Blip the key. Glance at the lit engine case. Open the door. Settle into the leather bucket seats. Turn the ignition key. BHAAAOOOORRRR... Think "blimey, that's loud!".
The Audi R8 experience is one not normally associated with the brand keen to promote conservative sturdiness and reliability. The R8 breaks this mould.
The looks alone set it apart from the rest of Audi line-up. It looks a cross between a pebble and a space ship, mixed with a hint Ferrari Testarossa. Before clapping eyes on the R8 in the metal, I thought it looked like a tarted up new shape TT. I was very wrong; this thing looks the business.
From most angles, it looks modern, smooth and slippery. Viewed from the rear, it looks like the Testarossa's side vents have been grafted onto its handsome rump, with rectangular lights added as garnish. The rear view is the most becoming, which fittingly, is the end most other drivers will end up looking at.
Covered in a stealthy black finish, the car we had to road test lacked the distractions of the controversial coloured side panels. I was never sure whether I liked the two tone appearance on some of the early pictures. I understood the need to reach out with the styling, but I wasn't thoroughly convinced with the outcome. Order the same colour panels and the rest of the paint and this dilemma will trouble you no longer. Coated in shiny black, this car wouldn't leave Darth Vader feeling disappointed.
Styling on the interior isn't quite as exploratory as the exterior but it remains a pleasant place to be. The controls are all familiar and easy to use. The seats are comfortable and you have easy access to all your mod cons, such as sat nav, air con and heated seats. The ICE system folds down neatly, to reveal memory stick sockets and a CD/DVD aperture. The steering wheel is fully adjustable and there is plenty of space for the taller ones amongst us. Adopting the perfect driving position is simple.
The transmission is handled by a six-speed manual 'box on this car. Continuing the Ferrari theme, it is an open gate affair, which makes a nice clicking sound as each gear snaps home. The clutch is light and simple to feather in when pulling away. The brakes are perhaps a little sensitive at first, but are perfectly weighted as more pressure is applied; you have absolute confidence in speed being brushed off quickly.
Daily driving in the R8 is surprisingly relaxing. With the active dampers (Audi Magnetic Ride option) set to their normal mode, the ride is firmer than an average car, but far from jarring. Bumps and pot holes are shrugged off with little concern, while body control remains tight. More impressive still is the range of driving attitudes which normal damping seems perfectly in tune with. Having sampled numerous cars with a multitude of suspension settings previously, I was half expecting to feel the need to switch to sports mode as the pace picked up. Not so with the R8; while pressing the tempting sports button does noticeably tighten everything up, it seems overkill in most circumstances and makes for a less comfortable ride over varied surfaces.
How does it drive when you up the pace a little? Superbly! On paper, the R8 can despatch 0-60 in 4.6 seconds and 0-100 in under 10 seconds and it feels every bit as fast on the road.
On my usual back road romps, you can push a hot hatch to within safe limits and return home with a smile filling your face. Even more capable sports cars and coupés can be stretched, letting you to flirt with the limits of your bravery. The R8, however, is too much for such back roads. Sure, you can give yourself a bout of the willies, blasting up the straight, before pounding on the brakes, but you get the feeling it wants to give more. It's like you have the car leashed. For a car with such mighty performance, you need a bigger road. Luckily, we're gifted with good roads here in Northern Ireland, with one such classic being the A50 from Castlewellan to Banbridge.
The 10 mile stretch has some lovely sweeping corners, rising hills, tight bends and smooth straights. On these roads, the R8 comes alive. On a lightly trafficked Saturday afternoon drive, this car dug its claws firmly into my heart.
Drive the car with some purpose and its natural balance is slightly nose led, with the fronts carving a precise pathway through the tarmac. The car is light on its toes though and you always feel part of the process. Adjust the throttle a little and you feel the car's attitude responding. The steering is direct and assured, with plenty of feedback rippling through wheel and into your hands. Despite this, the steering never feels jarred by the surface, which inspires confidence to push on harder, relying on the precision to relay your instructions to the front wheels.
As you bond with the car, you can't help but feel the need to push it harder. It is almost instinctive.
Quicken the pace and carry more speed through a corner and the balance of the car tips towards the centre. You feel like you're almost pivoting around in your seat and before you know it, you're exiting the bend, carrying huge speed. 'Cornering as if on rails' is an over used phrase but it is certainly appropriate here!
Inevitably, we catch up with another car in front. It's a BMW 3-series and the driver starts to quicken his pace, keen to see what the car behind can do. From behind, it looks like he is wringing the car out but inside the Audi, all is calm. After a few bends, the road opens up, so we drop a couple of gears and floor it - whooosh - the BMW is little more than a dot in the rear view mirror! The difference between a quick car and truly fast car is like night and day. Where the roads permit, the power delivery of the big V8 deals a crushing blow to any budget performance car.
Oh and the sound... it's what goose bumps were made for!
While practicalities may not be top on the list when choosing such a car, they still remain important. The luggage space in the R8 is poor. Sure, you can buy some custom made bags and place them behind the seats, but this doesn't make up for the small boot at the front of the car. You could happily store enough luggage for a weekend break or a trip to the shops, but forget the golf clubs and the suit cases.
Bad weather and a stuck boot lid, containing camera gear, prevented us snapping our own pics
When spending 90k on a car (as tested), fuel costs are likely to be dwarfed by the purchase cost, never mind the depreciation, but the fuel efficiency is still reasonable. On paper, the R8 should get around 20 MPG and on the road this was relatively easy to achieve, even when pushing on. Not bad for a car which can hit 187 MPH!
The Audi R8 surpassed my expectations. It looks stunning, it drives superbly and it has plenty of character. There will be a few badge snobs out there who will overlook it, but it's their loss; real driving enthusiasts will look beyond such trivialities and will be rewarded in spades.
AT A GLANCE
PRICE: From £76,385.00 (£91,000 as tested)
CO2: 349 g/km
EFFICIENCY: 19.3 MPG (combined)
TOP SPEED: 187 MPH
0-62: 4.6 seconds
TORQUE: 430 Nm
POWER: 420 PS
Boot lid catch and puncture resulted in severe garage-time!
>Editors note:
I had the R8 for a few days before Paul (just to make sure it was safe..) and managed to puncture the tyre and break the boot catch!
I also used an entire tank of petrol before Paul even got a whiff of it!
So our apologies for not having proper local photographs but between bad weather and garage-time we failed to squeeze a shoot in.
The car was fantastic as you can tell from Paul's excellent review and we'll forgive it for being broken!
Bob
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