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From YourSITE.com Audi News One of the most anticipated new cars from Audi is also probably the most exclusive since the homologation special Sport quattro. Audi’s new R8, a mid-engined, aluminum-made, exotic has its debut firmly scheduled for Thursday, September 28, 2006 at 4:00 PM Paris time. That’s 10:00 AM Eastern Standard Time for those marking their calendars.
One could probably follow this story back to the Frankfurt Auto Show, not to 2003 when the Le Mans concept was first shown, but to 1991 with the introduction of the quattro Spyder Concept. Today’s R8 has nothing to do stylistically with the quattro Spyder , but it is important to note that the quattro Spyder was the first modern example from Audi to show the company’s curiousity for the potential of a mid-engined sportscar. The quattro Spyder was also the first showing of Audi’s “Aluminum Space Frame” technology also known as ASF. By using aluminum, the quattro Spyder emphasized the benefits of using lightweight aluminum and mating it to the company’s new and normally aspirated 2.8-liter V6 – not the most sporting engine, but still with considerable published performance numbers nonetheless. Weeks later at the Tokyo Motor Show, Audi took the mid-engine concept idea one step further with the Avus concept - a concept car designed with a major knod toward the Auto Union racecars of the 1930's. The strikingly handsome Avus with its polished aluminum body panels also showed a prototype of Audi's W12 engine - a hint at big-displacement motors to come from Ingolstadt.
The Avus may have tugged at the heartstrings with its clear association to Audi’s pre-war Auto Unions, but industry savvy automotive journalists at the time knew it was the quattro Spyder that looked more like it meant business. As the public raved, Audi management considered building the mid-engined sportscar and just what the car might do for the company’s image. Rumors at the time suggested it was Ferdinand Piech’s familial pressures (he’s a Porsche after all) that eventually quashed the project, though not before at least two examples were built and shown. Fast forward over ten years to September of 2003. The Frankfurt Auto Show’s schedule is fuller than full, so it was Audi who staged a bit of a coup by closing down a Frankfurt city street near the German city’s convention center to hold what Audi P.R. termed “Audi Sports Night”. Under floodlamps and with a makeshift grandstand packed with journalists, Audi rolled out a serious collection of some of its most sporting heritage cars. An Auto Union grand prix racecar, a Pikes Peak Sport quattro, an IMSA 90 quattro, a V8 DTM racer, an A4 STW touring car and finally a 2003 R8 LMP1 racecar all flashed down the straight in front of the stands, all driven by one of Audi’s works drivers, then parked in flanking formation. Finally, Audi’s illustrious leader Dr. Martin Winterkorn roared down that crowded strip of pavement in an all-new interpretation of a theme begun in 1991.
The car was the Le Mans Concept – named for the 24 Hour endurance race where the R8 was racking up all of those wins. Its revolutionary LED headlamps with too many bulbs to count pierced through the cold Frankfurt air that night as Winterkorn stepped out of the car. Low and sleek, with a satin aluminum panel on each flank, the Le Mans concept featured a twin-turbocharged FSI-powered V10 that seemed almost otherworldy. The design marked an edgy new direction for Audi, while production remained unclear. Those journalists eyeing the car that evening probably hoped it might be produced, but most probably thought it would share the same fate as the Avus and quattro Spyder – a design exercise, nothing more. Then Audi got serious. Dr. Winterkorn started alluding to the car in speeches, leading to out-and-out confirmation the car would be built. The car was even called by name, donned with the same “R8” moniker as the racecar that conquered Le Mans. The chassis, with no secrets about it sharing component sets with Lamborghini’s Gallardo, would most definitely be from Neckarsulm, benefiting from the latest practices learned in the development of Audi’s Aluminum Space Frame technology.
From there on, the game was on. In addition to Winterkon’s speech mentionings, R8 test mules began to be spotted. At first it was a wisp of a car, photographed through a fence, deep in some cold-weather test facility. Then, with an itsy bitsy teeny weeny polka dot disguise, the car rolled out in all its glory on the fabled German Nurburghring – a track so populated with spy photographers that they ought to start building condos for them. Sure, that little track in Germany known as the “Green Hell” is great for testing. It’s also fine for causing a stir in the automotive news community as you can almost guarantee the car will be photographed. Just in case any of the army of spy photographers at the track missed it, the car returned… again and again, even sans the polka dots. Some inside rumors put the car’s launch at this past summer’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. However, rumors since then suggest the plug was pulled on that plan so as to let the new Audi R10 racecar revel in all its own diesel-won glory. With the 24 Hours of Le Mans passing and no R8, the solid internal rumors then placed it at the Paris Auto Show where just about everyone has gotten confirmation the car will finally show up. Further info puts the official American launch at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November or at Detroit in January, with perhaps a surprise showing even before that.
