2008 Audi R8 Super Sports Car
Audi’s Lambo-based Aston-kicker is as spectacular as we’d hoped.
By Steve Silver, caranddriver.com
Audi has finally pulled the wraps off of the production version of its R8 supercar at the Paris motor show.
The R8, which will go on sale in the U.S. in the fall of 2007, will initially be powered by Audi's 420-hp, direct-injection, 4.2-liter V-8 found in the RS 4 sedan. About a year later, the 5.2-liter V-10 from the S6 and S8 will be available, with output nearing 500 hp. Audi says the all-wheel-drive R8 weighs in at just 3400 pounds, will rocket to 60 mph in less than 4.6 seconds, and can reach a top speed of 187 mph. Given that we were able to run the 0-to-60-mph sprint in 4.6 seconds in the like-engined RS 4 that weighs 17 percent more, Audi's claim seems quite conservative. We think a time of 4.3 seconds is a better guess. Both a traditional six-speed manual and a computer-controlled sequential manual (it's not a new DSG, but rather a version of Lamborghini's E-gear that Audi calls R tronic) will be available.
The R8 is derived from the Le Mans Quattro concept first seen at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 2003. Audi's supercar has retained Le Mans Quattro’s signature Lamborghini Miura-esque front and rear grilles, quad taillights, bubble-shaped roof and, of course, Audi’s single-frame grille. The blade side element you see will be in a contrasting color but, for extra cost, can match.
Both the R8 and Le Mans names invoke Audi’s recent success in endurance racing, but in actuality, the production R8 is much more closely related to the Lamborghini Gallardo with which it shares its structural underpinnings.
Audi hasn't announced pricing for the R8 as yet, but it will undercut the Gallardo by a bunch. V-8 versions likely will cost about $100,000, which will pit the R8 squarely against the Porsche 911 Carrera. Ironically, Porsche owns a big chunk of Volkswagen, Audi's parent company. Audi plans to sell about 1000 R8s per year in the U.S.
By Steve Silver, caranddriver.com
Audi has finally pulled the wraps off of the production version of its R8 supercar at the Paris motor show.
The R8, which will go on sale in the U.S. in the fall of 2007, will initially be powered by Audi's 420-hp, direct-injection, 4.2-liter V-8 found in the RS 4 sedan. About a year later, the 5.2-liter V-10 from the S6 and S8 will be available, with output nearing 500 hp. Audi says the all-wheel-drive R8 weighs in at just 3400 pounds, will rocket to 60 mph in less than 4.6 seconds, and can reach a top speed of 187 mph. Given that we were able to run the 0-to-60-mph sprint in 4.6 seconds in the like-engined RS 4 that weighs 17 percent more, Audi's claim seems quite conservative. We think a time of 4.3 seconds is a better guess. Both a traditional six-speed manual and a computer-controlled sequential manual (it's not a new DSG, but rather a version of Lamborghini's E-gear that Audi calls R tronic) will be available.
The R8 is derived from the Le Mans Quattro concept first seen at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 2003. Audi's supercar has retained Le Mans Quattro’s signature Lamborghini Miura-esque front and rear grilles, quad taillights, bubble-shaped roof and, of course, Audi’s single-frame grille. The blade side element you see will be in a contrasting color but, for extra cost, can match.
Both the R8 and Le Mans names invoke Audi’s recent success in endurance racing, but in actuality, the production R8 is much more closely related to the Lamborghini Gallardo with which it shares its structural underpinnings.
Audi hasn't announced pricing for the R8 as yet, but it will undercut the Gallardo by a bunch. V-8 versions likely will cost about $100,000, which will pit the R8 squarely against the Porsche 911 Carrera. Ironically, Porsche owns a big chunk of Volkswagen, Audi's parent company. Audi plans to sell about 1000 R8s per year in the U.S.
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