The 2017 Audi R8 Comes In Two Very Distinct Flavors: Old-School and New-School Comment Now Follow Comments ...

Posted on 01 March 2015 at 03:37

Audi is diverging from competitors with the all-new 2017 R8 super car, set to debut at the Geneva Motor Show.

While Mercedes-Benz is downsizing and turbocharging engines in its latest high-performance models, such as the AMG GT, and Acura is offering its new NSX super car exclusively as a hybrid, Audi is launching different versions of the all-new R8 that are polar opposites.

One has an old-school, screaming V10 engine, while the other a silent electric propulsion system. Both are stunningly fast.

Like its predecessor, the 2017 Audi R8 V10 continues to use a monster 10-cylinder engine, which breaks from current downsizing and turbocharging trends. There are two versions of the Audi R8 V10, one that produces 540 horsepower and another, the R8 V10 Plus, that produces 610 horsepower.

The 2017 Audi R8 V10 gets a decent power boost. (Photo credit: Audi)

Though the new R8 V10 and V10 plus are 26 percent and 11 percent more powerful than their predecessors, respectively, they also gain fuel-saving technology that reduces fuel consumption up to 10 percent. One feature shuts off half of the cylinders when all the engine’s power is not needed, while another turns off the entire engine during temporary stops. A special mode also decouples the transmission from the driveshaft when the car is coasting.

The new R8 is up to 110 pounds lighter than its predecessor thanks to weight-saving measure such as using carbon-fiber reinforced plastic in certain parts of the underlying structure, including the roof pillars behind the side windows and the central tunnel in the floor that runs between the seats.

The Quattro all-wheel-drive system has been upgraded to improve grip and overall performance by allowing up to 100 percent of the engine’s power to be sent either to the front or the rear wheels. The steering system is also improved. The transmission is a seven-speed S Tronic dual-clutch gearbox with paddle shifts on the steering wheel for manual gear changes.

As with all sports cars these days, the 2017 Audi R8 has various driving modes to tailor the ride for comfort, sporty driving or slick road conditions.

A limited-production, all-electric version of the R8 called the R8 e-Tron is significantly improved for the 2017 model year. It has special body panels to reduce aerodynamic drag and uses even more carbon-fiber reinforced plastic, such as in the walls of the luggage compartment, to help offset the weight of its huge T-shaped lithium-ion battery pack. It fits neatly in the central tunnel between and also behind the seats.

The 2017 Audi R8 gets the company’s newfangled “Virtual Cockpit.” (Photo credit: Audi)

The battery chemistry and associated technology is new and proprietary to Audi. Capacity improves power from 49 kilowatt-hour to 92 kilowatt-hours, even though the battery in the new R8 e-Tron is the same size as that of the previous model.

Power output is now double that of the pervious system at 228 horsepower and 340 foot-pounds of torque. Most impressive, perhaps, is that the range on a single charge has more than doubled, from around 134 miles on the pervious model to about 280 miles.

The 2017 Audi R8 e-Tron sprints from 0 to 62 miles per hour in 3.9 seconds, which is only 0.7 seconds slower than the R8 V10 Plus and 0.4 seconds slower than the R8 V10.

Though all of its body panels are new, the 2017 Audi R8 looks very similar to the pervious model. The interior, on the other hand, is quite different. It features Audi’s new “Virtual Cockpit,” which eschews the screen in the middle of the dash found on the previous R8 (and most luxury vehicles) and instead uses a huge screen right in front of the driver to display all information.

The steering wheel mimics that of a race car by incorporating more functions than ever before, including the ignition button and drive mode selector, for example, in addition to the usual buttons and knobs that manipulate menus and infotainment functions.

The 2017 Audi R8 goes on sale this summer with a starting price in Europe of 165,000 euros. U.S. pricing is to be announced.