2014 Audi R8: Now With a Proper Gearbox? - Ignition Episode 45 - video Dailymotion

MotorTrend

On this episode of Ignition

Transcript

00:00 But no, for this week's ignition, you're stuck with me.

00:04 [MUSIC PLAYING]

00:28 See, the first time I drove an Audi R8 with their R-tronic

00:32 transmission-- and that's Audi speak for the single-clutch

00:35 automated manual transmission-- it performed so

00:39 poorly, I thought the gearbox was broken.

00:41 Now, don't get me wrong.

00:45 When you're moving at a pretty good clip, the

00:46 transmission, it's OK.

00:48 But it was around town.

00:50 It was a little bit of a mess.

00:51 And I'm not going to get into that.

00:52 But I'm going to tell you what I think about it.

00:54 The transmission, it's OK, but it was around town.

00:58 It was almost undriveable.

00:59 It was lousy.

01:01 The problem is that Audi has always touted the R8 as an

01:04 everyday supercar.

01:06 But with that transmission, it's not.

01:08 Don't take my word for it.

01:15 Audi was so unhappy with that transmission, they went ahead

01:18 and threw it in the dumpster.

01:19 And instead, they're replacing it with a, dare I say, proper

01:23 dual-clutch transmission that they're calling S-tronic.

01:26 And that's good, because not only do you get fast shifts on

01:28 the track, but around town, the car's not

01:30 going to feel drunk.

01:32 But of course, that's the theory.

01:34 And as I love saying, there's only one way to find out.

01:37 I'm here at some Italian racetrack with the latest

01:47 iteration of Audi's supercar, the R8.

01:49 In fact, these blue guys behind me are actually the new R8

01:52 V10 Plus.

01:53 And we'll get into what that means in a second.

01:55 But I just got to tell you, I'm always a little hesitant to

01:57 drive a car on the track before you do on the street.

02:00 And the reason why is, especially if you're unfamiliar

02:02 with the track, you're so busy trying to learn it that all

02:05 you can really pay attention to is acceleration, braking,

02:08 and turn-in.

02:09 So I don't really think you get a good

02:10 evaluation of the car.

02:11 However, I am going to take one for the team and do it,

02:13 because it's a lot of fun.

02:15 [CAR ENGINE]

02:27 OK.

02:28 So I'm here in the R8 V10 Plus.

02:31 And the plus stands essentially for 25 more

02:34 horsepower for a total of 550 and 50 less kilograms of

02:38 weight, because they use a lot of carbon fiber in this thing.

02:41 Now, the R8 V10 Plus is a little bit different.

02:44 Now, if you're in the car with me, the first thing you would

02:47 notice, besides my mustache, is how quickly this thing leaps

02:50 out of corners.

02:52 I've driven very few cars that accelerate like this thing.

02:55 The car rotates terrifically.

02:57 It's just so incredibly fast.

03:00 It really just honks.

03:01 And this dual-clutch transmission is unbelievable.

03:05 It's just like the Porsche PDK in that it's really smart.

03:08 If you need two downshifts, it gives you two downshifts.

03:11 Like there, it's got one.

03:12 And also, what's nice is coming out of a slow corner,

03:16 it'll actually upshift for you.

03:18 And that way, you won't get jerked around when you get on

03:21 the throttle.

03:22 It's a really smart transmission.

03:24 Some corners, if you really come in hot, it'll understeer.

03:28 But for a car with power going to the front wheels, it's

03:31 really manageable.

03:32 This head sock, however, is not.

03:39 Wow.

03:40 This thing is so fun.

03:42 Back to Audi's claim of the R8 being an everyday supercar,

04:02 this transmission makes that claim true, finally.

04:06 We just left Bolzano, Italy.

04:07 It's this ancient town at the foot of the Alps.

04:10 Cobblestone streets, narrow, slow.

04:12 And for the first time I've ever driven an automatic R8, I

04:16 was able to move slowly without the car lurching and

04:20 heaving, and I wasn't doing this.

04:22 It just works like a normal car.

