2008 Audi R8: Set the Cruise at 120 mph

Good, the less posts we get about the Smart the better.

Just curious, does your insurance company read these blogs about you driving 120 mph on public roads?

The blur makes it look like "ludicrous speed"...

You guys have some serious guts cruising at 120. Between VASCAR, aircraft, instant on...even with a detector, I think you're risking a lot. Still, I'm sure it was fun.

Seriously (like I am not joking/kidding), are these blogs talking about driving at 120 mph and illegal street racing even legal?
 
I love the LT blogs so the last thing I want to see is you guys getting into trouble.

just paying the billls.
 
ater all, the lexus 400h, thats been around for like 2 years has 14post
 
the gt 10
 
the 135 9
 
civix gx 20.
 
Showing off to the world that you have no respect for the law .... priceless

The law is there to protect the people. Some cars are unsafe at merely 60 mph, some unsafe at 20 mph.
 
This car should be safe to drive up to 160 mph, given clear dry road conditions and 1-mile+ visibility.
 
A speed limit of 80 mph is there on I-10 because on average people have an unhealthy high chance to crash and suffer permanent injuries if they go faster.
 
But the R8 would keep you safe at speeds faster than that, given clear roads with 1-mile+ visibility. Choose your environmental conditions wisely. Including no cops in range.

I don't think it is appropriate to have this kind of post in the LT blogs. If you were on a closed track, going 120 (or 155) with the cruise control just to show you could, might possibly be considered appropriate. In this case, I think disciplinary action against the driver and passenger would be appropriate. Maybe a ban from the R8 and some serious education about reckless endangerment. Fun's fun til someone loses an eye.

Wow this is too much. Slow down a bit. California will still be there tomorrow morning. Y'all are too scary.

Be advised that all speeds are either legal or performed on a closed course. West TX is about as closed course as you can get.

Hey, at least they did it after dark... Or are those gauges always lit up?

I agree with some of these posts. Should one of you guys get busted, these blog posts could easily be used as evidence, thats what happened to Karl about six months ago if anybody remembers.
 
It's all fun and games until someone gets hurt......

Oh please quit whining! No you all don't want to see the posts, I recall at least another where they we're speeding.

Where does it say he was on a public road?

cx7. I dont have a problem with the posts.
 
I have a problem with the speeding.
 
as far as I know, theres no roads with a 120 legal speed limit in USA.

How about comparing how quick you can get to 120 mph with sport mode v. getting to 120 without sport mode.

Geez you guys with your panties in a bunch need to head over to Consumer Reports.
 
Going 120 in an R8 on a straight, dry road, is far safer than doing 65 in the rain, in a beat up old pickup truck with no brakes, airbags, or seatbelts.

Ditto Jaguar36 - heck SC doesn't even require inspections!! That pick up you describe was all over the roads down there!!!
Good lord - take a deep breath and relax! 120 is nothing - I
used to touch it all the time with our V6 Honda Accord V6 when passing trucks and the need called for it. Setting the cruise? Never tried it. But really people - 120 in an R8 is as safe or safer than some semi weighing 80,000 lbs. doing 80!! It amazes me how FEW people have ever even gone 100 let alone driven it. I am not saying everyone is qualified to do so but given the right car, the right traffic and weather conditions I see nothing wrong with 120 and thought Montana's lack of speed limits years ago perfectly reasonable for their driving conditions. I have been 152 in my S2000 - amazing how curvy the interstates are at those speeds!

No wonder 10,0000+ people die every year in the US in traffic accidents.
 
If even the smallest thing goes wrong at that speed, you are toast.

"If even the smallest thing goes wrong at that speed, you are toast."
 
True - that is why I did the 152 ONCE. Debris in the road, an animal, oil spill can all take you out in a heart beat. However, I disagree with the statement "Speed kills". People die in traffic accidents for MANY MANY reasons - most stupid:
 
Underinflated tires
Talking/texting on cell phone
Driving drunk
Running stop signs and red lights
Speed differential
 
The latter is a real killer - people who insist on driving in the outside lanes at the speed limit or below necessitating lane changes to the right to pass. That is why highways end up jammed up with traffic - several lanes all going the same speed rather than slower traffic keeping right like on the Autobahn and a REFUSAL to move to the right when someone traveling faster comes up from behind and flashes his/her lights. In Europe they move over - here you get road rage.
 
