Audi displays the e-tron concept car at the Silvretta Rally. Obviously there isn’t an electric R8 and won’t be, but Audi used the R8 as a platform for the powertrain, which is being developed and will be implemented into future cars. Check out the video:

We knew it was coming, we just didn’t know when. Audi just officially announced production of the R8 Spyder 4.2 FSI quattro – the latest in the R8 supercar lineup. We already have the R8 Spyder 5.2, featuring Audi’s 525 hp V10, but now those seeking a bit less performance can opt for the excellent 4.2-liter V8 producing 430 hp and 317 lb-ft of torque.

The drop-top R8 is similar to the coupe – standard quattro (AWD) powertrain, available in 6-speed manual or R tronic gearbox, optional LED headlights and seatbelt microphone. The soft top weighs only 93 lbs, controlled with an electrohydraulic system that closes up in 19 seconds.

And for those of you afraid the soft top R8 is for wieners – well, you’re probably right, but it can still scoot. 62 mph from a stop comes in only 4.8 seconds, up to a top speed of 186 mph. That’s with both the manual or R tronic gearbox. And since fuel economy is apparently a concern in a supercar nowadays, the car comes with a regenerative braking system that recoups energy normally wasted while slowing down. This helps the car get an impressive 17 mpg (16 mpg with the manual) combined highway/city miles.

Germany will start seeing the R8 Spyder 4.2 on showrooms within the next few months; no word on bringing the car to the States.
Me, I’ll pass on the silly-looking convertible and head straight for the R8 GT, thank you.

At the risk of reinforcing old school stereotypes, when it comes to cars girls do tend to be a little more interested in colour, interior and accessories, than engine, emissions and handling – with that in mind here’s our specially designed Audi guide for girls, with information on model preferences to suit mood, colour scheme and style.

Soft furnishings – Detroit showcase Audi e-tron

Women excel in the subject of soft furnishings; we love curtains, we love scatter cushions and we love rugs, but we also love style and expect this to extend to our cars. 2010 saw the launch of the Detroit showcase Audi e-tron car – which offers the epitome of sleek interior sophistication, all clean leather lines with a flush gear shift that emerges from the tunnel when the vehicle is started.

Vintage Chic – Audi Quattro Spyder

Proof that true style is timeless; the Quattro Spyder still looks current ten years after its release. Launched at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 1991, the flat sports coupé Quattro Spyder created quite a stir on the auto scene, but despite massive consumer interest only two prototypes were constructed – which means it’ll be a bit hard to compare car insurance should you ever manage to get your hands on one.

Kid friendly – Q5 and Q7

If there’s two of you in a relationship, women are generally lumbered with the ‘family’ / ‘sensible’ car when you have kids, with the man opting for the ‘almost sports’ car in a bid to retain his sense of freedom and adventure. Fear not ladies, the Audi Q5 and Q7 offer all the space and strength to contain and withstand the battery of small children, without the loss of the leather sports interior, air-con and ten-speaker stereo system.

Cutting edge – R8 TDI Le Mans Concept

It’s a very basic, yet hotly denied, fact that we all judge on first looks – meaning you’ve got to make a good impression immediately or suffer at the hands of consequence forever more. As a woman I want my car to stand out not just because it’s bright pink, but also because it’s god damn handsome – and how much more handsome can you get than the R8 TDI Le Mans Concept which is described as having ‘muscular proportions, accentuated wheel arches and even larger air apertures’…?

Complete coordination – all models

I don’t want a sales man to tell me that a car only comes in one colour – if you’re buying an Audi straight from the factory you can pretty much have whatever colour you want, for a few extra pounds of course. Which means if you really want a pink car – you can, and if you always dreamed of a cool chrome car, dream no more.

Oh man, have you ever seen such a specimen of mechanical beauty? “What, the R8?” you say? Not just an R8 my friend…this is the Audi R8 GT. Hot on the heels of our report that Audi is creating a lightweight, faster R8 (the R8 GT3 we thought,) Audi proves us right.

As any car enthusiast knows, the “GT” moniker denotes something special. Something just a step above your standard model. A high-performance version of your favorite car, and the R8 GT delivers.

Not only did Audi manage to shave a significant 220 lbs of the factory R8 V10, but they added an extra 35 horsepower out of the 5.2-liter V10 engine. So, how did they drop the weight you ask? Well, they used polycarbonate for the rear hatch window, a lighter windshield, thinner sheet metal, a fixed rear wing, various cutouts on the front luggage hatch, carbon fiber-reinforced plastic (CFRP) for the rear hatch, rear bumper, and side blades, along with lightening the brake system, putting in a lighter battery, a new air intake system, lighter carpeting, and lighter seats. Whew! They really went the extra mile here, huh?

Too bad they kept a bunch of useless luxury stuff like automatic climate control, power windows, navigation, and MMI. Power windows I understand, but I certainly wouldn’t want navigation and auto climate control in what’s supposed to be a light version of the supercar. Given, it’s not stripped-down Lamborghini Superleggera-style (I’m waiting patiently for that one.) Still…DAMN that thing looks good. See all that carbon fiber? Check out the images below for more details – all that’s optional extra, sadly, and for a starting price of $255,628 – ouch! What’s even more disappointing is that it’s only available as an automatic. Well, the R tronic, but still, no stick shifter.

So, what’s that extra 35 ponies do for the R8 GT’s speed? From a complete stop, the car scoots from zero to 62 mph in 3.6 seconds – not too shabby – keeps going for 7.2 more seconds when it hits 124 mph, then up to a top speed of 199mph. No 200 mph club for it yet, huh? It’s already on sale in Germany, and don’t expect it in the States any time soon. Now the R8 Superleggera? They better bring that over here when it debuts.

