As our year with the Audi R8 nears its end, you might think that the seen-it-all, driven-it-all bunch at 120 East Liberty would have become jaded to its exotic charms. Think again. Even after a long, harsh winter and through a pothole-choked spring, the R8 continues to enthrall the staff, and its effect on bystanders is also undiminished.
The car is getting up there in mileage and has certainly seen far more regular and hard use than a privately owned example (it was already a veteran press car when it arrived at our door). We've noted an intermittent fussiness with the passenger's window switch and the satellite radio reception. And some of the interior trim is showing wear.
Still, not a bad record for a true-blue exotic pressed into daily service.
Senior web editor Phil Floraday: "I love listening to the R8. On Sunday, the weather was perfect for riding around with the windows down and leaving the car a gear or two lower than usual. Bombing around the city in second or third gear above 4000 rpm was awesome. I really doubt the V-10 version will sound this good when it comes to market. Lift off the throttle, get a little compression braking, and it's impossible not to grin."
Web producer Evan McCausland takes the R8 to rural Ada, Ohio. "I'm fairly certain Ada has never seen a car like this. At one point, two teenagers ran up to the Audi at a restaurant stop and seemed on the verge of hyperventilating. One shoved his cell phone in my face to show me the R8 wallpaper he'd installed that morning, and was literally praising God for bringing his dream car before him."
Assistant editor David Zenlea: "It's too bad the R8 is leaving in a few weeks. Even the GT-R, as fast and attention-grabbing as it is, doesn't feel quite as special when you climb inside. Everything about the R8, from the way the starter cranks like crazy for a few seconds before you start it to the gated manual, says exotic. And in that sense (and only that sense) the R8 is a bargain. It offers owners the exclusivity and uniqueness of a true supercar for mere Porsche 911 money." ...next page >>