2012 Audi R8 5.2 FSI: The Supercar Done Right - Ignition Episode 23 - video Dailymotion

MotorTrend

On this episode of Ignition

Transcript

00:00 [MUSIC PLAYING]

00:03 This week on Ignition, the most complete supercar ever.

00:06 [MUSIC PLAYING]

00:10 We really don't have a good reason

00:23 to do this show this week.

00:24 The Audi R8 was introduced six years ago.

00:26 In 2008, we named it the best handling car in America.

00:30 And since, we've tested the snot out of every V10 we could--

00:32 the coupe, the Spyder, and the GT.

00:35 So why are we here?

00:36 Because it's a V10 Audi R8.

00:39 And I want to drive it.

00:40 [ENGINE REVVING]

00:43 Let's refresh ourselves with the details, shall we?

00:46 The R8 is a product of Quattro, Audi's in-house performance

00:50 division.

00:51 As you'd expect, it's all-wheel drive.

00:53 It uses a lightweight aluminum body.

00:55 And its V10 is sourced from the Lamborghini Gallardo.

00:59 It'll top out at 196 miles an hour.

01:03 When you're launching the Audi R8,

01:05 now you have to keep in mind you have a very, very, very powerful

01:07 V10 engine attached to four wheels

01:09 through a manual transmission.

01:12 That means clutch slip.

01:13 So we're going to dial in a few revs, slip the clutch,

01:15 and get out of the hole.

01:16 [ENGINE REVVING]

01:19 [TIRES SCREECHING]

01:22 Oh, it is quick indeed.

01:25 0 to 60, 3.4 seconds.

01:29 Oh, and I love the way this shifter sounds when you bang it

01:31 through the gates.

01:34 A quarter mile passes at 11.6 seconds at 122 miles an hour.

01:39 [ENGINE REVVING]

01:43 And now for a 60 to 0 braking test.

01:47 Stops very, very quick.

01:49 100 feet from 60 is our best stop.

01:51 [ENGINE REVVING]

01:53 All right, beginning the figure eight in the Audi R8.

01:56 Oh.

01:57 [LAUGHS]

02:00 Always forget how wonderful this car is to drive quickly.

02:05 It doesn't behave like a typical all-wheel drive car

02:07 with lots of understeer.

02:09 It'll actually-- the tail end will come out on you real quick.

02:12 [ENGINE REVVING]

02:15 This is pure supercar stuff right here.

02:19 So much grip, so willing to play,

02:23 and so many revs too.

02:26 It just screams and screams.

02:27 And you think you're at red line,

02:29 and you look down and you realize there's 2,000 more

02:32 RPMs to play with.

02:33 [ENGINE REVVING]

02:35 That's the beautiful thing about a supercar,

02:38 is it's near sensory overload at the limit.

02:43 But when you can control it, when you get it right,

02:45 when you manage everything, it's a thing of beauty.

02:48 [ENGINE REVVING]

02:52 [MUSIC PLAYING]

02:56 The R8 is a rolling example of the supercar done right.

03:00 I mean, every component of this car, every piece

03:03 feels bespoke and unique and custom just for this car.

03:07 I mean, you still get the Audi DNA,

03:10 but this thing feels like the purest of the breed.

03:12 [ENGINE REVVING]

03:16 But what I find interesting is that this

03:18 costs about the same money as the R8.

03:21 It's the same price as the 911 Turbo S.

03:25 And the 911, in a lot of people's minds,

03:27 is a sports car, while this is a supercar.

03:30 [ENGINE REVVING]

03:32 Partly one of the reasons I think that is,

03:35 is because the design of this thing.

03:37 I mean, it's simply stunning.

03:39 And I think years from now, we'll look back at this car

03:42 and see it as the car that ushered in a new generation

03:45 of supercar styling.

03:47 You see motorcyclists giving you thumbs up.

03:50 You see people jumping in their tracks on the side of the road.

03:53 I mean, people in cars next to you on the freeway

03:55 still take photos.

03:56 [ENGINE REVVING]

03:59 And what's more incredible is you have the performance

04:01 to back up that styling.

04:03 I mean, it makes peak torque when

04:05 most cars are hitting redline.

04:07 And you just have to love that kind of character.

04:09 [ENGINE REVVING]

04:13 Truthfully, there really is no great transmission option

04:16 for the R8.

04:17 You have the R-Tronic, which shifts kind of slowly

04:20 especially in contrast to a modern twin-clutch

04:23 transmission.

04:24 And this manual that we're in now,

04:26 it takes a lot of muscle to move between gears.

04:29 It makes some wonderful sounds on downshifts.

04:31 You get that metallic clank, which is kind of rewarding.

04:34 But still, the effort is pretty high for a car that doesn't

04:38 feel like it should be.

04:40 But still, having a transmission like this

04:42 with a gated gearbox like this, the effort's high.

04:45 But in its defense, it's going to feel more special every time

04:49 you take it out on the weekend or when the weather's right

04:52 or when you want to take a road trip.

04:54 That's going to add to sort of the aura of the car.

04:56 [ENGINE REVVING]

05:00 [LAUGHS]

05:02 I just want to shut up and enjoy this.

05:04 [ENGINE REVVING]

05:10 The R8 is the most complete supercar on the road.

05:13 It combines so many disciplines so seamlessly

05:17 that it just makes you giddy.

05:19 It's effortless to drive in traffic

05:20 with a flexible powertrain with an inexhaustible supply

05:23 of torque.

05:25 It's a joy on mountain roads, never frenetic, always fun.

05:28 You never feel like this supercar

05:30 has an edge that might cut you.

05:32 It's playful, but never worrisome.

05:35 The cabin, that gorgeous cabin, complements

05:37 the stunning exterior.

05:40 And then, when you're done driving it,

05:42 you can just sit in the garage and stare at it for hours.

05:46 The R8 is the supercar done right.

05:51 Yeah, you feel like Superman in this car.

05:53 You feel like Tony Stark driving this car.

05:55 Eh, eh, eh, eh, eh, eh, eh, eh.

05:59 Made a topical reference that's kind of old because

06:01 of the Avengers where he drove an NSS.

06:03 [MUSIC PLAYING]

06:09 [ENGINE REVVING]

06:12 [MUSIC PLAYING]

06:23 Now I feel your guys' pain because you just

06:25 get to sit here.

06:27 And I'm like, wow, this is the greatest car in the world.

06:29 And you're like, yep, I'm sure it is.

06:31 Yeah, I bet it's awesome.

06:32 Jackass.

2012 Audi R8 5.2 FSI: The Supercar Done Right - Ignition Episode 23

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