Then, just this past week, another R8 mule popped up on the radar. Ryan Porter of the new website Carster.com was on his way home from the office in Santa Monica, California when he spied it – initially not believing his eyes. Not having his camera, the erstwhile spy photographer sped back to his office, grabbed the camera and returned… astonishingly to find the R8 still parked in the same beachside lot. Porter managed to nab a few shots before the Audi technicians with the car jumped in and drove away. Then, the same car and technicians were spotted in Arizona, shot in photos provided by Phoenix-based spy photographer Brenda Priddy – confirming there’s a near-production quality R8 mule hot weather testing and most likely based out of the Volkswagen Group’s Arizona test facility. What to Expect from a Production R8 Initial spy photographs of the R8 mules, internally known as AU714, had Fourtitude theorizing on everything from a Mazda RX-8 style four door 2+2 to TDI engine. Based on what we know now, the 4-door is probably not true, though plans for a diesel-powered R8 remain to be seen. Certainly the car won’t launch with a diesel, but diesel Gallardo prototypes have been seen testing in the past near Lamborghini’s factory, so it is a lot more certain Audi has thought about it seriously enough to test, if not acted on the idea in regards to plans for full production.
More likely, the car will launch with a 4.2-liter V8 that is probably close in spec to that of the potent RS 4. The other most-likely engine candidate will be the FSI-powered V10 FSI that is has found a home in the S8 and S6. Some rumors in the press put the V8-powered R8 in contrast with the Porsche 911 Carrera 4 in pricing. However, if a V10 does happen, expect the pricing on that model to be significantly higher.
Another persistent rumor about the car is availability of the Volkswagen Group’s DSG, now known as S-tronic at Audi. This dual-clutch wunder-shifter auto-manual hybrid has won the hearts of enthusiasts, though up until now has only been fitted in cars with transverse engine layouts such as the A3 and upcoming S3. A 7-speed longitudinally mounted version was shown in Audi’s Roadjet concept, though we hear that doesn’t assure its use in the R8. If it does come with S-tronic, we hear that won’t be in the first few production years at least. Audi was also said to have been testing mules of the R8 with Lamborghini’s own single-clutch e-Gear setup, though has decided not to exercise that option for the R8.
The new Audi Ceramic brake system will most likely be made available as an option, though not a cheap one. With the system being a nearly $10,000 extra on the upcoming S8, don’t expect anything less in price for the R8. As mentioned earlier, following the car’s debut in Paris, the R8 will make its North American auto show debut in Los Angeles or Detroit. Actual production versions of these cars could show up in dealerships on this side of the pond as early as May of 2007. Wheels on most of the mules shown thus far have been yanked straight from the Lamborghini Gallardo partsbin, though more recent German photos show the car rolling on rims that look much more close in appearance to a design fitted on the new TT and the 20-inch split 5-spoke design optional on the new Q7 4.2. A production version would probably wear 20-inch wheels. Another question about the production R8 is how it will differ in appearance from the Le Mans concept. A comparison between the two has been drawn before by this website, though we have more detail to go on at this time based on information gathered. Most likely, the R8 will retain the accenting segment on the rear flanks. Test mules have been disguised to leave one guessing as to whether the R8 would get a window in this same real estate, though window or not, the panel will be retained. We hear it could be color matched, or offered in an accenting tone such as brushed aluminum, titanium finish, or even more options. A possible second body style is suggested for 2009. This will most likely be a convertible, following the lead of the Gallardo. The last question on everyone’s minds is will the car be previewed before Paris through a limited leak of photos and information. Thus far, there’s been no hint of a microsite like the “TT Lounge” that previewed Audi’s other sports coupe. Further, there’s no mention yet of photography or information prior to the show. Whatever the case, it will most certainly be covered on these pages.
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