Merc1

Audi R8 Spider: the lowdown

Audi is lopping the top off its R8 supercar - and CAR Online has the exclusive proof. This official design sketch leaked from the company's Ingolstadt design studios shows exactly how the open-air R8 will look when it goes on sale in 2009. It follows our scoop on the Audi A1 yesterday, and we have more Audi news to come tomorrow.

This drawing reveals the R8 targa for the first time, with twin speedster humps incorporating breathing vents for the mid-engined V8 behind the two-seater cockpit. The doors are deeply scalloped, as on the coupe, but this time there's a shortened, stumpier aluminium-look blade just ahead of the rear wheels. Tone down the cartoony feel of this sketch (just look at the liquorice-wrapped, deeply dished alloys) and this is the final production car.

This picture confirms CAR Magazine's scoop (October 2006) that the R8 will have removable targa panels, rather than a space-gobbling removable fabric roof or folding hard-top. Fact is, most buyers of this £85k roadster will live in hotter climes like Florida, where a fiddly targa top won't be a problem.

Powering the R8 Spider will be the same 4.2-litre V8 that you'll find in the RS4 and R8 tin-top. It's a high-revving, naturally aspirated V8 mustering 414bhp - easily enough to make the lightweight, alumnium R8 a very capable sports car indeed. And this targa version is aimed squarely at open-top versions of the 911.

There's more change in store for the R8. Audi is planning to drop in the V10 from its donor car, the Lamborghini Gallardo, which will give the R8 sufficient poke (500bhp+) that its four-wheel drive chassis has always cried out for.

It's all part of Audi's continuing plan to leapfrog BMW and Mercedes to become the world's biggest premium car maker by 2015. Niche-filling is the name of the game, as the company targets 1.5 million sales a year, so expect derivatives galore...


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My god. Absolutely stunning if you ask me.

M

Mr. M

Awesome. The thick shoulders give an impression of a wide body.

DaSilva

Mirror's on the Windowframe reminds me of Zonda

SDNR

It looks great ...and I already love the R8.

But here's my confusion: if Porsche is not happy with Bugatti encroaching on their supercar territory, then why on earth is Audi starting to wade into Porsche's mainstream market -- and possibly affecting Lamborghini too?

Mr. M

Typical VAG behaviour... What else can we expect?

ateekt

No doubt, looks really good but if it comes to me, I'll take the coupe ...!

Bartek Sikorski

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1991 Audi Quattro Spyder Concept
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Audi made sensation in 1991 when they unveiled the Quattro Spyder Concept at Frankfurt Motor Show. The concept was a flat sports coupé with a V6 mid-engine and a spectacular aluminium body.
The Quattro Spyder was powered by a V6 engine, installed transversely behind the seats, with an output of 174 bhp. This mid-engine concept ensures that weight is distributed optimally.
The aluminium body is 20 - 40 percent lighter than a comparable steel body. That is why the vehicle only weighs 1100 kilograms.
</STRONG>Initially there were rumors that the concept will go into production and Audi dealers received hundreds of enquiries. But in the end, only two prototypes were constructed.
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SDNR

^^That's a great looking little car Sikorsky ...a pity they never put in into production.

Iceman

They dropped it for the TT.
The Quattro spider had a mid mounted 2.8 litre V6 engine with Quattro.
I think if Audi had put the spider drivetrain in the TT body it would be a better performing car.
Rekon how good the TT Mk2 would become with a evolution of that mid engined layout.
It would out perform the Cayman S, with a 300 hp Audi 3.2 V6 FSI Valve-Lift engine it would be a great drivers car.

Hans.

Alx

I think thats what that car should have been in the first place. The pic only proves it. It looks awesome as a Roadster!