Silver, red and black are the colors of Audi Sport – and of the new special edition R8 Coupé model bearing its name. Along with specific components in the cockpit and body, the colors heighten the car’s motorsport feeling. Audi is unveiling the exclusive, high-performance sports car for the first time, at the New York International Auto Show. The car is being built in a limited run of 200 and can be ordered from May onward.
The Audi R8 is the brand’s sporty spearhead – on the road and on the race track. Its DNA is endowed with know-how earned from the many success stories at Audi Sport, particularly in endurance racing. “In 2016, we had the most successful year in the history of Audi Sport customer racing, our customer sport department,” said Stephan Winkelmann, CEO of Audi Sport GmbH. “With the R8 LMS we brought home 24 titles, scored 85 race victories and tallied up over 100 other podium finishes.”
And now the Audi Sport Edition is bringing more motorsport emotion to the production car realm with its expressive interplay of the colors silver, red and black, and exclusive interior equipment. In addition to floret silver, matt or gloss, the selection of paint finishes includes mythos black and ibis white. Regardless of what body color the customer chooses, the sideblades and exterior mirrors in brilliant red produce a striking contrast and are just one of the visual highlights. Accenting the sophisticated exterior are the front spoiler, Singleframe grille and diffuser insert, all in titanium black – yet another facet of the car’s distinctive character. At the rear, trapezoidal tailpipe trims in gloss black enhance the dynamic effect of the car’s design.
Audi Sport GmbH has equipped the special edition with 20-inch wheels of forged aluminum, with 245/30 front tires and 305/30 rear tires. The rims in an eye-catching 10-spoke Y design feature a gloss anthracite black paint finish and stand out with their silver edges. And there’s a very special touch: The rim flanges in a gloss turned finish are embellished by an Audi Sport logo. On the R8 V10 version, a high-gloss red finish lend the calipers of the powerful steel brakes a blazing look. And on the version with the plus engine variant, the ceramic brake discs are fitted with calipers in an anthracite-colored finish.
The interior welcomes driver and passenger with illuminated door sill trims. Their aluminum inlays bear the Audi Sport label complete with the red rhombus, and the model’s exclusiveness is indicated by the inscription “1/200”. The color palette of the interior harmonizes perfectly with the car’s exterior. The door trims and sport seats are in fine Nappa leather, with a color combination of black and express red. The seat backrests are embossed with the R8 emblem – an exclusive design element for the special edition model. Contrasting stitching in dark silver accents the steering wheel, door trims and seats.
The car’s sporty character is underscored by decorative inlays in a gloss carbon finish. The inlays are used at places including the surrounding frame of the Audi virtual cockpit, on the air vents and on the center console. The flat-bottomed, leather-covered performance steering wheel in three-spoke design is standard on the special edition model. It is emblazoned with an R8 emblem, and the black leather-covered rim of the wheel has an express red stripe at the 12 o’clock position, in keeping with the car’s motorsport heritage. The marker is a visual aid to help drivers keep the steering wheel centered when challenging their driving skills.
The famously powerful V10 mid-engine starts up by means of one satellite control button, and the driver uses a second button to adjust the settings of Audi drive select, the dynamic handling system. Two additional buttons and a rotary switch are used to control the exhaust flaps and the performance mode, which includes three more driving programs – dry, wet and snow. They adapt the handling even more precisely to the respective road conditions.
The Audi Sport Edition of the R8 Coupé will be built in a limited production run of 200 cars, and orders can be placed worldwide beginning in May 2017. In Germany prices of the model powered by the V10 variant with 397 kW (540 hp) start at EUR 181,900. And prices of the car with the V10 plus variant, which delivers 449 kW (610 hp) of power, start at EUR 205,800. Deliveries will begin in late summer of 2017.
