Audi R8 e-tron Quietly Sets a New Nürburgring Record for Production EVs at 8:09 [w/Video]

For the time being, Toyota may hold the overall world record for electric vehicles at the Nürburgring Nordschleife with the road-legal EV P001 prototype at 7:47.794, but Audi claims to have earned the bragging rights for the fastest lap in a series production model with the R8 e-tron.

The soon-to-be launched electric-powered R8 completed the 20.8-kilometer (12.92-mile) long Nürburgring circuit in the hands of racing driver Markus Winkelhock in 8:09.099 minutes.

By comparison, German magazine Sport Auto has recorded a time of 7:44 with the R8 V10 in 2009 and 8:04 with the R8 V8 in 2007.

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Audi R8 Picks Up a Bad Habit from Ferrari and Lamborghini Supercars in Canada

An Audi R8 sports coupe breathed its last breath on Monday after it was engulfed in flames that burned down half the car, despite the efforts from firefighters at the scene of the blaze.

While we don't know what caused the fire, we did learn from the Toronto Star that the incident took place on the Gardiner Expressway in the Canadian province of Ontario and that fortunately, no one was injured.

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The Uninspiring Silence of an Audi R8 e-Tron vs The Screaming Sounds of a Pagani Zonda R at the 'Ring

Call us old fashion, but we believe that a sports car has to arouse all your senses with its acceleration, speed, handling, looks and of course, sounds.

The Audi R8 is by all means a sharp looking and handling automobile that will likely be fast even in e-tron guise, which is Audi talk for its pure-electric powertrain that uses two electric motors on each axle.

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Racing One Builds a Weekend Track Racer Out of the Audi R8 V10

Not all tuning programs are aimed to make cars better on public roads. German tuning firm Racing One, for example, has prepared a host of upgrades for the Audi R8 V10 Coupe targeting those who want to use the mid-engined sports car mainly on the track.

Using its experience as a motorsports service provider and event organizer, Racing One made select tweaks to the R8's 5.2 liter V10 engine lifting output from 518hp (525PS) to 602hp (610PS).

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xXx Performance Slams Down and Ups the Ante on Audi R8 V10 to 641HP [Videos]

Obviously, no one expects subtlety from a tuning company named "xXx Performance" and with its latest creation based on the V10-powered version of the Audi R8 sports coupe, the German brand has set its sights directly on customers who really want to stand out from the crowd.

It all begins with the eye-popping lime green foil wrap contrasted by details in a black carbon fiber wrap including the side blades and mirrors. The Bochum, Germany based tuner also removed all Audi logos and painted the front grille and rear fascia in gloss black.

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A Video Tutorial from a Pro on How to Wash the Exterior of Your Car

If there is one maintenance task all car owners can carry out by themselves without any special skills, it is cleaning your vehicle.

That doesn’t mean you should go grab your mother's, wife's, neighbor's, girlfriend's or boyfriend's broom and dip it into a mix of chlorine and bleach nor should you hose down your car both inside and out – don't grin, someone actually did that to a brand new Mercedes-Benz CLS…

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SCOOP: 2013 Audi R8 Shows its Face, will Gain More Power and a 7-Speed Dual Clutch Transmission

Some six years after Audi wowed the world with its R8 supercar in 2006, Ingolstadt is getting ready to spruce up its flagship model with very mild styling updates on the outside but important changes under the skin.

Our spies sent us two sets of photos today, both of the R8 V10 model, with and without the swirly camouflage.

On the styling front, Audi's designers made a few tweaks here and there such as the new LED headlamp and tail light fixtures, the reshaped, six-point front grille with horizontal chrome slats and the circular instead of oval-shaped twin tail pipes on the V10 model.

Some may also notice that instead of two plastic slats on the front and rear side vents, the updated V10 model gets three plastic slats on both ends and corners.

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SCOOP: 2013 Audi R8 Shows its Face, will Gain More Power and a 7-Speed Dual Clutch Transmission

Some six years after Audi wowed the world with its R8 supercar in 2006, Ingolstadt is getting ready to spruce up its flagship model with very mild styling updates on the outside but important changes under the skin.

Our spies sent us two sets of photos today, both of the R8 V10 model, with and without the swirly camouflage.

On the styling front, Audi's designers made a few tweaks here and there such as the new LED headlamp and tail light fixtures, the reshaped, six-point front grille with horizontal chrome slats and the circular instead of oval-shaped twin tail pipes on the V10 model.

Some may also notice that instead of two plastic slats on the front and rear side vents, the updated V10 model gets three plastic slats on both ends and corners.

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Spied: All-Electric Audi R8 e-Tron Hits the Nürburgring, will be Presented in Paris

Audi is putting the finishing touches to the most revolutionary edition of its R8 sports car ever, the pure electric e-Tron. From what we hear, the production R8 e-Tron will make its first public outing at the Paris Motor Show this September.

Our spies caught up with an undisguised prototype in production trim silently testing on the Nürburgring. The only thing missing from the test car are the chrome bars on the side vents under the barely noticeable modified LED headlamps, while the production car will also get a different set of wheels.

The prototype is fitted with a six-point grille that will also make its appearance on the soon-to-be-revealed facelifted 2013 R8. The e-Tron version can be identified by the special black cover that replaces the regular model's window, the deep scoop on the hood and the absence of exhaust pipes on the modified rear apron.

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Spied: All-Electric Audi R8 e-Tron Hits the Nürburgring, will be Presented in Paris

Audi is putting the finishing touches to the most revolutionary edition of its R8 sports car ever, the pure electric e-Tron. From what we hear, the production R8 e-Tron will make its first public outing at the Paris Motor Show this September.

