Audi R8 GT Spyder - top down high performance
What do you do when you build a great sports car and want to make it even greater? You take the top off. That's what Audi has done with their more than impressive R8 GT Spyder that gives you wind in your hair fun with a 0-60 time of 3.8 seconds.
Audi has made the R8 GT Spyder lighter, more powerful, and more fun with 560 hp pushing 187 lbs less than the previous R8 Spyder to a top speed of 196 mph and all with the top down. But if you want one you better hurry. Like last year’s special edition R8 GT coupe, there will only be 333 Spyders produced.
Usually convertibles are much heavier than their hard top counterparts due to the extra chassis bracing needed to replace the support given by a hard roof. Not so with the R8 GT Spyder. Audi's ultra lightweight technology is the key to the R8 GT Spyder’s weight of just 3,615.58 lbs. That’s 187.39 lbs less than its sibling R8 Spyder 5.2 FSI quattro. The Audi Space Frame (ASF) body, consisting of cast nodes, extruded sections and aluminum panels, accounts for just 471.79 lbs of the car’s total weight. The body is assembled predominantly by hand in the R8 workshop at the Neckarsulm plant. Final assembly of the car takes place in the same way.
The engine frame is made of ultra-light magnesium. The long cover over the soft-top compartment and the large side panels at the rear are made of carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP). CFRP is also used for the modified front spoiler, the fixed rear spoiler and the new rear bumper. Together, these components provide a weight saving of 12.13 lbs. Audi engineers also trimmed weight from the technical components in the area of the transmission, wheels and brakes. In the interior, the bucket seats alone, with their chassis of glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP), saved 69.45 lbs of weight.
The R8 GT Spyder features a lightweight fabric soft top that is extremely quiet and fully suitable for highway cruising. Its electrohydraulic drive brings it up or down in 19 seconds, even at speeds up to 31.07 mph. The extendible glass rear window is nestled in the bulkhead, separate from the soft top. Integrated in the bulkhead is a rollover protection system comprising two pretensioned plates.
From the curb visual modifications accentuate the styling of the R8 GT Spyder. These include add-on parts in contrasting titanium gray, a front splitter with a dual lip, flics at the sides of the front bumper, red GT badges, round exhaust tailpipes, an enlarged diffuser and dark LED tail lights in a clear-glass design. Audi offers an optional windshield frame in matt CFRP.
Sitting behind the driver is the 5.2-liter V10 with an aluminum crankcase that draws its fuel from an FSI direct injection system. Dry-sump lubrication ensures a reliable supply of oil even under maximum lateral or straight-line acceleration. With its modified electronic management, the long-stroke engine produces 398.28 lb-ft of torque at 6,500 rpm, and its peak output is 560 hp. Each unit of horsepower has only 6.46 lb to move.
The R8 GT Spyder comes standard with an automated six-speed R tronic transmission with two fully automatic modes. In the additional manual mode, the driver can shift gears using the paddles on the steering wheel or by flicking the joystick. At high load and revs, gear changes take only one-tenth of a second. The launch control program manages the starting sprint with high engine speed and precision-control of the tire slip.
The quattro permanent all-wheel drive has a strong rear-wheel bias. If the situation calls for it, the system sends additional torque to the front axle. In tandem with the limited slip differential at the rear, it provides an added measure of traction, stability and cornering speed.
Holding all this to the road are aluminum double wishbones and the rack-and-pinion power steering provide intimate contact with the road. Taut tuning lowers the body by approximately 0.39 in. The open topped high-performance sports car has 19-inch wheels, with 235/35 tires up front and 295/30 tires at the rear. The large, lightweight carbon-fiber ceramic brake discs decelerate the car with supreme ease. The ESP stabilization program has a sport mode and can also be deactivated entirely.
Just because the top goes down doesn't mean you have to sit on a milk crate. This open two-seater offers a roomy interior, and its front end can accommodate up to 3.53 cu. ft of cargo. The rear bulkhead houses three storage compartments. The interior also has white dials and R8 GT logos and a distinctive R8 “monoposto,” a large arch encircling the driver’s cockpit that is made of matt CFRP. The standard equipment includes LED headlights, LED tail lights, an automatic air conditioning system, the navigation system plus, an alarm system and the driver information system with a built-in lap timer.
The R8 GT Spyder will have a base price in Germany of $304,717.00.
a