Audi’s new generation of its extreme R8 has been given the expected roofless treatment and it’s called the Audi R8 Spyder V10. While making use of the standard R8’s chassis the Spyder has been given a few enhancements to keep it within the necessary structural limits.
When compared to the 2010 R8 Spyder this new one is 14 mm shorter and 36 mm wider with the overall height of 1 244 mm remaining the same. The soft top roof in conjunction with the electro-hydraulic motor weighs in at 44 kg and takes 20 seconds to close provided you are travelling slower than 50 km/h. With these numbers the R8 Spyder maintains a dry weight of 1 612 kg thanks to Audi’s new space frame technology.
Certain revisions were made to the previous Spyder so that this model could benefit from a lower NVH thanks to a 90% reduction in the reverse flow around the head and 80% around the shoulder area when the roof is retracted. This is made possible thanks to a synthetic textile wind deflector.
The 5,2-litre naturally aspirated V10 found in the R8 Spyder is unchanged from the standard R8 with a power output of 397 kW and 540 N.m of torque. This makes the Spyder good for a 0-100 km/h time of 3,6 seconds and a 0-200 km/h in 11,8 seconds until it reaches its top speed of 318 km/h.
The seven-speed S Tronic transmission, quattro all-wheel drive system and mechanical rear diff-lock remain on the Spyder but new to this model is something called the performance leather steering wheel option which adds three more driving programs, dry, wet and snow, on top of the usual comfort, auto and dynamic.
The R8 Spyder makes use of two lightweight aluminum wishbones in conjunction with a dry sump lubrication to provide the engine with very low position. As a result the centre of gravity is low and this, aided by the 245/35 front and 295/35 rear 19-inch alloy wheels (optional 20-inch 245/30 fronts and 305/30 rears are possible) provides this low-slung mid-engined performance car with the traction it needs.
Stopping power is provided by the large, ventilated and perforated wave-design discs with eight pistons on the front wheels, and four on the rear wheels. Carbon ceramics are optional for those who really want to stop in time.
With the hardtop R8 arriving here in the next few months we can expect the Spyder to make its way shortly after.
