I was lucky enough to style in the R8 this past weekend, my first time to drive it. Although it was penned by Walter de'Silva, its modern sexy looks could easily have been shaped by architects Frank Gehry (Disney Hall shown) or Santiago Calatrava.
The R8 attracts so much positive attention not only because of its exotic looks, but because it -- or its driver -- doesn't have a negative image. Remember the old BMW and porcupines joke? Well the same thing could apply to Porsches, Ferraris, and Lambos too. But the Audi doesn't have such baggage. And although Lambos aren't uncommon on the fashionable West side of LA, I've only seen one other R8.
I didn't experience the psycho pursuit or cell-phone stalkarazzi that the other staff members have gone through. But my friends, co-workers, and a few strangers went absolutely bananas over it. As I was fueling, one guy asked to take some pics. "Go ahead and sit in it," I said. When he was finished, he looked like a kid who just opened his Christmas presents. And when I was rolling on Melrose, one guy saw the window was down, and shouted while smiling, "Hey, are you Ironman?" I just smiled and pointed to him. A female friend, begged for -- and got -- a ride.
I drove the R8 all over the place this weekend: K1 in Irvine for the Edmunds kart Death Race, Orange County, the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, and Walt Disney Hall. I got about 15 mpg overall in mixed driving environments - certainly not bad enough to get convicted of crimes against humanity by the Sierra Club.
The R8 is so comfortable in both ride and cabin comfort that you could use it as a daily driver. The seats, in particular, are beautiful in appearance and both supportive and comfortable (although some driver seat bolster wear can be seen in the pic). The car has terrific ride/handling balance, with a firm, but not at all uncomfortable ride. The handling is superb, with almost no understeer. And the size and shape of the steering wheel are perfect for me - I felt like I was driving an ALMS car or something.
But enough gushing. Let me deride. The R8 has no RF-keyless ignition on/off, nor RF-keyless entry. It has -- a push button remote and metal key! I have the same disdain for metal keys in luxury cars as other here have for cassette players. The auto-shifted manual transmission is terrible -- a deal-breaker if a 6-speed manual weren't also available. The bucking in the lower gears is annoying -- using the paddle shifters doesn't get around that either (it's better after the first few gears). Also, if you're at stop light and leave it in Auto first gear, the transmission will timeout to neutral. When you try to leave the light, you just spin the engine up while going nowhere ("Oh, that putz can't drive stick.")
The radio is crap, with the CD changer located between the seats facing forward! And although the interior is quite comfortable, the inside -- except for the seats -- is not as luxurious as a $130K car should be.
Overall though, I would consider the R8 if I was shopping in this market. I might consider it over an equivalent Porsche: although it's less luxurious, it feels more modern.
Albert Austria, Sr Vehicle Evaluation Engineer @ 17,054 mi
lazyhater says:
03:47 PM, 08/11/08
So what do you have to do to get it going again if the transmission timeout to neutral? Put the lever to neutral and to drive again?
speeder31 says:
03:59 PM, 08/11/08
I resent that BMW jab.
carlisimo says:
04:06 PM, 08/11/08
I never thought that the R8 was attractive, but this color scheme works. I think it's the dark blades over a lighter color that doesn't; nor do body-colored blades. In either of those schemes the car looks like a TT that's been stretched out of balance.
Albert Austria says:
04:16 PM, 08/11/08
lazyhater -
Just tap the shift lever to the left - it goes back into auto or manual mode - I forgot - it toggles back and forth as you tap left.
Regards,
Snake Doc
bloodyr says:
04:33 PM, 08/11/08
Maybe it's just a bad picture, but that seat looks more beat up than the seats in the 2002 M3. Not good for a 100K+ car.
phinneas519 says:
05:01 PM, 08/11/08
You have to remember that there's a lot more BMWs, Porsches and Ferraris around, so you have a higher chance of running into a prick driver (I mean, really, do you have a lower chance as you encounter more of those cars?). Whereas there are only a couple R8s around and there's an Edmunds' employee in one of 'em, so that leaves a guaranteed 50% ratio of non-prick R8 drivers.
It's practically a gimme as long as you guys have this baby in your fleet.
Albert Austria says:
05:12 PM, 08/11/08
phinneas -
Thanks for your comments.
My point is that BMW, Porsche, and Ferrari all have images (some bad, as noted). But does Audi? I don't know the Audi image - all I know is that a lot of women love and aspire to Audi.
btw - guaranteed 50% ratio? You may be giving us more credit than you think.
Regards,
Snake Doc
clarkma5 says:
05:26 PM, 08/11/08
I hold nothing but utter disdain for RF keyless entry and ignition systems. Too much engineering and cost for too little benefit, and I want the key in the ignition instead of in my pocket while I drive. What ever happened to KISS?
For me, RF keyless entry and ignition is a deal breaker. I will not buy a car that has such a system, period.
jr1m90 says:
07:12 PM, 08/11/08
Those seats look absolutely gorgeous, that tiny bit of wear not withstanding.