Check out more glorious photos below:

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Just as we hear reports of Audi planning a race-ready but street-legal R8 GT3, MTM comes out with this – a massively fast, supercharged, lightweight, Rear-Wheel-Drive version of the V8-powered supercar called the R8 GT3-2. The “2″ at the end represents its drive wheels, differentiating it from the standard AWD cars.

While the performance enhancements are significant (and we will go over those in the following paragraphs,) what we really need to focus on here is that this is an Audi R8 without its quattro AWD system; it’s only driven by the rear wheels. While that may seem like a disadvantage to some, others (especially racers,) will consider this a godsend and buy one based solely on that fact. Not only does getting rid of quattro lighten up the car, but gives it an entirely new driving dynamic. RWD cars are more fun to drive, for one, but can also be driven more aggressively and can be taken around turns sideways (powersliding, drifting,) whereas AWD cars have trouble doing that.

So, what else has been changed? MTM supercharged the R8, effectively giving the 4.2-liter V8 engine 560 HP – 35 more than the V10 version with significantly less weight. It’s only boosted to 8 psi, so crank up that boost and you’ll get even more power. Zero to 62 mph comes in only 3.9 seconds, up to a top speed of 197 mph. MTM also tacked on a special exhaust to increase performance and make the modified R8 sound unmistakable. A special adjustable suspension is added to the car, along with 20-inch lightweight forged wheels wrapped in high-performance Dunlop tires.

Outside, MTM kept it mostly stock, save for replacing the front spoiler, side skirt and rear wing with their own lightweight (and more aerodynamic) carbon fiber pieces. Inside, MTM gets you some Recaro carbon racing seats.

If you’re interested in an MTM Audi R8 GT3-2 – and who would blame you – you can order one from MTM directly or give them your existing R8 for a conversion.

If you think the standard Audi R8 supercar is a bit too “posh” for you, check out what German tuning firm Abt Sportsline just churned out.

The ABT R8 GT R isn’t just your standard tuned car, but a lightweight, high-powered race car for the road and track. The first thing Abt did to this monster is take of Audi’s stock hood, front and rear aprons, rear wing, tailgate, and even the outline edge on the rear, external mirrors, and the door panels – replacing them with their own versions made completely from carbon fiber. The side windows are even replaced with a high-strength, lightweight material called Makrolon. All this stripping down doesn’t sacrifice anything but bulk, and makes for a weight savings of over 220 lbs – a significant number when flying down a track.

As you might expect, Abt didn’t leave the engine alone in this beast. The monstrous 5.2-liter, 525 hp V10 engine in the factory car has been tuned to 620 hp, allowing the Abt R8 GT R to travel from zero to 62 mph in only 3.2 seconds. Keep that right pedal down and the car will reach 124 mph in 9.9 seconds, up to a top speed of 202 mph.

Abt also added a sports suspension and adjustable dampers to fine-tune the performance, along with modified brakes to deal with the extra power. Lightweight 19-inch Abt alloy wheel were added for style and function.

To give it its race track ability, Abt added Recaro racing seats with a 4-point seat belt system, stainless steel roll-over bar with seat belt attachment, hand-held fire extinguisher and a carbon fiber ABT Sports steering wheel.. They’ve even added a an on-board video system and the expandable data module for tracking and recording your lap times and other metrics.

This is truly a track-worthy beast for those who want the gorgeous looks, blistering performance, and overall refinement of an Audi R8 V10 supercar, but also want a highly capable race car.

Readers of German magazine “Auto Zeitung” recently gave Audi a few design awards. First up, Audi was voted “Brand with the most beautiful cars,” beating out over 50 other carmakers. In addition, the R8 Spyder was awarded “most beautiful convertible,” also finishing third for “most beautiful car model,” while Audi got additional props for the A5 Sportback finishing right behind it in fourth.

I don’t particularly agree with the R8 Spyder being very pretty, but you know those Germans…

photo by Mert Esmer

In this episode, MegaFactories goes inside Audi’s production plant to see how Audi builds the R8 supercar. Check out the video below:

source: GermanCarForum

Ever since Audi’s R8 GT3 won last year’s FIA European GT Championship, they’ve been inundated with orders for the race car. After making over two dozen of the cars last year, they have orders for another 30 on the way. And now they’re considering making a road-going version of the V10-powered race car and putting it into production to compete with the Porsche 911 GT3.

Audi’s plan has always been to offer variations of the R8, just like the Lamborghini Gallardo (Superleggera, LP550-2 Balboni, etc,) and Porsche 911. Making an R8 GT3 fits right along with that plan, so I could definitely see plans for the car coming into the light in the near future.

The technology used in the R8 GT3 would likely be more advanced, using carbon fiber for the spaceframe instead of aluminum, and possibly upgrading (or downgrading, depending on you view) to a dual-clutch gearbox. I doubt they would offer the V8-powered R8 in a racing version, but would likely focus on the R8 V10.

source: Autocar.co.uk

German tuners Prior Design just released their latest update to to the Audi R8. Applied to either the V8 or V10 version of the supercar, Prior Design’s version includes a new body kit including a front spoiler, brand new hood, body-color side blade, as well as a new front bumper, side skirts, and carbon fiber rear diffuser.

In the interior, Prior gave the R8 a carbon fiber center console, control panel, and handbrake, along with contrasting red carbon fiber components in the engine bay. Prior also developed their own 20-inch wheels, which I must say look very good.

Pricing is available upon request, meaning it’s very expensive. Check out more pictures below: