2017 Audi R8 V10 Plus Review
It's 2007 and we've recently been struck by the incredibleness of the Audi RS4, yet at the same time, the R8 is a disclosure. A disclosure since it demonstrates that Audi can make a world-class sports auto. We didn't question it knew how to; we simply didn't believe Audi's kin thought it was sufficiently essential to do. Thank sky that they did.
2017 Audi R8 V10 Plus Review - The first R8 arrived with four-wheel drive, an aluminium structure and a naturally-aspirated 4.2-litre V8 engine that revved to the heavens. It won our Britain's Best Driver's Car contest - easily. A larger V10 was added later, and that was superb, too.
This second-gen car, then, has a hefty amount to live up to, which might explain why Audi hasn’t opted to change the formula too much.
This second-gen car, then, has a hefty amount to live up to, which might explain why Audi hasn’t opted to change the formula too much.
2017 Audi R8 V10 Plus
Price £134,500; Engine V10, 5204cc, petrol; Power 601bhp at 8250rpm; Torque 413lb ft at 6500rpm; Gearbox seven-speed dual-clutch automatic; Kerb weight 1630kg; Top speed 205mph; 0-62mph 3.2sec; Economy 23.0mpg; CO2/tax band 287g/km, 37%
Price £134,500; Engine V10, 5204cc, petrol; Power 601bhp at 8250rpm; Torque 413lb ft at 6500rpm; Gearbox seven-speed dual-clutch automatic; Kerb weight 1630kg; Top speed 205mph; 0-62mph 3.2sec; Economy 23.0mpg; CO2/tax band 287g/km, 37%
There’s still an aluminium monocoque, only with carbonfibre-reinforced plastics in key places to increase rigidity by 40% and reduce weight by 15% over the old model. The V10 engine is back, too, though not the V8. Shame.
There's still an aluminum monocoque, just with carbonfibre-strengthened plastics in key spots to build inflexibility by 40% and lessen weight by 15% over the old model. The V10 motor is back, as well, however not the V8. Disgrace.
We generally imagined that the V8 was the insignificantly sweeter-taking care of auto. The V10 stays in 5.2-liter frame yet with more power than some time recently. In its standard appearance it gets 532bhp or, as tried here as the V10 Plus, it gets 601bhp. With a top speed of 205mph and a 0-62mph time of 3.2sec, it's the quickest creation Audi yet. Cor.
There's still an aluminum monocoque, just with carbonfibre-strengthened plastics in key spots to build inflexibility by 40% and lessen weight by 15% over the old model. The V10 motor is back, as well, however not the V8. Disgrace.
We generally imagined that the V8 was the insignificantly sweeter-taking care of auto. The V10 stays in 5.2-liter frame yet with more power than some time recently. In its standard appearance it gets 532bhp or, as tried here as the V10 Plus, it gets 601bhp. With a top speed of 205mph and a 0-62mph time of 3.2sec, it's the quickest creation Audi yet. Cor.
The V10 still sends its energy to every one of the four haggles through a seven-speed double grasp programmed gearbox; there is no manual alternative. The quattro four-wheel drive framework no longer has a gooey coupling to occupy control around, however rather utilizes a multi-plate grip that can redirect 100% of energy to either end.
The perceptive among you will know that those mechanical components sound amazingly like those of the Lamborghini Huracán, and that is on the grounds that they are. We've been left a touch icy by the blisteringly quick however numb-taking care of Huracán so far. We should check whether the R8 can go one better.
The perceptive among you will know that those mechanical components sound amazingly like those of the Lamborghini Huracán, and that is on the grounds that they are. We've been left a touch icy by the blisteringly quick however numb-taking care of Huracán so far. We should check whether the R8 can go one better.
I'll level with you early: it's awe inspiring. Truly, this is a tremendous auto. For one, it's still as simple to live with as it ever might have been. Perceivability is useful for a mid-engined auto, and the inside is exquisite in the way Audi knows how insides ought to be. Ergonomically it's sound and the all-advanced instrument binnacle is fresh and clear, which gives whatever remains of the dash a chance to be spotless, as well.
There are two seats just, with a little retire behind that I think can take golf clubs in the event that you need to. The motor is in the center so there's a little boot at the front. Also, the R8 rides all around ok to push most street protuberances off the beaten path, presumably and additionally a Porsche 911 Turbo does and, I think, superior to a Mercedes-AMG GT or Aston Martin Vantage can oversee.
Right, that’s the sensible bit out of the way. The V10 engine is a mega piece of kit. On start-up it’s rather antisocial. In fact, it is most of the time, but that’s the rub if you want a car which makes peak torque at 6500rpm and peak power at 8250rpm on the way to an 8500rpm red line.
