The changes might look subtle, but the second-generation redesigned Audi R8 supercar, now making its debut at the 2016 Chicago Auto Show, is anything but static. The 2017 R8's new V10 Plus edition is the fastest production car Audi has ever made.
Transcript
(engine starts with a rumble) The changes might look subtle, but this is Audi's second generation, redesigned R8 super car, a car that in this V10 Plus edition behind me, will go up to 205 miles per hour.
That makes it the fastest production car Audi has ever made. Now up front, the redesign itself, very subtle, kind of hard to pick out unless you look at the details. The biggest giveaway here is the grille itself, fans out a little more up top here, similar to Audi's other grilles. Previously, the R8 just kinda had a more trapezoidal grille to it. You get around the side here, overall track is up about an inch and a half, and underneath it all, the chassis uses a lot more aluminum and carbon fiber. It's actually more than a hundred pounds lighter in terms of the chassis versus the last R8. You look at these sideblades here. This was an iconic element of the last R8. They actually become two elements here instead of one now with the redesign. This bottom part has a functional air intake, which gets air back to this mid-engine right here. Now this is a V10 Plus car here at the auto show. That means it's got 610 horsepower, 413 pounds-feet of torque. Besides getting up to that 205 mile per hour mark, it hits 60 miles per hour in less than 3.2 seconds. That's pretty quick. The very driver-oriented cockpit here with lots of buttons, including a starter button, drivetrain select modes here, all incorporated into the steering wheel, much like a Formula One car, and Audi's 12.3-inch virtual-cockpit, reconfigurable gauge display beyond that. The car looks expensive because well, it is. Pricing starts around $165,000, tops out around $225,000 for this V10 Plus when it's fully loaded. You can get all of that though once the new R8 goes on sale, the middle of 2016. (trunk thuds shut)