No, I disagree - speed alone does not kill.

Am glad I'm nowhere near you Edmunds folks driving that R8. What speed rating does the R8 tires have?
 
Seriously, why don't you R8 folks stop at Race tracks alongside your trip to get the high speed driving you crave without endangering lesser trained drivers like the mullet you encountered earlier?

Well put, ljgbjg. +eleventymillion

i'll cry about.
 
speed does kill. An accident at 60mph, you might walk away from,at 120, you'll be dinner for animals walking by.
 
want go fast? find a track... even on 'closed' roads, bad things happen.
 
story a few months ago of a teenage taking the m5 on a joy ride with his friends on a closed off run way... DEAD.
 
At least there was little chance of someone else being killed since they werent on public roads.
 
For a professional 'magazine' to pull a stunt like this is reckless. and IMHO stupid, its not like they dont have access to test tracks, and closed roads.

riight and all those people died because of speeding, this is what the post consists of, if you don't like it or whats in it, skip it and move on.

"What speed rating does the R8 tires have?"
 
You DO know what an R8 IS, don't you? Why would you even thnk for a minute about the speed rating of the tires? The car can go 185+ I'll answer that - the car has the same speed rated tires as my S2000 - Z, for 185+
 (According to the tire rack original equipment tires guide)
 
I should amend my earlier answer about why people die in traffic accidents to add one more category and address the M5 fatality mentioned -
 
INEXPERIENCE
 
IMHO we have the absolute WORST driver training in this country. There should be required training on how to handle a car in a skid, a panic stop with anti lock brakes and steer away from an accident;how to use the car's ACCELERATOR and steering to avoid accidents, not just the brakes, merging onto interstates, avoiding a truck's blind spots, emergency maneuvers etc. What happens if and when you drop a right wheel off the shoulder and how you correct for it without over correcting?Driving at 25-35 MPH around town and parallel parking is irrelevant to the situations an inexperienced driver may find himself/herself exposed to that can be life threatening.

For those of you who are arguing that going 120 in the R8 is safe...
 
I think my car is pretty safe too going at 120 (electronically limited at 142) but I wonder how would the cops react to that argument next time I got pulled over at that speed.
 
Also, I wonder what would happen when grandpa in a LaSabre going at 10 under the limit "mistakenly" merged in front of my 120-moving car...
 
Oh and uhm... my car has Y rated tires (good for 186 mph), thought I would just throw it out there, ya know...

Boy, Oldham sure know how to bring the Safety Nannies out of the closet. I want to know if the cruise works at 150i(it doesn't on my Mazdaspeed).

I never tried the cruise on my s2000 at 150! :) Don't think I will either. Man that is fast - when you slow back down to 90 it feels like you are crawling!

"story a few months ago of a teenage taking the m5 on a joy ride with his friends on a closed off run way... DEAD."
 
That's merely the Law of Natural Selection in action. Too bad about the M5, though.

Like I said - not the speed - it was the inexperience. But I am sure he knew how to parallel park that thing!

I've driven the I-10 in West Texas at least a half dozen times. The limiting factor there is not the traffic or even personal safety, it's the fear of speeding tickets. There is plenty of long-open road in West Texas for a 120-mph run.

This car was designed for the autobahn, as are all German products. The car its self is safe at those speeds. Does that give the driver the right to go that fast? No. But everyone always asks, "What'll it do." Now, you can tell them.
 
I've personally done 110 in my car. I wouldn't have done it if it wasn't a straight, flat farm road with no traffic. I'm not a menace on the road and I'm not going to go that fast ever again. You can slip in a little irresponsibility once in a while. Just don't be stupid about it.

"Like I said - not the speed - it was the inexperience. But I am sure he knew how to parallel park that thing!"
 
