2017 R8 V10 RWS Spyder Photos, engines & full specs

If the R8 V10 RWS was not enough for those looking for a thrilling experience in a German supercar, then Audi offered them an open-top version of that rear-wheel-driven supercar to satisfy their taste.

The R8 V10 was already a hit on the supercar market, and other car manufacturers had to admit that Audi found an excellent recipe for that. It was a vehicle that could be driven daily since it was comfortable enough but also thrashed around corners on a track. It could cope well with that treatment, too. But then, customers started to ask for something more rough, more brutal. Audi answered with the pumped-up version named R8 V10 Plus. But that was not exactly what purists wanted. They craved for a rear-wheel drive supercar. Then, Audi introduced the limited-edition RWS versions: the coupe and the Spyder.

To prove that this was a car made for purists, Audi made subtle changes to it compared to the rest of the R8 V10 Spyders it had already produced. The front side featured the same broad grille covered with a honeycomb mesh like the R8 V10 Plus on this version, but it was finished in matte black instead of piano black. Moreover, instead of a quattro badge, it sported the Audi Sport one on the left upper side. The same mesh pattern as on the main grille was used to fill the side scoops that cooled the front vents.

From its profile, the car featured the same thick A-pillars as the rest of its Spyder brothers but sported a satin silver finish instead of black. Furthermore, the door mirror caps and the side intakes mounted behind the rear doors were body-colored. The R8 V10 RWS was fitted with standard black 19-inch alloy wheels with a unique design for this version. At the back, Audi made another interesting design change. The R8 V10 RWS Spyder featured twin exhausts on each side, finished in black and flanking the massive diffuser placed under the bumper. The rear fascia resembled the one from the R8 V10 Plus, not the one from the R8 V10 RWS.

Audi installed the same sports seats inside the cabin as those in the R8 V10 RWS Coupe, with Alcantara interior and Nappa leather exterior. The driver fronted a flat-bottom steering wheel where the start-stop button was placed on the right side of the lower spoke while the drive mode selector mirrored it on the left side. The instrument cluster was filled by a 12.3-inch TFT screen that showed the tachometer in the middle, around the digit-style speedometer. It also displayed data for the infotainment system. On the dashboard, an aluminum plate had shown the vehicle's production number, such as "1 of 999." Because just 999 units were produced.

Behind the cabin, Audi installed the same 5.2-liter naturally aspirated engine that powered the rest of the R8 V10 range. It paired it with a seven-speed automatic (dual-clutch) transmission that sent the power to the rear wheels only.