Audi Reveals the Facelifted 2014 R8 Supercar

[DUBSfightinRUST]

I guess Audi was REALLY happy with the original R8, because they didn't do much at all!

...hopefully it wont end up on BBC Top Gear. I do not need to hear those guys rip on it about how its the same car with different headlamps (for 10 minutes )...

[masa8888]

They're not even in the same league. I daily drive a 2012 Autobahn GTI, and I spent this last weekend putting a few hundred miles on Fourtitude's long term 2012 R8 test car, and the two are just not even close to each other. The R8 interior feels like the $100,000+ car that it is. A GTI doesn't, because it's not.

It was the single clutch automated manual out of the Gallardo.

-Tim

I too have a '12 GTI and spent a day with a 5.2 Spyder a few weeks ago and generally agree that it's in a different league in terms of material quality and tech. I do think it's a notch below the A8 and A7 in that area though, but that's expected in a low volume supercar. It's better than most supercars in that aspect FWIW. It definitely wasn't a priority of mine and the last thing I was paying attention to when I was revving it to 8k RPM through overpasses.

Regarding the single clutch auto, I actually thought it was an excellent transmission. Downshifts were instantaneous but brutal...which can actually be really fun. Hopefully the character of the car doesn't change too much with the new 7 speed. I guess there's always the manual as a backup.

[RacingManiac]

I think most complaint from the SMG-type box is not their outright shift speed, but rather their day-to-day driveability since they don't do city/stop and go well...

Granted my DSG car doesn't exactly excel in that neither, maybe thats just a cheap VW thing thing. Enough luxury cars are now running around with these that its probably not an issue anymore...

[Tim@Fourtitude]

I guess Audi was REALLY happy with the original R8, because they didn't do much at all!

Remember, this is just a facelift (what Audi refers to as a Product Improvement). It is not an all new R8. That's a few years away yet.

-Tim

[Son]

I'm slightly confused by the pics. Does the V8 also now have the R8 GT tailpipes or is it just the V10? One of my problems with the V8 was the silly amounts of tailpipes. Also, they made the front lights a whole lot better looking now. Not sure about the taillights, though. I'd be happy with a manual V8, carbon side blades, buckets with body-colored seat backs, leather dash, etc. little options. And aftermarket wheels because the R8, IMO, has never had any appealing OEM wheel options.

Edit: Also the grilles' lines are better now. They also fixed the horrid V10 grille.

[George@Fourtitude]

What ever happened to this design?

The grille was accurate but the rest must have just been a design mockup.

[George@Fourtitude]

We've added a few more photos we've been able to put together. Here's a link.

http://fourtitude.com/photo-gallery/.../category/8717

[Son]

Thanks, George, that answered my question about the tailpipes on the V8.

[KahviVW]

Is the R8 profitable or is it more of a marketing exercise (e.g. Bugatti)?

[Tuneman7]

The grille was accurate but the rest must have just been a design mockup.

Well there must've been some accuracy in the lights as well, you can see the same shape in the running lamps as the one in the mockup. It's a shame they didn't go with that mockup, this car really could've used a shot in the arm in terms of design, the new appointments look rather vanilla imo.

[tilnaneer]

"The LED lights dominate the rear of the Audi R8. One innovation from Audi is the indicator light with dynamic display at the bottom edge of the lamp – its light always proceeds towards the outside, in the direction the driver wishes to turn"

Does anybody know if there is a video on the new taillights? I'd like to see this in action.

[Fritz27]

a nice nod to the Kia grill in the tail-light design.

I'm glad I'm not the only one to notice that.

[patrickvr6]

"The LED lights dominate the rear of the Audi R8. One innovation from Audi is the indicator light with dynamic display at the bottom edge of the lamp – its light always proceeds towards the outside, in the direction the driver wishes to turn"

Does anybody know if there is a video on the new taillights? I'd like to see this in action.

[Son]

"The LED lights dominate the rear of the Audi R8. One innovation from Audi is the indicator light with dynamic display at the bottom edge of the lamp – its light always proceeds towards the outside, in the direction the driver wishes to turn"

Does anybody know if there is a video on the new taillights? I'd like to see this in action.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_tVhqayFRo&t=11m03s

[tilnaneer]

www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_tVhqayFRo&t=11m03s

Thanks!

[Mike!]

So many comments on the relatively minor design changes and so few on the S-tronic (PDK?) addition. Those are some impressive numbers they're providing.

R8 V8 S-tronic vs. 911 4S PDK... Go!

[RacingManiac]

So many comments on the relatively minor design changes and so few on the S-tronic (PDK?) addition. Those are some impressive numbers they're providing.

R8 V8 S-tronic vs. 911 4S PDK... Go!

