Audi R8 E-tron Sets World Record at Nurburgring

Record for the Audi R8 e-tron: 8:09,099 minutes for the Nordschleife

The Audi R8 e-tron has been established on the Nürburgring-Nordschleife, the hardest race and test track in the world, the best time for production vehicles with electric drive. Race driver Markus Winkelhock drove the purely battery electric-powered high-performance sports car in 8:09,099 minutes over the 20.8 kilometer circuit.

After the overall victories in the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring and at Le Mans, Audi has therefore set a further milestone in its history. How impressive is the reaching time of 8:09,099 minutes, the comparison with the fastest lap so far stalled in production vehicles. The best value of 7:11,57 minutes was achieved with a Gumpert Apollo Sport, which is powered by a 515 kW / 700 hp Audi engine.

Audi R8 E-tron , which generated Markus Winkelhock on the Nordschleife record drive is in all details the standard model, the end of the year comes on the market. His two electric motors combined give 280 kW / 381 hp and 820 Newton meters (Nm) of torque: At the rear wheels is almost from a standing start to over 4900 Nm. The Audi R8 e-tron accelerates in 4.6 seconds from zero to 100 km / h Its top speed is usually limited to 200 km / h, for the record lap was 250 km / h released.

The lithium-ion battery of the R8 e-tron stores 49 kWh of energy - enough for about 215 kilometers of driving distance. His T-shape allows it to be mounted in the center tunnel and the area between the passenger compartment and the rear axle. In the coasting and braking, he is charged by regenerative braking. The lightweight body of the Audi R8 e-tron is composed mainly of aluminum and CFRP components, it greatly contributes to the high-performance sports car, despite the large battery weighs only 1780 kg.

For the series production of the R8 to emphasize e-tron, Audi has set up beside the best time on the Nordschleife, another record. Right after Markus Winkelhock drove a second Audi R8 e-tron, which was limited to 200 km / h, two laps in a row. Both are 8:30,873 and 8:26,096 minutes to well below the nine-minute mark. "Of course, the R8 e-tron racing car with no aerodynamic aids, but a production car," says Winkelhock. "But he brings with his low center of gravity and weight distribution, rear-stressed with high athletic qualities. The torque with which the electric motors pushing uphill, beats everything I know."

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2010 Audi R8 5.2 V10 FSI Quattro Road Test

A bigger stick for the soft-spoken supercar, and a price to match.

By making available an R8 with a monster 525-hp V-10 engine—complementing the 420-hp V-8 model that was introduced two years ago—Audi has elevated its exotic-looking two-seater from “almost-a-supercar” status to a true competitor in the high-performance realm above mere sports cars.

The 105-hp increase comes from a 5.2-liter, direct-injection V-10 that is virtually identical to the engine found in the Lambor ghini Gallardo LP560-4.

Unique engine programming and intake and exhaust systems are the chief differences in the Audi engine over the Italian job, although both engines are made in the same plant in Hungary.

We’re told that the V-10 weighs just 68 pounds more than the V-8, and that fuel economy with the bigger engine will worsen by only 1 mpg.

Output is listed by Audi at 525 horsepower and 391 pound-feet of torque, 27 horses and seven pound-feet fewer than in the Lambo, but we suspect some of that difference is simply marketing.

With the help of launch control, a first for the R8’s manual transmission, we managed the 0-to-60 dash in 3.7 seconds and a quarter-mile in 11.8 seconds at 121 mph.

That’s a full second quicker in the quarter-mile than we recorded in a manual-transmission V-8 R8 and dead even with a Porsche 911 GT2. This was measured in a down-and-dirty test run during a preview drive in Spain.

Lamborghini owners need not fret that this R8 will steal the Gallardo’s thunder, as the V-10 R8’s numbers are quite a few ticks behind those of the automated-manual LP560-4 we tested in February.

A more formal test with the paddle-shifted transmission should improve our times, but still, we don’t see a lot of cross-shopping between these corporate cousins.

The Lamborghini is a car for extroverts—loud, brash, in your face. The Audi is more of a speak-softly-and-carry-a-big-stick car. The exhaust—quiet during relaxed driving and escalating in volume above 4000 rpm—never fully intrudes on the serenity in the cockpit until you approach the 8700-rpm redline (700 more than the V-8’s and 200 higher than the Lambo’s).

The extra oomph is obvious as soon as the R8 5.2 starts moving, but the power increase hasn’t upset the R8’s user-friendliness and neutral handling. Easy driving is still the name of the game; both models have graceful manners even when driven hard around a track.

Visual differences between V-8 and V-10 R8s are slight. The V-10 model has wider intakes behind the doors, which sit atop wider body sills. In front and back, the black accents are glossy instead of flat, and there are two crossbraces to the air intake rather than three.

The V-10 R8’s exhaust tips are larger and oval-shaped, and this model also sports standard LED lighting, previously an option. The seats, a carry-over from the V-8 model, had us at times wishing for more lateral support.

We’re pleased the R8’s optional ceramic brakes might make it to North America. They’re strong, completely free of fade, and—unlike the on-off brakes in the Gallardo—can actually be modulated for smooth driving.

Audi won’t pinpoint when the V-10 R8 will go on sale or what it will cost. We’ll bet on late this year at the earliest, with a premium of maybe $45,000 over the V-8 R8’s $117,500 base price.

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