04:24 And then you get it on the road, and it's fantastic.

04:26 You put it in sport mode, boom, boom, boom.

04:29 Super quick shifts.

04:31 You got the paddles, pull what you want.

04:32 I mean, it's such a good transmission.

04:34 Hard to understate what a good job they've done.

04:37 Even though it's only been out for a few years, the R8's

04:40 already one of the most iconic sports cars in the world.

04:43 Opinions are obviously split on how it looks.

04:46 Some people think it's very beautiful.

04:48 I think it looks like Cylon's designed to dolphin.

04:50 But say what you want about it.

04:52 It's a distinctive looking car that grabs attention.

04:56 Interior, well, they haven't really done much updating there.

04:59 This used to be a really standout interior, although some

05:02 of the touches have migrated to other products, like the egg

05:05 shaped gauge clusters and stuff.

05:06 So to me, it looks a little dated.

05:08 In fact, the nav system isn't the new Google-based unit found

05:12 in all other Audis.

05:12 It's this older system.

05:15 It's a little dated, but it's a little bit more modern.

05:18 It's a little bit more modern.

05:19 It's a little bit more modern.

05:20 It's a little bit more modern.

05:22 It's a little bit more modern.

05:23 It's this older system.

05:25 It's OK.

05:27 Still, though, for a super car-- and make no mistake,

05:29 this is-- it's incredibly comfortable, especially

05:32 with these nice padded seats.

05:34 Alcantara everywhere, good steering wheels.

05:38 It's a very nice place to spend some time.

05:41 As I stated, there's a very good reason

05:43 that I had to come on this trip.

05:44 And that's because, unlike everyone else on staff,

05:46 I've never loved the R8.

05:48 To me, it was too flawed.

05:50 It wasn't the complete package.

05:52 And it wasn't the everyday super car that Audi claimed.

05:55 However, this new dual-clutch transmission brings redemption.

05:59 And I don't think I'm going to surprise anyone

06:01 when I say that the R8 is now one of the best

06:03 super cars in the world.

06:06 You're going to love it.

06:21 Who cares about you?

06:23 I [BLEEP]

06:24 love it.

06:25 This is the one.

06:27 This is the R8 to get.

06:28 Forget about the V8.

06:30 Forget about the Plus.

06:31 This one, the topless one, V10, all-wheel drive, mid-engine,

06:37 no roof.

06:38 This is the car.

06:40 Oh my god.

06:42 It's so good.

06:44 [ENGINE REVVING]

06:47 Oh, sorry about that.

06:49 But you drive this R8 Spyder V10 for five minutes,

06:52 and you'll be singing its praises.

06:54 There's a lot of guys out there that are going to tell you,

06:56 oh, I'd never drive a convertible,

06:57 because I'm going to lose 0.2 seconds off my lap time.

07:00 But total nonsense.

07:03 This car, these mountains, it's just--

07:07 I can't-- I can't even.

07:09 I'm just going to go.

07:10 I'm going to go.

07:11 I'm going to go.

07:12 I can't-- it's so good.

07:15 You've got to drive this.

07:17 You've just got to drive this.

07:19 [ENGINE REVVING]

07:22 So the only problem I see with this car right now

07:33 is that because we went through some snow,

07:35 Audi put snow tires on it, which means

07:38 that it's limited to a top speed of just over 160 miles an hour.

07:42 Aside from that, I want it.

07:47 Oh, do I want it.

07:49 [MUSIC PLAYING]

07:53 [ENGINE REVVING]

07:56 [MUSIC PLAYING]

07:59 [MUSIC PLAYING]

08:02 [MUSIC PLAYING]

08:05 [MUSIC PLAYING]

08:08 [MUSIC PLAYING]

08:11 [MUSIC PLAYING]

08:14 [MUSIC PLAYING]

08:18 [MUSIC PLAYING]

08:21 [MUSIC PLAYING]

08:24 (upbeat music)

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2014 Audi R8: Now With a Proper Gearbox? - Ignition Episode 45

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