R8 for stylistic reasons.....

[omoderncultureo]

Link

[Remedy]

I wish they would just delete the damn sideblade!

[Obin Robinson]

What I'm most impressed with is how they saved engineering money by just using a jar of honey to shift gears.



obin

[Fritz27]

I wish they would just delete the damn sideblade!

They look terrible without the sideblade. It really helps the otherwise awkward looking greenhouse.

Also, that matte blue is spectacular. Like, wow.

[P-Body]

They look terrible without the sideblade. It really helps the otherwise awkward looking greenhouse.

Also, that matte blue is spectacular. Like, wow.

This.

I usually love convertibles. This one has always left me cold. The R8 looks best when there is a really contrasting sideblade colour.

[Fritz27]

This.

I usually love convertibles. This one has always left me cold. The R8 looks best when there is a really contrasting sideblade colour.

I think the R8 Vert looks better than the coupe because it fixes the weird greenhouse and it doesn't require the sideblade.

[MightyDSM]

What I'm most impressed with is how they saved engineering money by just using a jar of honey to shift gears.



obin

that
+



= Audi R8

[George@Fourtitude]

I too have a '12 GTI and spent a day with a 5.2 Spyder a few weeks ago and generally agree that it's in a different league in terms of material quality and tech. I do think it's a notch below the A8 and A7 in that area though, but that's expected in a low volume supercar. It's better than most supercars in that aspect FWIW. It definitely wasn't a priority of mine and the last thing I was paying attention to when I was revving it to 8k RPM through overpasses.

Regarding the single clutch auto, I actually thought it was an excellent transmission. Downshifts were instantaneous but brutal...which can actually be really fun. Hopefully the character of the car doesn't change too much with the new 7 speed. I guess there's always the manual as a backup.

One of the big differences it that the R8 uses a lot of aluminum, and especially in places like the shifter it is very evident that this is is solid stuff... not just foil-wrapped plastic. It does share some components like switchgear with the TT. It's not as luxurious as the A8, but then it's not meant to be. Funny thing though, I got to drive a Gallardo Superleggera when I was last in Italy and I found other than the impressiveness of the carbon fiber pieces like door panels (impressed that they were all carbon to be specfic) the interior felt cheaper and not nearly as nice as my R8. Granted, our R8 has a few upgrades like leather-wrapped badge but even still...

[George@Fourtitude]

I'm slightly confused by the pics. Does the V8 also now have the R8 GT tailpipes or is it just the V10? One of my problems with the V8 was the silly amounts of tailpipes. Also, they made the front lights a whole lot better looking now. Not sure about the taillights, though. I'd be happy with a manual V8, carbon side blades, buckets with body-colored seat backs, leather dash, etc. little options. And aftermarket wheels because the R8, IMO, has never had any appealing OEM wheel options.

Edit: Also the grilles' lines are better now. They also fixed the horrid V10 grille.

V8 and V10 both have the round exhaust of the GT now.

[George@Fourtitude]

Is the R8 profitable or is it more of a marketing exercise (e.g. Bugatti)?

I'm told it is both. It is profitable and I've also been told by Audi marketers that the car would still be a total win for the company even if they never earned a dime on building them.

[George@Fourtitude]

Well there must've been some accuracy in the lights as well, you can see the same shape in the running lamps as the one in the mockup. It's a shame they didn't go with that mockup, this car really could've used a shot in the arm in terms of design, the new appointments look rather vanilla imo.

That design was a study by one of the Audi designers, but it was more to show what they could do with lights at the time and not to show a stylistic change of the car. Early on though it did full us because we found the watermarked image in an Audi publication, the buck included most of the front clip of a real car (no one outside of Audi would do that) and it included the new grille shape. It may have actually been an alternate design concept as Audi began hashing out final choices in the design of the car, but obviously it didn't make it to prime time for whatever reason if that indeed were the case.

[George@Fourtitude]

So many comments on the relatively minor design changes and so few on the S-tronic (PDK?) addition. Those are some impressive numbers they're providing.

R8 V8 S-tronic vs. 911 4S PDK... Go!

R-tronic (e.gear) is a good transmission, but its single clutch setup really offers a limitation for those wanting an automatic option because it's really not smooth to drive in an "automatic" fashion. Whereas the dual clutch in the TT/A3/GTI or S4/S5 and also the automatic in any other Audi can shift smoothly under full throttle, R-tronic/e.gear cannot. It's fun to drive in manual mode and its brilliance comes out on the track, but if this new S-tronic R8 is anything like the 911 PDK (and I suspect it's nearly identical) then it will be fantastic - even faster-shifting on the track and also a credible option for people who don't want to be shifting their own gears.