With the advent of the era of super-running, various automobile manufacturers have invested in the competition between speed and performance; Audi is also determined to launch its own super-running works to show the scientific and technological strength that the car factory has always been proud of. In 2005, R8 won the last Le Mans Champion and handed the big stick to R 10 equipped with TDI diesel engine. At the Paris Motor Show in 2006, Audi passed its name to the first super-running work, namely ——R8, the mass production incarnation of the Le Mans quattro concept car.
R8 completely retains the charm of Le Mans quattro concept car: the sleek appearance makes it difficult to find a right-angle turn on the body sheet metal; The height of R8 is only 1.252mm, and the width of R8 is 1.904mm, which makes R8 show a flat and dormant performance posture.
There is no doubt that the shield of the single shield water tank stands in front of R8. Compared with other models on the market, the R8' s water tank shield is lower and flatter because of its lower body shape. At the same time, different from other family members, the designer also placed Audi's four-ring factory emblem on the upper edge of the water tank guard plate independently, which completely conveyed the design essence of the Le Mans quattro concept car.
Under the sleek and full front shape, the designer cut it into three pieces; The center is a shield-shaped water tank guard plate, and the headlights on both sides and the intake dam are integrated. HID gas discharge headlights are used in Sharp Headlights Group, and the sunshine running lights composed of 12 led will become the iconic feature of Audi family in the future. In addition, car owners can also choose full LED headlights, and 54 LEDs provide night lighting close to the sun.
Coming to the smooth rear of the car, the designer generously displayed the V8 engine under it with a large transparent hood. Behind the hood, the diamond-shaped grid plays the role of engine room heat dissipation, and at the same time, this sheet metal also plays the role of spoiler tail: under normal circumstances, the tail is only hidden here; When the speed is chasing high, the spoiler tail will automatically rise; The driver can also actively control the lifting of the tail wing according to the button behind the gear seat, thus providing a stronger pressure channel under the rear axle.
In the driving interface, R8 adopts a flat-bottomed three-position multi-function steering wheel, and the disc frame with a disc diameter of 365mm is made of lightweight magnesium alloy, which has just the right disc diameter and grip. However, if R8' s exclusive identification nameplate can be added, I believe it can be better distinguished from TT. In the gear lever part, the short and pithy metal gear lever is covered with leather, and the short gear stroke feels excellent.
In the dashboard, the bottom of the tachometer and speedometer are 9000 rpm and 350 km/h respectively, showing the remarkable performance strength of R8. In addition to the basic fuel gauge and water temperature gauge, auxiliary instruments such as voltmeter and oil thermometer are also common instrument combinations for performance vehicles.
After starting the engine, R8 did not show excessive heartburn at idle speed; The V8 engine behind him only made a slight squeak, and the tail of the exhaust was not exposed. The original factory put a little effort into the exhaust system of R8, and the variable exhaust tail section focused on the mute effect at low speed. Generally, when idling or walking in urban areas, the exhaust sound will not appear too loud; But the speed is a little faster. In the high speed range, the exhaust system will switch to the direct path at this time. As the engine in the firewall behind slammed higher and higher, the exhaust sound became louder and louder.
There are N neutral, R reverse, A automatic transmission and+and-manual transmission on the gear seat. After starting the engine, the driver needs to step on the brake and move the gear lever to the left. At this time, the bottom of the DIS screen of the instrument panel shows that A and the gearbox enter the automatic transmission mode; Different from the general automatic transmission, the vehicle will not slide forward by itself in the A gear, and the torque will be released from the tire only after stepping on the accelerator. Of course, car owners who like to drive hard can also push the gear lever forward or directly dial the steering wheel to shift the paddles. At this time, the R tronic gearbox enters the manual mode, and the driver can actively select gears. The movement button behind the gear seat is one of the keys to drive the senses. Generally speaking, the R-tronic gearbox is in normal mode, and it takes a long time to shift gears logically with comfort as the guide. When the motion button is pressed, the gearbox will switch to the motion mode: in the A gear, the shift time will be obviously accelerated, and the shift logic is mainly based on speed increase; In the case of M gear and manual gear, the shift interval can approach 0. 1 s, and the clutch engagement is more direct. In addition, the driver can also increase the speed at will until the oil is cut off, and the gearbox will not actively intervene in the upshift, bringing a complete and pure passion experience.
The test drive was selected in Yilan Binhai Highway to let the media experience the dynamic performance of R8. The first half of the journey is on the main road of the city, and there are many stops on the road, which makes R8, a super-running giant, feel embarrassed in the shallows. But after careful tasting, apart from the heavy hands on the steering wheel, R8 did not appear too hard-core style in Spartan style, and its Audi Magnetic Ride active electromagnetic suspension system also absorbed road debris in time, maintaining a certain degree of comfort.
Let's talk about the chassis performance of R8. This route planning does not cover the changeable mountain sections; Therefore, we can only taste the chassis tonality of R8 in the way of high-speed curve in coastal sections. Since the Audi Magnetic Ride active electromagnetic suspension system has just switched to the motion mode, the suspension system has a more detailed and direct interpretation of road surface changes. The bounce of the car body is obviously intensified, but the driver's grasp of the tire grip is more complete, which gives him more driving confidence.
Several high-speed bending and low-speed hand-weight steering wheels are still quite useful here. The steering system accurately transmits the driving intention with low distortion, and R8 can scrape sharply from the outside to the top of the curve. Audi Magnetic Ride active electromagnetic suspension system provides a tough damping response in corners. Coupled with the low center of gravity body configuration, it is difficult to feel a little roll inside the car. The chassis seems to be tightly attached to the road, and the rhythm of the front and rear wheels is quite uniform. It seems that such a corner has not reached the performance limit of R8.