There are two seats just, with a little retire behind that I think can take golf clubs in the event that you need to. The motor is in the center so there's a little boot at the front. Also, the R8 rides all around ok to push most street protuberances off the beaten path, presumably and additionally a Porsche 911 Turbo does and, I think, superior to a Mercedes-AMG GT or Aston Martin Vantage can oversee.
Right, that’s the sensible bit out of the way. The V10 engine is a mega piece of kit. On start-up it’s rather antisocial. In fact, it is most of the time, but that’s the rub if you want a car which makes peak torque at 6500rpm and peak power at 8250rpm on the way to an 8500rpm red line.
And, you know, I rather like a car that has one of those, especially when it’s naturally aspirated and has a superb throttle response and hard, hollow noise – increasingly so if you put the drive modes (of which, inevitably, there are several) into their grumpiest settings and turn up the exhaust.
The seven-speed dual-clutch ’box is as slick as we’ve come to expect them to be, and if you listen carefully there’s a lovely pneumatic-sounding ‘pssht’ on downshifts, a bit like a racing car. Goody.
And it handles. Our route involved some roads in southern Portugal – mostly well surfaced – and the superb Portimao race circuit. I fear the ESP-off button was disabled on the cars we used on track, leaving that safety net in place, but in the most liberated drive mode the R8 still allows a little slip at either end.
It's enough to tell you that, like the Lamborghini Huracán, there’s a touch of stabilising understeer early in a corner; but also that the R8 has a degree of throttle adjustability and agility that the Huracán can only wish for.
The seven-speed dual-clutch ’box is as slick as we’ve come to expect them to be, and if you listen carefully there’s a lovely pneumatic-sounding ‘pssht’ on downshifts, a bit like a racing car. Goody.
And it handles. Our route involved some roads in southern Portugal – mostly well surfaced – and the superb Portimao race circuit. I fear the ESP-off button was disabled on the cars we used on track, leaving that safety net in place, but in the most liberated drive mode the R8 still allows a little slip at either end.
It's enough to tell you that, like the Lamborghini Huracán, there’s a touch of stabilising understeer early in a corner; but also that the R8 has a degree of throttle adjustability and agility that the Huracán can only wish for.
Keep the nose planted on turn-in by trailing the brakes into a bend and the Audi is inclined to pivot around its middle, just like the old one did, and drive its way out on the throttle. The brakes – carbon-ceramic discs as standard on the Plus – are superb, too.
What’s not so good? Not a lot. Our test car had dynamic steering – the system that gives you quicker steering at lower speeds than at higher speeds. These systems are getting better, and they work – the R8 is stable on a motorway and feels agile at manoeuvring speeds – but they still don’t supply a natural feel. A Porsche 911’s rack is better.
And, if you were being really picky, you might mourn the passing of that original V8 R8, with its lighter engine giving even greater agility and handling purity. But the R8 has been all about the V10 for a while now. In that guise, the car previously occupied a quiet little niche of its own, above most 911s and below most exotic supercars, even though it had the pace of the faster cars. It still does, actually. In fact, it doesn't let up.
These days I’d put the Mercedes-AMG GT into the area the R8 finds itself, while McLaren will drop the 540C and 570S in there as well soon enough. The R8 has to be good, then, and it is. It feels more visceral and alive than the Porsche 911 Turbo, and although it’s less raucous and caricatured than a Mercedes-AMG GT, its handling is the more accomplished.
What’s not so good? Not a lot. Our test car had dynamic steering – the system that gives you quicker steering at lower speeds than at higher speeds. These systems are getting better, and they work – the R8 is stable on a motorway and feels agile at manoeuvring speeds – but they still don’t supply a natural feel. A Porsche 911’s rack is better.
And, if you were being really picky, you might mourn the passing of that original V8 R8, with its lighter engine giving even greater agility and handling purity. But the R8 has been all about the V10 for a while now. In that guise, the car previously occupied a quiet little niche of its own, above most 911s and below most exotic supercars, even though it had the pace of the faster cars. It still does, actually. In fact, it doesn't let up.
These days I’d put the Mercedes-AMG GT into the area the R8 finds itself, while McLaren will drop the 540C and 570S in there as well soon enough. The R8 has to be good, then, and it is. It feels more visceral and alive than the Porsche 911 Turbo, and although it’s less raucous and caricatured than a Mercedes-AMG GT, its handling is the more accomplished.
The new R8 does all the things the old R8 did superbly well, and tweaks the competence up by about 10-20% in every key area. It turns out that Audi still knows how to make a world-class sports car and still thinks that it's an important thing to do.
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