Audi to Build R8 Supercar in 2006
Motoring Channel Staff - 16/11/2005
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Audi R8
The Audi TT's big daddy measures 4.37
metres long and just 1.25 metres high
and has curves in all the right places
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It is now official - Audi and its subsidiary quattro GmbH
will build the stunning Le Mans quattro supercar to be sold
and badged as the 'R8' in 2007.
Few details - other than that it will be built - have filtered
through, but if the new R8 matches the concept car's specifications
it will capable of reaching de-restricted speeds close to
350km/h, making it one of the world's quickest sports cars.
Two years ago Audi unveiled the bold Le Mans quattro concept
study at the 2003 Frankfurt Motor Show and the German company
says already plans for its production - in the form of the
R8 - are well underway.
Audi explains that the series production of the R8 at Audi's
plant in Neckarsulm will commence in the fourth quarter of
2006, with a market launch in the U.S. scheduled for mid-2007,
where a large majority of the as-yet un-priced vehicles are
expected to be sold.
The Le Mans quattro concept, on which the R8 is based, featured
a 5.0-litre V10 engine (borrowed from Lamborghini) with twin
turbochargers to create a whopping 449kW @ 6800rpm, which
works out to about 610 horsepower.
For more info on the Le Mans quattro concept's powertrain,
see the breakout below.
Audi has divulged that it will invest €28,000,000 in
the R8 production line, whose manufacture will be undertaken
by Audi subsidiary quattro GmbH.
It also let slip that both development and test construction
at quattro GmbH and the technical development at Audi AG are
currently in full swing, with some 250 employees working on
the production of the R8.
"Through the R8 we are looking to build on our successes
in motorsport and carry them over to series production. This
model represents Audi's very own interpretation of sportiness,"
said Dr. Martin Winterkorn, of AUDI AG, on the subject of
the newest and most powerful member of the Audi model range.
Performance models from Mercedes, BMW, Aston Martin and others
will all be rivals for the new R8, which will sit above Audi's
famed 'S' and 'RS' models as the company's new flagship performance
car.
The R8's styling is expected to change slightly from the
2003 concept car on which it is based (see photos above),
which was equipped with a twin clutch DSG gearbox to provide
for rapid gearshifts, powerful LED headlights, and sat on
20-inch wheels with front tyres sized at 255/30 with the rears
rated at 295/30.
Audi says that it will rely on intelligent lightweight design
for its R8 to achieve a high power-to-weight ratio, with aluminium
space frame technology a core area of expertise in Neckarsulm.
The Audi A2, A6 and A8 were all developed at the Aluminium
Centre there using lightweight design technology.
Audi Supercar
a Reality
 Though
Audi already has supercar cousins in the form of the
V10 Gallardo and V12 Murcielago, both from Lamborghini,
the prominent German automaker has decided that the
time is right to bring it's own supercar into existence.
The new R8, which will be based on the Le Mans quattro
concept, will be mated to an unknown powerplant, but
is likely to be a variant of the concept car's force-fed
V10. The concept engine generated 449kW @ 6800rpm and
750Nm of torque was sustained between 1750rpm and 5800rpm,
making for a nice flat torque curve.
The twin turbos plumbed into the concept car's direct
petrol injection mid-mounted engine maxxed out a 2.0
bar [29 psi] of boost pressure, and help the Le Mans
quattro achieve a rapid-fire 3.7 second 0-100km/h dash.
Though the R8 is expected to output less power to ensure
reliability, we can expect times around the mid 4.0s
for the penultimate sprint.
The lightweight (1530kg) AWD concept car that the R8
is based upon is capable of hitting the 200km/h mark
in 10.8 seconds and, despite the concept study being
electronically limited to a 250km/h top speed, Audi
engineers reckon the sleek AWD supercar is capable of
speeds nearing 350km/h.
- Feann Torr, Editor
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