Exactly; I also blame Daddy for buying the car for him. This summer my 13 year old son is going to learn to drive my Wrangler on our farm so he'll know how to drive a stick. Once he gets his license he's going to take the Street Survival course as well as BMW's Performance Driving School at Greer SC. If he needs to use a car he will take the X3. He won't be allowed to pilot any of the serious equipment unless I'm riding shotgun. Any tickets or at-fault accidents and he's back to walking.

ljgbjg & roadburner & others.
 
it IS THE SPEED!.
 
in 99% of the cases you listed, people would have lived, or been safer if they were going slow.
 
experience is part of it. But Its on several large orders of magnitude EASIER to die going FAST, vs going slow.
 
I'm sorry you are too ignorant to understand that.

"I'm sorry you are too ignorant to understand that."
 
You are the ignorant one my friend. If we relied on people like you to advance ourselves as human beings we'd still be using the ramp and sled, there would be no wheels, and we would either walk everywhere or ride a horse - though I suspect you are probably a member of PETA as well, so no animal riding either!
 
Yeah - let's eliminate ALL traffic deaths - speed limit 5 MPH!! Then people would be killed riding those darn speedy bicycle things!
 
roadburner - VERY smart move. I took my kids to an empty commuter parking lot on Sundays and set up cones and MADE them do emergency braking with anti lock and undertand about steering out of an accident, we did donuts during snowstorms to undertand what a skid is like and how to control it, and other maneuvers. I feel they are better drivers for it. I did not have the resources available that you apparently have. I raced my S2000 at the BMW plant in Greer in an SCCA Southeastern region autocross!

ljgbjg - Where did I say anything about lowering speed limits?
 
NO WHERE. Your the one defending going 120 on a public road.
 
i dont even know how you got anything from my post about advance anything in the world. Then again, why should I be surprised. Like the say 'ignorance is bliss'. And you my friend are very blissful.

ljgbjg - Where did I say anything about lowering speed limits?
 
opfreak " ...people would have lived, or been safer if they were going slow."
"Its on several large orders of magnitude EASIER to die going FAST, vs going slow."
 
So in your world, the slower you go the less chance of fatalities? Right? Is that not a logical conclusion of the argument you make? I simply took it to the extreme - I mean, even one death would be too many, right? So let's make everyone go 5 MPH? Right? Or just exactly what IS the magic number opfreak? You cannot even undertand how your own argument logically gets you to where I took it!
  
Advancing the world? My point was simple - you argue that everyone would be safer going more slowly. Fine - so everyone goes 5 MPH and no one attempts to do anything faster - we must protect them from themselves by all means. Speed has advanced our society - trains, planes, trucks, cars, etc. by being able move people and goods more efficiently and quickly. Again - your argument, not mine, about going slowly. I just extrapolated it to its logical conclusion, and you demonstrate your ignorance understanding that.

ljgbjg, I think you know fully well what opfreak was trying to say but just don't want to admit it.
 
I agree with you that speed has advanced our society. That's why being as an aerospace engineer I am not happy about the civil aviation is still in the sub-sonic era half century after the first passenger jet went into service. I am also a huge supporter for abandoning the speed limit on rural highways all together. However, until that day comes (probably won't...) going 120 mph in a 75/80 zone is illegal (a felony in some states like California) and shouldn't be justified.

ljgbjg - go back to defending honda VCM.
 
your extrapolation FAILS. plan and simple.
 
If your sick and twisted mind wants to put words in my mouth. Go ahead and try.
 
Please find where I called for 5mph speed limits. And I'll back off.
 
But I'm saying people should drive with repsect to the local speend limits. And your out defending driving at 120mph, because its a sporty car.
 
The road isn't just for Scott, and the R8's for the world. But its also used by grand pa and grand ma, guys in old trucks, semi's, beaters, geo metros etc.
 
And while a guy going slow infront of you causes a speed diferential, that could be dangerous. That speed deferance is also caused by the guy speeding.

I still want to know if the cruise control works at 150.