Count me also as someone who likes the R8s exterior, so I think you might be giving Frank Gehry a bit too much credit there (designer of the Stata center, which he himself said, "looks like a party of drunken robots got together to celebrate.").
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stata_Center
Perhaps Gehry has been working with Acura to design their new grills?
carfreak8394 says:
07:59 PM, 08/11/08
Maybe I just don't know the abbreviation, but what is RF keyless entry and ignition ?
phinneas519 says:
08:15 PM, 08/11/08
I've always perceived Audi owners as 3/4 enthusiast 1/4 Volvo 240-type driver. Maybe that's why they're not hated on too much.
Albert Austria says:
08:31 PM, 08/11/08
carfreak -
Sorry for the techno -- RF => Radio Frequency.
This is the type of key where you can just leave it in your pocket: as you approach the vehicle, the RF signal in the key is received by the car, you can open the door without pressing any buttons. Similarly, you can turn ignition on by pressing some start switch without removing the key from your pocket. It's quite convenient; but for some people, old habits die hard.
Regards,
Snake Doc
louiswei says:
09:00 PM, 08/11/08
The front overhang of this car is amazing...
That totally destroyed the car's looks from this angle.
carfreak8394 says:
09:27 PM, 08/11/08
Thanks, Albert. I've heard of keyless start before, but I just had never heard "RF" before.
vdo says:
09:56 PM, 08/11/08
Very nice pic next to the Disney Hall. I recently went to an Audi dealer to have a look at the TT and I was surprised at the very average quality of leather seats (I also checked other cars in the showroom (A4/5/6 including some with the exclusive pack and it was no better) and it was definitely not up to par with BMW for example. They had a white R8 in the showroom and I was surprised at how small it looked in real, very well balanced despite what some pic might suggest.
sgude says:
05:22 AM, 08/12/08
Yeah, I've gotten the BMW and porcupines joke several times already, even from my office mate, who loves telling people I own a BMW and follows with the joke.
The Audi, while recovered from the unintended acceleration mania of the 90s, has not capitalized on its LeMans domination properly. The R8 is a start, but they need to let people know just how dominant they are in motorsport. Again, the R8 is a start, a good one.
dougtheeng says:
06:20 AM, 08/12/08
I agree with louiswei that the front overhang in that picture is a little much.
ahightower says:
06:56 AM, 08/12/08
Ditto on the front overhang. I'd never noticed that before, but WOW, that's weird when viewed from the side like that. Obviously not as noticeable in the real world, since it's so low slung. But now that it's been brought to my attention, it'll probably drive me nuts every time I see one.
rtharak2 says:
07:48 AM, 08/12/08
"The R8 has no RF-keyless ignition on/off, nor RF-keyless entry."
Does no one else appreciate the simple pleasure of stabbing a metal key into a car's ignition and twisting it to life? Particularly with a high-revving, growly V8, I think push-button starts are a travesty. Plus, regular ignition eliminates the chances of you starting the car, going off to do something else, and then driving off without the keys. I know it sounds stupid, but it's happened to my parents with their prius.
penboy says:
08:39 AM, 08/12/08
My 6's keyless entry/start-up system still has me turning a knob to start the car, but I never have to take the key out of my wallet. I've only walked out of the house without my wallet once in my entire life, so forgetting it isn't a huge concern for me.
I suppose these sorts of systems should stay as optional when it could be an issue for people like clarkma5, but if I have any say in the matter, I won't own another car without it.
elbee says:
08:48 AM, 08/12/08
That side shot is awful. It looks like two different cars were grafted together. I think they used the sideblade to try and break up the stretched wheelbase look but it backfired.
dotsara says:
08:58 AM, 08/12/08
Ohh, big points for the Calatrava mention.
And: are we all looking at the same photo? The side shot is awful? What? Psh. (:
Mike Schmidt says:
06:33 PM, 08/12/08
Seat wear on the driver's side bolster is a let down... if I'm going to spend $134k I want the car to be invincible.
Dan Edmunds says:
06:37 PM, 08/12/08
I had the R8 pop into neutral more than a couple of times while waiting a signals, myself. And it's really embarassing, because you don't notice until it is time to GO, at which time you discover that you can't--the engine revs uselessly. At least it sounds bitchin' while you flail.
Here you are in a ubercar, with everyone looking at you, and the Sentras and Siennas are leaving you cold at the light while you figure out that you have to (a) put your foot back on the brake (the folks waitin behind you love that) before you can (b) select first gear and finally (c) get going. It's hard to maintain an Ironman sense of cool at this point.
It happens when the signal is long and the road is flat enough that you take your foot off the brake pedal while you wait. A wait of 15 seconds or more with no motion and no brake pedal seems to be the recipe. Holding your foot on the brake, even when you wouldn't normally, seems to prevent the whole affair--at least it stopped happening to me when I started doing this.