Its character

“The new R8 V10 plus* is the most powerful and fastest production Audi ever,” says Prof. Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg, Audi Board Member for Technical Development. “With the new Audi R8, our engineers are transferring their bundled racing expertise from the race track to the road. No other Audi evokes such dynamic passion, and none is so closely related to a race car.”

The mid-mounted engine in the Audi R8 is not only a classic concept in motorsport; it is also an integral part of the brand’s sporty DNA. It was already used in the Grand Prix race cars brought to the starting grid by Auto Union in the 1930s, with the powerful engines located forward of the rear axle – which was a revolutionary step at the time. In the year 2000, Audi won the 24 hours of Le Mans for the first time with the LMP R8 prototype. By 2005, the car which provided the name for today’s high-performance production sports car had taken five overall victories at the Sarthe. It was then retired and replaced by the Audi R10 with a TDI engine.

The R8 also enjoyed much success in customer racing – car racing had been a key aspect of its model development from the start. In 2009, the R8 LMS embarked on its career, and by 2014 it had raced to 26 GT3 championships worldwide, 23 other titles and seven overall victories in 24‑hour endurance races. Its technology was, and today – in its second generation – it still is closely related to that of the road-version sports car.

In the second generation, the road-version sports car and the motorsport version, the R8 LMS, were developed simultaneously for the first time and were presented together at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show. Close cooperation between race car engineers, motorsport specialists and developers has given the new Audi R8 a significant boost in performance.

The equipment and data specified in this document refer to the model range offered in Germany. Subject to change without notice; errors and omissions excepted.