Audi has incorporated the name and the genes of the five time Le Mans winner, the Audi R8, into a spectacular sports car. Three years after the unveiling of the Audi Le Mans quattro concept car, the production version made its debut at the 2006 Paris Motor Show in the guise of the new Audi R8 mid engined sports model. It is a fascinating driving machine and the sporty pinnacle of the Audi brand. The mid mounted 420 bhp V8 FSI engine, quattro permanent four wheel drive and Audi Space Frame aluminium body form the basis for truly outstanding driving dynamics.

As the first Audi mid engined sports car, the R8 combines Audi’s experience gained from numerous motorsport triumphs with groundbreaking design and the acknowledged technological expertise of the brand. This expertise has led to the slogan’Vorsprung durch Technik’ becoming a byword for leading edge technology both on the race track and on the road.

Audi has recorded countless motorsport victories on race tracks all over the world. Following the rally successes of the Ingolstadt brand in the 1980s, and its triumphs on the touring car circuit, the world of long distance motor racing was without a doubt the biggest challenge yet faced by Audi’s motorsport engineers.

And they mastered this challenge in style too: the Audi R8 won the prestigious Le Mans 24 Hours five times – from 2000 to 2002 and in 2004 and 2005 – and on two occasions even took the first three places.

Le Mans is without doubt the toughest challenge to the Audi Sport Team’s engineers because it calls for a level of engineering going far beyond the need merely to keep all the systems focussed on a short, sharp sprint. Alongside the essential virtues of top performance and optimised driving dynamics, the key requirements in long distance racing are endurance and reliability, allied with optimum ergonomic design.

These are genes which are eminently transferable to a road going sports car too, and which, allied to its exciting design, make the Audi R8 truly unmistakeable.

Technical Specifications
Engine: 4.2 litre V8 FSI
Aspiration: Naturally aspirated
Maximum Power: 309 kW @ 7,800 rpm
Maximum Torque: 430 Nm @ 4,500 rpm
Transmission: 6 speed manual or Audi R Tronic sequential shift
Drivetrain: All wheel drive
0-100 km/h: 4.6 seconds
Top Speed: 301 km/h

Source: Audi Press Releases

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