» Get the best price on a new Audi S5 or Audi R8 Befitting its racetrack inspiration, the R8 sportscar opened Audi Australia's top-down offensive on "untapped market segments" at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit this week.
In a week that saw the Victorian circuit hosting more than its fair share of Teutonic tearaways (BMW also launched its M3 on track), the R8 shared star billing with the S5 coupe at the Island.
Powered by a 4.2-litre V8, the range-topping six-speed manual four-seater S5 will be joined by its A5 stablemate next month (more here), offered with the 3.2 FSI V6 and Audi’s multitronic (CVT) transmission. A turbo 1.8-litre four-cylinder petrol and 3.0-litre TDI turbodiesel will follow next year.
A tiptronic version of the S5 will be available next May.
Both the S5 and R8 mark significant launches for Audi Down Under. The company says the two-door GT form used for the A5/S5 is a return to its earlier coupe models while the R8 is Audi's first mid-engined sportscar -- despite much deliberation over designs with a similar layout for concept studies in previous years.
Dirk Isgen, technical project leader for the R8, told the Carsales Network that the car's development to production was a particularly emotional time for the company.
German-born Isgen left Italy for Neckarsulm in north-west Germany where the R8 is hand-built in small numbers (20 per day), after working on the Lamborghini Gallardo project. He says the sight of the R8 "still makes me feel proud, even after all this time." The R8 was first seen as the Le Mans Quattro concept car at the Geneva motor show nearly five years ago.
The R8 uses a 4.2-litre V8 rated at 309kW/430Nm but talk persists of a V10 version, using the engines from the S6 and S8 models. That talk isn't coming from Audi as yet, however.
The R8 employs Audi's 'Space Frame ASF' aluminium technology for body rigidity and strength with minimal weight, and a magnetic ride adaptive damping system. It uses Audi's quattro four-wheel drive system and is available as six-speed manual or with the company's 'R tronic' sequential manual transmission.
Double-wishbone suspension front and rear, 19-inch wheels with ESP and ABS-assisted brakes rein the R8 from its 301km/h top speed. Acceleration to 100km/h takes 4.6 seconds, the company says.
Although long-awaited the R8 was always on the agenda for Australia. Audi's local arm is proud to comment on the growing importance of the Australian market -- which has made steady growth for the company since 2004 -- to the 'head office'.
"Audi Australia is the second-fastest company in the Audi world," said Joerg Hofmann. "Only Russia is fastest...I’m not sure what’s happened there; perhaps they have too much money around," he quipped. "Still, we have continued strong growth, which gives us a lot of support from the factory."
There appears no shortage of Aussies with near-$300K to spare on the R8, either. Audi Australia says it has orders for much of the first batch of 20 due to arrive before next year and expects to find customers for the 100 that will make it Down Under during 2008.
Pricing starts at $259,900 for the R8 with six-speed manual and $274,900 for the six-speed sequential R-tronic model.
The S5 starts at $131,900 with its six-speed manual. The tiptronic version due next year will be priced at $134,900. The A5 will start at around $70,000 for the 1.8T expected in May. See more pricing details below.
The S5 and R8 feature standout daytime running lights which use an LED strip along the edge of the headlights. Both models come with a comprehensive line-up of safety and luxury equipment as standard, but Audi serves up an equally long list of options including a ceramic brake upgrade for the R8 at $21K-plus!
For full details visit the Carsales Network soon for our upcoming launch reviews.
Audi A5/S5 pricing and release schedule
S5 4.2 V8 FSI quattro manual -- $131,900. Available: now
S5 4.2 V8 FSI quattro tiptronic -- $134,900. Available: May 2008
A5 3.2 V6 FSI multitronic -- $91,900. Available: November 2007
A5 3.2 V6 FSI quattro tiptronic -- $95,900. Available: April 2008
A5 1.8 TFSI multitronic -- approx $70,000. Available: May 2008
A5 3.0 TDI quattro tiptronic -- approx $100,000. Available: August 2008
» Get the best price on a new Audi S5 or Audi R8
To comment on this article click here