Louiswei "ljgbjg, I know you know fully well what opfreak was trying to say and you just don't want to admit it."
 
opfreak said "people would have lived, or been safer if they were going slow. It's on several large orders of magnitude EASIER to die going FAST, vs going slow."
  
No, quite to the contrary, I am admitting it. If we were to all go 5 MPH there would be no deaths. I merely took the argument to the extreme, and asked what was the magic number?
 
"However, until that day comes (probably won't...) going 120 mph on a 75/80 zone is illegal (a felony in some states like California) and shouldn't be justified."
 
I agree with your statement generally - there are laws and they are to be obeyed. Going 120 on any US highway is illegal. If CA thinks it a felony, it needs to reexamine its laws - a felony right up there with drug dealing? Hardly, IMHO. But I can think of any number of instances when it would be justified - just one being that if you are in a car you are responsbile to remove yourself from danger rather than standing and defending yourself. If someone chooses to pursue you, IMHO, ANY speed you can go to lose them is justified. And if you happen to catch the attention of the police by doing so all the better.
 
The REALLY interesting statistic for all the speed kills proponents?? There have been FEWER highway deaths SINCE raising the national speed limit from 55 to 65 or higher, despite many more miles being driven, the greatest reduction being where the speed limits were raised the most! Take that Joan Claybrook!! But once again, why let facts get in the way of an argument that speed kills - I am sure the same thoughts pertain to guns too - that guns kill. No, PEOPLE kill - with cars, by running stop lights and signs, by using their cell phones when driving, etc etc. - so let's take away the cars, the guns, etc. - oh, wait, what about knives, spears...and if you saw Space Odyssey 2001, rocks too.
 
That was my point about advancement too -those that argue about speed killing would have us retreat from the progress we have made in shortening distances by increasing the speed of getting somewhere. But perhaps they are GOD and decree what our speed limits should be because THEY know best.
 
I for one am not ready to confer that title on them, nor let them run my life as if they were.

opfreak "Please find where I called for 5mph speed limits. And I'll back off."
 
opfreak "...people would have lived, or been safer if they were going slow. It's on several large orders of magnitude EASIER to die going FAST, vs going slow."
   
I am admitting you are correct - no you did not state a specific speed. So what is slow? Read your own words. Your argument would support the conclusion that if we were to all go 5 MPH there would be no deaths. I merely took YOUR argument to the extreme, and asked what was the magic number?
 
Don't you just hate it when you are hoisted on your own petard?

ljgbjg
 
once again, you and the 'speed kills is a myth' crowd are mixing up cause and effect.
 
Yes its true that the rise in speed limits cause fewer deaths.
 
However the root reason was not that speed increased.
 
in most cases the speed didn't decrease, the difference between speeds decreased.
 
Some studies said that in general no mater the speed limit, a good number of people would good roughly ~70mph.
 
The problem is with people respecting the law, would be going 55mph, causing a huge difference in speed.
 
With the high speed limit, most people still went 70mph, but the 55mph crowd was now going 65mph. Causing a smaller difference between traffic.
 
You want to say, that 'look faster traffic = safer roads'. When the reality is that if the people going 70mph, would have obeyed posted laws and went ~55mph. The roads would be as safe as they are with higher limits.
 
And you can argue till your blue in the face that speed doesn't kill, and you would still be wrong.
 
Since energy = 1/2 mv^2. The speed factor in an accdient matters far more then even the weight of the car.
 
simply put, the energy experanced by your body, would be FOUR times greater for a simple doubling of speed.

Yawn.

You are more LIKELY to be injured or killed if in an accident at higher speeds. I will agree with you there and there is no denying the physics.
 
I will not agree with you however that higher speeds in autos kills. It does not. And I am living proof, as is road burner, and Brock Yates, and Dan Gurney, and others - all of whom have driven at high speed on public roads without incident. I still contend it is other factors that are more likely the cause of the accident where someone might also have been driving at high speed. Did speed cause the accident? NO. Did it result in the death? Yes - because of the physics. Thus my take on your argument - not being killed by going slowly and my taking it to the extreme of the 5 MPH speed limit to eliminate speed as a potential cause of death - not the accident in the first place, but the physical forces that could be fatal. And thus my comment about being hoisted on your own petard - because it was your argument, not mine.

ljgbjg my argument was in your statement that "speed alone does NOT kill".
 
when in reality, Speed is THE ONLY thing that kills.
 