Our spies caught up with an undisguised prototype in production trim silently testing on the Nürburgring. The only thing missing from the test car are the chrome bars on the side vents under the barely noticeable modified LED headlamps, while the production car will also get a different set of wheels.

The prototype is fitted with a six-point grille that will also make its appearance on the soon-to-be-revealed facelifted 2013 R8. The e-Tron version can be identified by the special black cover that replaces the regular model's window, the deep scoop on the hood and the absence of exhaust pipes on the modified rear apron.

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Little Girl Grows up But Still Loves Daddy's Audi R8 Sports Car

In late 2010, Cris Ostberg posted a video of his then 18-month-old daughter enjoying a ride in his Audi R8 Spyder. The clip became an instant hit, however, due to the fact that several people grilled him about the safety and legitimacy of placing a child seat up front, he removed the video - even though it is legal to do so if you switch off the airbags.

Some 18 months later, Ostberg has posted a new video of his daughter, who is now about three-and-a-half years old. This time she hops into an R8 V10 coupe and plays around with the gas pedal to hear the 10-cylinder engine roar.

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Audi Giving Consumers the Chance to get Behind the Wheel of an R8 for a Day

Have you ever tried to sit in a Ferrari at an auto show? Sure you tried but did you actually manage to get pass the protective ropes surrounding Maranello's creations? Unless you make close to seven figures a year, the answer is probably no.

On the other hand, Germany's premium automakers have a much more lax approach to consumers even if most cannot afford to buy their top sports car offerings. And all for good reason as being able to dream about it pays off for the brand and its name in the long run.

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Monstrous 1,000HP Jeep Grand Cherokee Takes on Audi R8 V10, Nissan GT-R and BMW X6M

Ah Russia, the land of great artists, endless distances, dashboard mounted cameras and 1,000-horsepower Jeep Grand Cherokees challenging some of the fastest cars around.

In this match, we see the previous generation Grand Cherokee SRT-8 that's powered by a Stroker 7.2-liter supercharged V8 engine competing against a completely stock Audi R8 V10 5.2 with 525-horses, a Switzer-prepped Nissan GT-R R850 with 850-ponies and a BMW X6M by Evotech with 620-horsepower.

Race through the break to watch the one mile runs.

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EVO Pits Porsche Boxster Spyder Against Audi’s R8 Spyder

The second-generation of Porsche's Boxster roadster has been superseded by a brand-new model, which will make its official debut at the Geneva Motor Show next month. Porsche’s tradition of rolling out special editions of its standard models is legendary, but understandably, it's too early for anything other than the standard Boxster and Boxster S in its range.

Likewise, the Audi R8 is expected to get a mild facelift this year, with the most significant change being the replacement of the so-last-year single clutch semi-automatic gearbox by a modern twin-clutch transmission.

Despite all this, EVO magazine has decided to compare the 2009 Boxster Spyder against the V8 version of Audi’s R8 Spyder. The two cars have certain things in common: they are both open-top, mid-engined sports cars made by German premium manufacturers and they were launched in 2009.

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Limited Run Audi R8 GT Spyder Priced at $210,000*, Only 50 Coming to the States

The most exclusive and powerful version of the Audi R8 Spyder has arrived in the States. All in all, the Ingolstadt-based automaker will hand-build 333 examples of the R8 GT Spyder, 50 of which are destined for the U.S., each carrying an MSRP of $210,000 (€163,300), not including a $1,200 destination and delivery fee or local taxes.

What you get for the price of a family house in some states such as Ohio, is a lighter and more powerful version of the R8 V10 Spyder.

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Audi R8 V10 Falls Victim to the Stretch Limousine Industry [Video]

From the creators of the Ferrari 360 stretch limo comes yet another controversial supercar conversion, this time based on the Audi R8 V10.

Carbonyte UK will work in conjunction with Limo Broker to create the world's first super-stretched R8 and which it says is destined to become the signature model for the Limo Broker brand that also owns the Ferrari 360 Modena limousine.

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Audi Announces New Investment Plan and Confirms New A3 and R8 e-tron for 2012

You can say business is going good for Audi as the German premium automaker announced today a new plan to invest €13 billion, mainly in new products and technologies and in expanding its sites by 2016, while the company will also recruit some 1,200 specialists in 2012 in addition to 3,500 new employees it hired throughout 2011.

“We are aiming to achieve strong growth on an international scale and boost our lightweight construction and electric mobility areas of expertise in particular," said Thomas Sigi, Member of the Board of Management for Human Resources at AUDI AG. "That is why we will be hiring even more people and are planning to appoint a further 1,200 experts next year.”

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Audi: The Low-Down on the R8's Upcoming Facelift and 2014 Replacement

The first true supercar to be created by Audi, the R8, has won universal praise thanks to its handling, quality, every day usability and, in the V10-equipped model, performance numbers.

Despite the fact that it wouldn’t seem out of place if it were launched today, the truth is that Audi’s mid-engined wonder is already five years old, having been introduced in 2006.

Therefore, its replacement is already being developed and is due in 2014, with the open-top Spyder model to follow the next year.

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Audi R8 LMS Ultra to Compete in Next Year's FIA GT1 World Championship as Well

Only a month after the introduction of the improved R8 LMS Ultra and Audi has revealed plans to compete in the FIA GT1 World Championship next year with two examples of its latest GT3 racecar, which will be independently fielded by Team WRT. Read more »

Audi Motorsport to Launch New R8 LMS Ultra for 2012 Season

How do you replace a racing car that has scored 115 wins and 12 international and national titles in just three years? The answer is simple: you don’t. You carefully update it so that it continues to be on top of its class.

This is the challenge undertaken by the engineers of Audi's quattro GmbH who had to develop an even more competitive version of the successful R8 LMS named Ultra.

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