New R8 is fastest road going Audi in history
AUDI unveiled the secondgeneration R8 at the Geneva motor show which opened this week.
Let’s start with the numbers – an uprated 5.2-litre V10 delivering 449kW, 0-100km/h in 3.2 seconds, 0200 in less than 10 seconds and 330km/h flat out, making this the fastest and most powerful seriesproduction street-car in Audi history.
Actually, that’s only half the story; instead of offering two derivatives with different engines, Audi uses the same engine in differing states of tune.
In this case the top-of-the-range R8 V10 plus is quoted at the aforementioned 449kW, with 560Nm, while the more softly-tuned R8 V10 delivers 397kW and 540Nm. Claimed performance is very little down at 3.5 seconds to 100km/h and 323km/h flat out.
In each case, the 5.2-litre V10’s direct fuel-injection is supplemented by indirect fuel-injection when necessary, improving performance and reducing fuel-consumption. In addition, each variant automatically shuts down one bank of cylinders under light-load conditions, contributing to their nominal fuel-consumption figures of 12.4 litres per 100km for the full-fat flavour and 11.8 litres per 100km for the low-calorie version.
Each drives all four wheels via a shift-by-wire seven-speed S tronic transmission, featuring three automatic modes, a manual mode and launch control. An electrohydraulic multiplate clutch on the front axle replaces the viscous coupling of previous models, allowing totally variable torque distribution between the axles – up to 100 percent either way. There’s also a mechanical differential lock on the rear axle for maximum traction.
The new R8 is built of aluminium and carbonfibre and contributes to a kerb weight for the whole car of 1 555kg.
Suspension is by aluminium double wishbones all round, with variable adaptive magnetic-ride dampers available as an option. Also optional is dynamic steering with variable ratio according to road speed and drive-mode settings.
Four modes – comfort, auto, dynamic, and individual – control the engine characteristics, steering, shift points, and quattro drive, while the V10 plus gets an additional performance mode.
The new R8 will go on sale in South Africa in the second quarter of 2016.
- www.motoring.co.za