The open-top supercar, Audi R8 Spyder V10, weaves its marvels around the city
There are only a few cars available in India that can guarantee the goosebumps at first glance.
An Audi R8 Spyder 5.2 FSI quattro in Brilliant Red colour can easily do that – and a lot more. Imagine the fear in the eyes, as the R8’s hypnotising headlights grow in the rear-view mirrors of a commoner. The flashing LEDs leave no option for them but to swerve aside and let the supercar whiz past, leaving a fiery trail on the asphalt.
DESIGN
The striking combination of glossy black and flaming red triggers the dynamic design. Painted in high-gloss black, the single-frame grille is wide and low and a narrow chrome strip adorns its horizontal and vertical bars. The chunky bumper is wrapped in a crimson hue, while the black coloured front lip and massive air inlets make the front look wide and hungry. The menacing headlights use light-emitting diodes for the low and high beams, daytime running lights and even on the turn signals, a first by Audi. Unlike the Coupé, the R8 Spyder has large vertical air intakes sculpted behind the doors, which give the long-back a strong profile. While the ‘V10’ badges on the front fenders announce the power the mid-engined car has, it get the ‘Spyder’ tag for sporting a cool and classic soft top, which blends harmoniously with the design line.
It looks equally gorgeous from the rear. The two large silver cowls on the boot-lid sport attractive air-slits and taper as they extend towards the rear. The muscular rear bumper holds the black air intakes while the dark-red tail-lights with LEDs generate a three-dimensional pattern. Playing the V10 music is the exhaust system that ends in two large, oval tailpipes. The rear spoiler is different from the Coupé’s and gets elevated automatically at 100 km/h and beyond. The final touch of black highlight is the fully lined underbody, which ends in an upturned diffuser. The Spyder’s wide, hunkered-down stance on the road gives an impression as if it is ready to pounce.
After being hand-built at quattro GmbH in Neckarsulm, a fully automatic measuring system checks the dimensional accuracy of each body part down to a tenth of a millimetre. It is one of the most futuristic designs with utmost intricate detailing, reflecting the love Ingolstadt engineers poured into every aspect of this sportscar.
COMFORT
As you slide into the driver’s seat, you are greeted by a sporty cabin emblazoned in cool black interior. Laden with features, some familiar and others interestingly new, but all finely crafted in true Audi fashion. The cabin is clearly driver-focused, with a large cockpit-like design. The controls on the dash are conveniently located and you even get a lap timer. I am in love with the flat-bottomed multifunction steering wheel. Carrying the race-car theme is the short gear-lever with a solid aluminium knob and the aluminium-type paddles behind the steering wheel.
The low driving position is ideal for a sportscar, while the narrow A-pillars and large windscreen ensure good visibility. The seats offer good support, are electrically adjustable and come in fine Nappa leather, especially pigmented to keep the interior cool.
The V10 mounted at the rear of the car leaves practically no boot space, but there is a 100-litre luggage compartment in front under the hood. Then you also get a three-bin storage box mounted behind the seats. But in all, for an open-top two-seater, the interior is generously spacious and uses every millimetre of the 2,650-mm wheelbase and broad shoulder space of 1,392 mm to make it quite a comfortable car, suitable even for daily use.
DRIVE
The Spyder comes with a free-revving 5.2-litre FSI V10 petrol engine, hand-built in Hungary. It can churn out 530 Nm of torque at 6,500 revolutions per minute and 532.28 PS at 8,000 RPM. In fact, the electronic rev limiter does not intervene until 8,700 revs, when the pistons travel 26.91 metres every second! Even though the power and torque fi gures might not sound enormous, the compact motor and light-weight space aluminium frame give the R8 an excellent power-to-weight ratio of 308.5 PS/tonne. The entire motor weighs just 258 kg and has the character of a racing engine. No wonder, with minimal modifi cations, the same engine powers the GT3 race car.
Incorporating the knowledge gleaned in motorsport the R8 accelerates from zero to 100 km/h in just 4.1 seconds, gliding smoothly through wind. It takes an additional 8.3 seconds to reach 200 km/h, with a top speed of a staggering 313 km/h. However, the best part about driving with the roof down is the unmistakable 10-cylinder sound. Engineered to perfection, the V10 alternatively ignites in 54- and 90-degree intervals, creating the goosebumps-raising roar.
Being a rear-biased quattro permanent all-wheel drive, the system transfers power to the road with utter ease. Together with the locking differential on the rear axle, it provides good traction, stability, cornering speed and precision. This means that the R8 offers more grip at the exit of a curve than a conventional two-wheel drive car. The extra bit of traction allows the Spyder to pull away from lesser mortals on the road, enabling one to feed in more gas.
Power is delivered to all the four wheels via the R tronic sequential six-speed automatic transmission. It’s an intelligent gearbox where gear change is comfortable during moderate driving and the moment I command the accelerator to fetch more speeds, the gear changes faster, within a 10th of a second. The well-spread power band works with the transmission to make the R8 easily adapt to subdued city driving, extremely fun on wide open roads and, at the same time, a fabulous track tool. The mid-engine concept is ideal for a sportscars, as it enables an axle load distribution ratio of 43:57 between the front and back and packs the engine in the middle of the car, close to the vertical axis. This makes it very nimble and stable during fast changes of direction.
However, with such incredible abilities you need uncompromising stopping power. And thankfully the Spyder obliges. It comes equipped with a powerful brake system with eight-piston aluminium brake callipers mounted up front to bite on to 365-mm discs, whereas the four-piston callipers at the back come with 356-mm disc. This car brakes precisely and stably employing the ESP that keeps a check on the driving dynamics. And if you do plan to take it on to the track, then there is an option to deactivate the ESP, transforming this clinically perfect sports machine into a wild dream of a driving enthusiast. It becomes a lot more dramatic, with spectacular oversteer when the gas is applied while exiting a curve. Like race cars, the Spyder has a diffuser underbody that sucks the sportscar against the road while driving to further improve downforce and aerodynamics.
It rolls on very sporty 19-inch forged alloy wheels with an attractive 10-spoke Y design, shod up front with 235/35 tyres and 295/30 tyres at the rear. This might not be the most preferred profi le for the city, but for a sportscar the ride is surprisingly comfortable, even over long distances, as the double triangular wishbone suspension fi lters away a majority of the undesired vibrations from the road. Then the standard magnetic ride technology makes the shock-absorbers adjust their response to the road condition and the driver’s style within milliseconds, offering a very supple ride even in our cities. On high-speed cornering, the damping force on the outermost wheel is increased, which reduces body-roll. Moreover, the hydraulic rack-and-pinion power steering weighs well and conveys great road feel, assisting you to precisely carve your way ahead. Working in harmony these systems make the drive even more spontaneous and extremely enjoyable.
CONCLUSION
The Spyder also comes with standard systems like ‘Hill-Start Assist’ that makes it easier to start off on inclines and the fabulous ‘Launch Control’ that has the ability to spike your hair naturally. Al the end of it, the R8 Spyder comes across as a very usable car and for about Rs 1.66 crore (ex-showroom) this is as much fun as money can buy.
NEED TO KNOW
AUDI R8 SPYDER 5.2 FSI quattro
PRICE Rs 1.66 crore (ex-showroom, Mumbai)
ENGINE 5204cc, 532.28PS, 530Nm
TRANSMISSION Six-speed automatic, all-wheel drive
PERFORMANCE 4.1 secs 0-100km/h, 313km/h top speed
The quattro provides good traction, stability, cornering speed and precision. The extra bit of traction enables one to feed in more gas for faster exit speeds
Story: Sarmad Kadiri
Photography: Sanjay Raikar
