By John Griffiths
Published: July 11 2009 01:38 | Last updated: July 11 2009 01:38
Stephan Reil is a stealer of souls. Not human souls, but the souls of great racing marques: Aston Martin, Jaguar, Porsche, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Bugatti. There is something of each in Audi’s new V10-engined R8 two-seater, one of the best cars to emerge from a production line.
“We have tried to touch all the bases of what makes such cars so attractive,” says Reil, head of development at Audi’s high-performance Quattro division. As he speaks, we are looking across to where the Andalusian sun glints off the taut, crouching shape of a bright blue model, the line of its lean flanks broken immediately behind the doors by a vertical slash of unpainted carbon fibre housing an air intake to feed the car’s mighty 518-horsepower, 5.2-litre engine.
My heart usually sinks when I hear phrases such as “touch all the bases” offered as the rationale behind a car’s development. All too often – and this was a big factor in the downfall of General Motors – the outcome is “committee” cars that are adequate in purpose but inspire no one. Yet, on looks alone, Reil and his team have succeeded. And, both under the skin and on the road, the story is much the same.
The V10’s shape combines the brutal aggression of Bugatti’s 1,000-horsepower Veyron with some of the grace and beauty of Aston Martin’s DB9. The latter is perhaps seen – along with Porsche’s 911 Turbo – as the V10’s closest rival. The build quality is at least equal to the Porsche and promises the same everyday, non-temperamental practicality. There is even room – just about – for two sets of golf clubs between the seatbacks and the mid-mounted engine. The accelerator pedal is generous in travel and particularly progressive, lending a remarkable docility on small throttle openings. It really is as happy dawdling to the supermarket as tearing up the motorways. But unleash the V10 to its full, soaring 8,000rpm and there is a sheer savagery in the car’s performance, while Audi’s normal discretion over engine noise is blown to the heavens. The V10’s voice at high revs is part shattering Ferrari howl, part Lamborghini snarl, part the deep growl of a V8 Le Mans Corvette.
These qualities alone make it a compelling proposition. Add in the relative value for money of a Jaguar and a peerless chassis whose balance and four-wheel drive system make it the most secure-handling of all the current “supercars” and the V10 becomes almost irresistible.
It is one of the hardest tasks of manufacturers to lure wealthy car buffs away from existing allegiances to Porsche, Ferrari or any of the other brands. But I suspect this car will skim from them all.
None of this is to denigrate any of the opposition. Jaguar’s sublime new XKR, with its new V8 engine only 20 horsepower short of the Audi, now has towering performance – in a straight line, little different to the V10. It also has rear child seats and, at just under £80,000, is priced on a par with the V10’s little brother, the V8-engined version of the R8, which is 100 horses less powerful. Aston Martin’s DB9 may cost £10,000 more than the V10 Audi, but few would deny that it is the outright winner in the beauty stakes.
Meanwhile, Ferrari’s F430 and Lamborghini’s Gallardo have the edge over the Audi in terms of excitement, but cost £30,000 more. Mercedes-Benz’s SL 63 AMG two-seater matches the big Audi on price and pace but somehow contrives to be more refined and sedate, leaning away from sports car and towards grand tourer. And Porsches – well, they are Porsches ...
Recession notwithstanding, we really are going through a golden – if environmentally dubious – era for luxury sports and “supercars”. There is no such thing as a bad choice to be made between any of the cars above. They are all tours de force of styling and engineering, each with its own characteristics. You pays your money and you takes your pick, with no penalty other than depreciation. On that count, the Audi promises to do well. CAP, the motor trade’s monitoring group, is forecasting a 40 per cent residual value for the V10 after three years, the same as Porsche’s 911 Turbo. The XKR is not far behind at 38 per cent, with the Mercedes on 34 per cent and 33 per cent for the Aston Martin.
You have to see the R8 V8 and V10 models side-by-side to notice any exterior differences; the bigger side intake panels and wheels of the V10 then become apparent. The V10 also has a few more interior fittings. But it is the extra performance that accounts almost entirely for the £20,000 premium of the V10 over its smaller sibling.
And, actually, a buyer has to budget an extra £5,000 again for the V10. Not to do so is to go without the spectacularly smooth and fast-changing R tronic sequential gearbox. Whether you shift it manually via a drive-by-wire joystick or steering wheel-mounted paddles, or leave it to do its own thing automatically, it leaves the standard manual gearbox looking outdated and almost pointless. Trust me, we mere humans cannot shift as fast or as well – particularly when the transmission is in its selectable “S” mode, a racing shift pattern in all but name.
So who is the car aimed at? Jeremy Hicks, UK marketing director, claims to have a pretty clear idea: 97 per cent men, average age 48-50, with a minimum family income of at least £100,000 a year. Most takers will be hardcore motorsport enthusiasts although some, Hicks acknowledges, will simply buy for perceived prestige.
He predicts that Audi will sell 150 of the V10s a year in the UK, exactly the same as the V8. And he will be absolutely spot on, for the simple reason that R8s are in effect hand-built, with only 3,000 or so produced per year to spread around the world. He could sell many more, he grumbles, but 300 cars a year is all the Neckarsulm factory will allow him.
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