If you want 5mph roads, go lobby who ever you voted for to do it. Since it seems like you keep talking about it.

Back to my original point - I do not believe that an R8 in capable hands on public highways in appropriate circumstances of road, traffic and weather conditions is necessarily a menace, as the testers here were taken to task for.

ljgbjg ,
 
so as long as theres no harm theres no foul?
 
reponsiblity whats that??

I qualified my approval - that is where the responsibility lies. I am of the opinion that Montana had the whole speed limit thing right years ago, and the Europeans have it right today. Speed limits in this country do not necessarily accurately reflect what is safe for conditions - they generate revenue for local governments. Period. And we can argue until we are blue in the face on that one. Have a nice day!

opfreak, you've convinced me. I pledge to keep my Mazdaspeed 3, my 3 Series, and my Speed Triple under 120 mph.
For this weekend, anyway...;)

road burner - You have a Speed Triple??!!
Awesome bike. A friend of mine has a Hayabusa that he drags - 1/4 under 10. Top speed - 186!? What is top end on the Speed Triple? opfreak will freak out! Like I said - I had my '04 S2000 up to 152. The pre-'04 versions with the 9K redline would do 160+

why will I freak out?
 
actual both you and roadbunner, drive even FASTER. that way if you hit something, you wont go on the disability payroll

One reason (of many) that I love bikes is that you are much less likely to hurt others with your high speed antics. Laws are there to protect the innocent, not me from myself.

I am older than you might think. I have had many hi performance cars and friends with them - Lamborghini Espada, Countach, Corvettes, Jags, Big Block Chevies, Z's, 440 GTX, WRX, S2000s, Porsches, etc. I have had three speeding tickets my entire life - one when I was 17 (inexperienced), one when 21, and another when my Trans Am shifted into OD at 40 in a 25 zone in a city while at IDLE engine speed. Whenever I have driven these cars at high speed it has been, IMHO, responsibly - that is, traffic, weather, road conditions, etc. all are ideal - clear and dry, no traffic whatsoever, and interstate highways. Legally? No - I confess to that.
 
I suggest you read Sunday Driver by Brock Yates for a real lesson in high speed driving being done safely in a high performance car on public roads by he and Dan Gurney.
 
As sober experienced adults in well maintained, quality, high performance vehicles, believe me, though you do not want to hear it, we are safer on that highway at 100+ than my 82 year old father is at 40 going to the grocery store on Saturday afternoon in traffic.
 
And frankly if I were in an accident - I would prefer to die than be on disability or in a vegetative state.

Hey Scott, are you done with all the road trip blogs yet? If not what's the delay? Someone in the legal department got a heart attack?

roadburner, most German cars have cruise control limits of 110-125 mph generally, so the R8 may have been near its limit. I forgot to try it on my 335i when I was holding it at 150 mph. :-)
 
I've noticed a common theme in this thread - that 120 mph is dangerous because of the speed differential with other cars. While that is true, why would you assume that there was anyone else on the road for miles when Scott did this? He was likely still in barren West Texas for chrissakes!! A 120 mph spurt is not unsafe in those conditions, assuming the road quality is also good. I cruised for over an hour at 120-130 mph on a German autobahn in my BMW, and it requires more of your attention but it's really no sweat. These cars are DESIGNED for it (70 mph feels like a dreadful crawl afterwards), and can get there in mere seconds after putting your foot down. And braking from 120? Better check to make sure your fillings are secure first.

right on bimmerjay!

"road burner - You have a Speed Triple??!!
Awesome bike. A friend of mine has a Hayabusa that he drags - 1/4 under 10. Top speed - 186!? What is top end on the Speed Triple?"
 
