderate stake in Audi , and in Lamborghini , the vaunted Italian supercar ship’s company . By aggregate Audi ’s first - class plan with Lamborghini performance division , Audi has made the R8 equal to of straddle the line between luxuriously - price supercar and princely daily driver . In essence , the Audi R8 gets you Lamborghini - like performance at Porsche 911 Turbo prices , plus one of the most admire exterior designs in the industry . When you supply in Audi subsist up to its report of building what some debate to be the finest self-propelling interiors in the humans , it ’s not surprising that the R8 is rapidly becoming the smart elevator car to slobber over .
Keep understand to take the more about the Audi R8 – including its famous Quattroall - steering wheel drivesystem and Lamborghiniengines .
Audi R8 Powertrain
you’re able to reason that the Audi R8 ’s powerfulenginegives its owners something of a conundrum . After all , if you have an R8 , you probably want people to be capable to see you in it . One the other helping hand , if you allow the R8 run – and function fast is somewhat much the distributor point of buying a supercar – you ’ll just be a fuzz . Decisions , decisions .
There are actually two Audi R8s on the market , and they ’re differentiated by their locomotive engine . The R8 4.2 has a 4.2 - cubic decimeter V-8 locomotive engine that realize 420horsepowerat 7,800 rpm . That ’s in addition to the 317 pound - foundation ( 429.8 newton meters ) oftorquethe engine can make . The 4.2 - liter locomotive engine is all aluminum , make it lighter than a cast - ironengine , which avail the R8 go quicker . With the 4.2 - liter , Audi says the R8 has a 4.4 - second 0 - to-60 meter , and a top amphetamine of 187 international nautical mile per hour ( 300.9 kilometers per hour ) . Not too shabby .
Until , of course , you compare that to the R8 5.2 , which has a 5.2 - liter V-10 locomotive engine that makes 525 HP and 391 Lebanese pound - foot ( 530.1 newton meters ) of torsion . With that monster powerplant the 5.2 has a top speed of 196 miles per hour ( 315.4 kilometers per hour ) and a 3.9 - second 0 - to-60 meter . The 5.2 - liter engine is establish on the railway locomotive in theLamborghini Gallardo .
With either engine , a six - speed gatedmanual transmissionis standard , but Audi ’s R tronic transmission is an option . The radius tronic is a individual - hold automate manual gear boxwood . That voice like a contradiction , but in essence , the radius tronic operates like an automatic for the driver while it cultivate like a manual of arms for the car . driver can either let it switch mechanically , or use paddle sceneshifter on the steerage wheel to select each gear .
What ’s perhaps the self-aggrandizing standout feature of the R8 locomotive engine is n’t how powerful they are , but how they fit in the car . Both engine are mid - mount . That intend that they sit around between the two axles – right behind the hind end . While that may seem unearthly – after all , we ’re accustomed to gondola with front - climb on locomotive engine – move the engine rearward facilitate give the R8 its incredible treatment power .
Keep read to see how this Italian - German supercar mashup handles itself when the route produce voluminous .
Driving the Audi R8
The Audi R8 is known for its superb treatment characteristics . While part of that is due to its mid - mountedengine , that ’s not the intact story .
To infer how a mid - mounted railway locomotive helps improve a car ’s handing , stand up . When you stand up straight , most of your weight is focus over your feet , making you stable and secure . Now , lean way forward , and attempt to walk . You get down to teeter , and it ’s tougher to keep control – especially if you ’re trying to walk fast .
It ’s the same thing with car . A car ’s engine – even if it ’s an all - Al super - easy engine like the one in the R8 – is by far the biggest chunk of weight the car carry . If you may keep that weightiness low and centered between the railroad car ’s wheel ( which act as as its " feet " ) , then the car is that much more stable , particularly at high upper .
But the R8 has another manipulation trick going for it . The R8 amount standard with Audi ’s famous Quattroall - wheel drivesystem . Now , you might be think that all - roulette wheel campaign is best saved for snowy days , but it also afford a car potent handling when theweatheris dry .
All - cycle drive mean all - wheel fun on dry day because it circularize the railcar ’s power through all four wheels . That means the car can shift power to the wheels that need it through the curves . On the R8 , up to 35 percent of the power can be shifted to the front roulette wheel , apply it good hold no matter the atmospheric condition .
What may storm you about drive the R8 is that it ’s really comfortable . A mint of exotics are engineered for the track first and the road secondly . The R8 actually does well on both , which makes it slightly more practical than your median supercar . Of of course , supercar lecherousness is n’t progress on practicality . A tidy sum of it is built on expression .
Keep reading to learn more about the R8 ’s exterior styling , including the new R8 Spyder .
Audi R8 Styling
With its sculpted sheet metallic element , the R8 for certain looks the part of anexotic automobile . But it has a couple of extra features that most supercars do n’t have .
From the front , the most obtrusive extra feature the R8 has is itsheadlights . Of course , all supercars have headlights , but the R8 has a row ofLEDlights running through the bottom of its headlight assemblies . The LEDS are daytime run lamps , and they swear out not only as an extra measure of safety machine but also to play up and underscore the cat’s - eye contour of the headlight . It ’s a expression that Audi has started to sway through its entire vehicle crinkle .
The headlamp frame an oversized grilled that reaches down through the front bumper . It ’s an interesting feature – not because have headlamps on either side of a grille is unusual , but because grilles are typically used to allow melody in to cool down the railway locomotive . With the R8 ’s engine nowhere near the grille , having one in the front is a chiefly a stylistic choice .
Another fashionable feature article is the R8 ’s side blades . These are swaths ofcarbon fiberthat run now behind the R8 ’s passenger doorway . C fibre is a super - faint , super - rigid material . It ’s also super expensive . It ’s the favourite material for F1 cars because it ’s so warm yet light . Using while of carbon fiber is becoming more vulgar on road car . Putting it right behind the threshold openings helps the R8 ’s consistency regain some of the specialty that ’s lost by having doors . The R8 also has a carbon - fiber engine cover and carbon copy - fiber side mirrors .
While the R8 is a good looking coupe , for 2010 Audi precede the R8 5.2 Spyder , which has a voiced top . Having a soft top was a functioning selection – convertible punishing tops often append too much extra weight . The R8 Sypder ’s diffuse top only adds an additional 66.14 pounds ( 30 kilograms ) . However , the R8 Spyder does n’t have the coupe ’s typical carbon copy - character side blades .
Audi R8 Interior
Now , while we enounce the Audi R8 was somewhat more pragmatic than the average supercar , that does n’t mean you ’ll be able to force thesoccercarpool in it .
within , the R8 has a luxurious Interior Department , but it only seats two . Plus , theengineis straight behind the seats – so there is n’t a lot of in - cabin memory board available , either .
But those concerns really do n’t matter for supercar shopper . What does matter is that the R8 ’s interior is swaddle in the in high spirits - quality leather Audi is know for , with exact sewing and neat accents . However , just because the Department of the Interior is luxurious does n’t intend it ’s not build for performance as well .
Take the seats : While they ’re posh , they ’re sculpture sport seats as well . They ’re engineered to embrace the occupier ' hips and shoulders , keeping them unattackable through turns . You may not think that weigh – after all , how hard can it be to sit in a chairperson ? But at the speeds the R8 is equal to of make it would be toughened to hold the automobile through a turn if you had to also worry about holding your rear end in the keister . And , if you have an R8 , with either one of its powerful engines , switch it through turns at gamy speeding is exactly what you ’ll require to do .
For more information about the Audi R8 and other supercars , follow the links on the next page .
