Audi launches top-of-the-range model

Audi's product offensive resumed yesterday with the launch of their top-of-the-range R8 V10 at the Changi Exhibition Centre.

Accompanying the main lead were two other stars in Audi's performance range - the new S4 and the S3 Sportback.

prospects were invited over the span of two days - yesterday and today - for a driving experience in the R8 V10 and the S4 with its optional sport differential.

Under the watchful eyes of two Audi instructors who flew in from the US - Mr Stephan Verdier and Emile Bouret - guests will be able to safely send the machines around a slalom course.

As mentioned earlier in our R8 exclusive, the supercar boasts some beautiful numbers. The ten-cylindered iteration of the R8 comes with 525 horses - 105 more than the R8 V8. The naturally aspirated engine is capable of 530Nm of torque, which will take you from 0 - 100km in the wink of 3.9 seconds, 0.7 second faster than the R8 V8.

The R8 V10 will also set you back by a cool $648,888. No matter the price, Audi kindly threw us the keys to the R8 V10 for a short preview.

Audi divvied Changi Exhibition Centre into two parts - one for the R8 V10 and one for the S4.

We could hear tyres screeching constantly over at the side where the S4s were. Oddly enough it was quiet over at the R8s' side. It was almost a non-event to watch the R8s go around the slalom.

But once we were strapped into the cockpit, suffice to say we started singing a different tune.

The Audi easily slurped up the tarmac ahead. It never looked this fast from the outside.

To make the sub-four seconds century sprint possible, the dry-sump motor charges out 100.9bhp per litre of displacement with a power-to-weight ratio of 3.1 kilogramme per bhp. Which was then made possible by Audi's Space Frame design. As a result, the car weighs a grand total of 1,620 kilogrammes.

Audi Working On New V-10 Supercar

With Lamborghini working on a replacement for its Murcielago, word on the street is that Audi will use the new supercar’s platform for its own range-topping model. There will be one major difference between the two cars, however.

While the Lamborghini supercar will feature a powerful V-12 engine and compete with similarly endowed models from the likes of Ferrari and Aston Martin, the new Audi model will likely pack a V-10 engine and only develop around 600 horsepower.

Audi R8 V10

The shared platform for the future supercars is expected to be a heavily modified version of the current Audi R8’s aluminum spaceframe chassis. Extensive use of carbon-fiber will be employed to keep weight down and a hardy dual-clutch transmission is also likely to make the cut.

This new Audi supercar, which could be called the R10, will sit above the R8 and in keeping with this positioning it will be wider and longer than it as well. Audi quattro all-wheel drive will be standard.

According to sources, prototypes disguised as Lamborghinis are already testing at Germany’s Nurburgring, however, any release date is slated for beyond 2012.

Audi preparing lightweight, track-focused R8 V10?

First came the R8. Then came the race-spec R8 LMS. Then the V10-powered R8 5.2 FSI, with the roadster version waiting in the wings. The diesel version may have been canceled, but now Audi is said to be working on a light-weight, track-focused version of its flagship supercar.

Test mules for what is believed to be the so-called R8 Sport have been seen lapping the Nürburgring (where else?) with some subtle visual cues to its orientation. With a fixed rear wing and mildly revised ground effects, the lion's share of the modifications would be made under the skin where Audi is tipped to have removed luxuries like the stereo and air-con. A modified exhaust could add a few extra horses while the bulk of improvements to the car's power-to-weight ratio would be borne from the weight reduction.

Although Audi could draw inspiration from the new LP550 Valentino Balboni and jettison the all-wheel-drive system to save weight, following the previous Gallardo Superleggera's formula by keeping it in place would seem more in character for the automaker that staked its claim on Quattro.

An Audi R8 V10 for just $469.99!

Having a Lamborghini Murciélago or an Aston Martin DB9 in the garage might be the ultimate in-your-face moment for your showy neighbors, but realistically, not all of us can afford a supercar. It's a tragic notion that the people over at Audi Canada want to remedy.

The price tag on the 2010 Audi R8 V10 may read $141,000, but you can start an ownership cycle with one for just $469.99 (plus shipping). How? Audi Canada has created a garage door wrap with a life-size print of a red Audi R8 sitting in a garage -- quite a clean one too, we might add.

The cover may officially label you as a poseur for life, and it certainly won't be able to take you anywhere nice, but we bet quite a number of people will be secretly disappointed to learn the company will only ship to Canadian residents.