Audi R8
R8 IS Audi's foray into the world
of supercars. In its sights are
the likes of Porsche, Aston Martin,
Mercedes and BMW who,
collectively, should be worried.
That said, Audi can only assign three of
its best workers to hand-build each of these
80K monsters. That limits production to
just 15 cars a day, or 750 a year, a third of
which will come to the UK, one of Audi's
most profitable markets.
Place an order now and you will have to
wait until 2009 for the car. Audi's VIPs were
tipped the wink that it was coming and got
in early - expect to see the R8 parked in
front of a few Premiership club grounds, if
you know what I mean.
Other hopefuls can either wait or head
for Ebay, where buying a place in the queue
can cost you £10,000.
So why the big fuss? Well, R8 boasts Le
Mans-winning heritage. One of the family
came third on its first outing in 1999, first,
second and third in 2000, first and second
in 2001, first, second and third in 2002 and
first in 2005.
Road-going versions possess the most
powerful engine in its class - 420PS from
the mid-mounted 4.2 V8, the highest revs,
the highest top speed of 187mph, the best
acceleration of 4.6 seconds to 62mph, and
the best power-to-weight ratio,
269PS/tonne.
It also looks marvellous and sounds truly
awesome with a deep, throaty growl coming
from the quartet of exhausts.
From the front the R8 is 21st century
modern, sleek, aggressive and low slung.
It could have come straight from the set of
i.Robot.
From the side it becomes more retro,
kind of 70s supercar, a theme which continues
at the back. What is certain is that
it is no shrinking violet and its aesthetics
are as loud as the fruity exhaust.
Inside it's like a supercar version of the
TT. It is beautifully designed and constructed
and the flat-bottomed steering
wheel and retro alloy gearlever are joys to
behold.
On the road the R8 is every bit the supercar
and in many ways more. This breed
of car is normally difficult to drive, with
temperamental, slow-running, heavy-action
gearbox and clutch. Not so the R8,
which is as well-behaved as any in the Audi
range.
Normally I would opt for the automatic,
with its associated paddle shift. On this occasion
the R8 bucks the trend and the better
of the two is the manual, which is also
a lump cheaper.
The auto is fine but the six-speed manual
is superb. Like some mythical beast the
gearshift pokes tongue-like from milled
alloy jaws. The action is magnificent and it
slaps and snicks into any of the six ratios.
Clutch and gearshift are perfectly
weighted and the sound and feel are addictive,
making cog-swapping bliss. Heel/toe
the throttle and the experience is complete.
Ironically, the big V8, on display through
the back window, is so tractable there's almost
no need to change gear at all - but you
do just for the fun of it.
Performance is strong and the handling
typically secure courtesy of Audi's legendary
Quattro all-wheel-drive system.
Steering and brakes are sharp as nails and
the ride amazingly comfortable and forgiving,
even at 140mph around the Paul Ricard
circuit.
In years to come the R8 is expected to be
seen in many guises, more powerful still,
less powerful and more affordable, possibly
even diesel-powered.
2:27pm Saturday 12th May 2007
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