Photo: Audi
We first caught wind that Audi was preparing the R8 facelift in August 2011. A new front end for the supercar surfaced at the time, and it featured the new hexagonal grille and a prototype headlight assembly with elongated and thinner shape.
Today, Vorsprung durch Technik (advancement through technology in German - Audi’s moto) finally happened, and the R8 facelift was officially revealed ahead of the Paris Motor Show in September.
If you’re not a fan of the car, the changes will appear small at first glance, but we have a soft spot for Audi’s little monster.
Let’s start with the cosmetic side of things. The front end has receive a makeover: new fascia with full-LED headlights, a six-point grille and redesigned intakes.
Round the back, the biggest change in our opinion would be the exhaust system. You can no longer tell them apart, as both the oval tips of the R8 V10 and the quad tips of the R8 V8 have been dropped in favor of a simple but very cool circular design.
Still setting the V8 and V10 apart is the shape of the side blade for the engine air intakes, which have a kink and are larger for the bigger of the two, as well as differences in the diffuser and splitter design. The R8 facelift rides on new 18-inch wheels with tires sized 235/40 front and 285/35 rear for the base car, or 19-inch with tires 235/35 and 295/30 for the V10.
Now, onto the engine front, where both the base 4.2-liter V8 and 5.2-liter V10 remain (sadly) untuned. This means you’ll still have 424 hp (430 PS) and 430 Nm (317 lb-ft) for the V8 and 518 hp (525 PS) and 530 Nm (391 lb-ft) for the V10. This will keep the current owners happy, but the facelift comes with a better gearbox, as the 6-speed automated manual R tronic has been replaced with a new 7-speed S tronic dual clutch transmission.
The R8 V8 Coupe takes 4.3 seconds to reach 100 km/h (62 mph) with the new R tronic box, while the V10 does this in a very supercar-like 3.6 seconds and also gets a new top speed of 314 km/h (195mph).
If you want to go even faster, Audi has launched a new range-topper called the V10 Plus. This is powered by a revised 5.2-liter with 550 PS (542 hp) which replaces the GT, a special version that was limited to just 333 examples.
Audi also plans to sell its electric-powered R8 e-tron, though we should have more details about that in Paris.
If you’re not a fan of the car, the changes will appear small at first glance, but we have a soft spot for Audi’s little monster.
Let’s start with the cosmetic side of things. The front end has receive a makeover: new fascia with full-LED headlights, a six-point grille and redesigned intakes.
Round the back, the biggest change in our opinion would be the exhaust system. You can no longer tell them apart, as both the oval tips of the R8 V10 and the quad tips of the R8 V8 have been dropped in favor of a simple but very cool circular design.
Still setting the V8 and V10 apart is the shape of the side blade for the engine air intakes, which have a kink and are larger for the bigger of the two, as well as differences in the diffuser and splitter design. The R8 facelift rides on new 18-inch wheels with tires sized 235/40 front and 285/35 rear for the base car, or 19-inch with tires 235/35 and 295/30 for the V10.
Now, onto the engine front, where both the base 4.2-liter V8 and 5.2-liter V10 remain (sadly) untuned. This means you’ll still have 424 hp (430 PS) and 430 Nm (317 lb-ft) for the V8 and 518 hp (525 PS) and 530 Nm (391 lb-ft) for the V10. This will keep the current owners happy, but the facelift comes with a better gearbox, as the 6-speed automated manual R tronic has been replaced with a new 7-speed S tronic dual clutch transmission.
The R8 V8 Coupe takes 4.3 seconds to reach 100 km/h (62 mph) with the new R tronic box, while the V10 does this in a very supercar-like 3.6 seconds and also gets a new top speed of 314 km/h (195mph).
If you want to go even faster, Audi has launched a new range-topper called the V10 Plus. This is powered by a revised 5.2-liter with 550 PS (542 hp) which replaces the GT, a special version that was limited to just 333 examples.
Audi also plans to sell its electric-powered R8 e-tron, though we should have more details about that in Paris.
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