I've got a 1996 T3(885cc, @100 hp). Mine has the Triumph 3-into-1 "Off Road/Racing" exhaust as well as the Alcon "Super III" six-pot front calipers. It will do 0-60 in @3 seconds and the 1/4 in the low 11s/high 10s. Top speed is only about 130 mph, largely due to the fact that the bike has no fairings whatsoever. I haven't taken it much past 90 as the wind blast gets pretty fierce.

"These cars are DESIGNED for it (70 mph feels like a dreadful crawl afterwards), and can get there in mere seconds after putting your foot down. And braking from 120? Better check to make sure your fillings are secure first."
 
Even my 13 year old Club Sport makes 120 mph seem dull. No overdrive however; the poor little M42 is spinning at 6000 rpm at that velocity. And the brakes are firm, poweful and fade-free. Despite its Bilstein HDs and stock ride height, my 1999 Wrangler is a handful at only 65-70 mph.

Nice picture I am sure you enjoy it. I have stayed away from bikes - afraid I would get hooked, and kill myself. Fast cars are fine with me - I know there is no comparison to the freedom and speed yo feel on a bike.

ljgbjg- why to defend your actions must you go to extermes.
 
yes you grandfather at 80 is probably a worse driver then you goign 120. But what about all those other people around you.
 
its obivous you have no respect for speed, and the others around you.
 
Yes, these cars are designed for speed.. but just because you CAN got hat fast, does not give you the RIGHT on public roads to do so.
 
no matter how over inflated your driving ego is.

I've done 165 in my S (closed course, slick tires). My car feels perfectly solid at those speeds, but the tires didn't, so I backed off.

"I have stayed away from bikes - afraid I would get hooked, and kill myself. Fast cars are fine with me - I know there is no comparison to the freedom and speed yo feel on a bike."
 
Well, I'm taking things pretty slow so far; the S3 is my first street bike. I took the Motorcycle Safety Foundation's Basic Rider Course and I frequently practice hard braking and other exercises in a nearby vacant parking lot. I also wear an armored textile riding suit, boots, gloves, and a Snell 2005 full face helmet. There's not much margin for error when you are riding on the street- I assume that I am invisible to other drivers and that if they CAN see me, then they are trying to kill me. That said, it is a blast to ride, and it stands out from most other bikes on the street.

"its obivous you have no respect for speed, and the others around you."
 
What is obvious from your posts is that you want to deny the logical extension of your own qarguments - becaue they make no sense, you choose to ignore facts that do not support your agument, and you choose to twist my words - "I do not believe that an R8 in capable hands on public highways in appropriate circumstances of road, traffic and weather conditions is necessarily a menace, as the testers here were taken to task for. "

ljgbjg - I was following your lead on twisting words and logic.
When you called me out on a 5mph speed limit.
 
and please, if you are putting that many restrications on who/when/where/in what, some one can go 120.
 
then why not just make it simple: do it on a closed road/private road or track.
 
not play mr hot shot race car driver on PUBLIC roads.
 
all my arguments are based in logical. Your argument is based on the feeling of control you have.

"all my arguments are based in logical. Your argument is based on the feeling of control you have."
 
I think that just about says it all - I need say no more.

It's been said before so I'll keep it brief: Audi allows cruise control to be set at 120mph because you are legally allowed to drive that speed - on the AUTOBAHN. Not on public roads through Texas. 'Nuff said

"It's been said before so I'll keep it brief: Audi allows cruise control to be set at 120mph because you are legally allowed to drive that speed - on the AUTOBAHN. Not on public roads through Texas. 'Nuff said"
 
So why does the U.S.-spec version of the R8 allow the cruise to be set to 120 mph? There are no unlimited autobahns in the U.S. to legally use it and I can't imagine anyone needing cruise control on a track.

"So why does the U.S.-spec version of the R8 allow the cruise to be set to 120 mph?"
 
Then why does all the US-spec cars allow to go over 85 mph? There are no unlimited autobahns in the US to legally use it?
 
Come on, let's be real here and not to argue just for the sake of arguing.