Audi r8 V 12

This is the Audi R8 V12 TDi, and although it's being billed as a concept, it should be on the road within a couple of years.
Tearing massive holes in the road, quite possibly. The R8 V12 isn't a cooled-down version of Top Gear's Car of Year: in fact, the diesel version is billed as faster, more powerful and - of course - far more torquey than its petrol brother.
A few raw figures for you. The R8 TDi gets a 5.9-litre V12 twin-turbo diesel with 493bhp and, more scarily, a massive 738lb ft of torque. That'll shove the R8 to 62mph in 4.2 seconds - nearly a half-second quicker than the petrol version - and on to a top speed 'well over 186mph', according to Audi.
Awesome performance, in other words. But it won't come at the expense of economy: The R8 V12 returns 23mpg - just 4mpg less than the V6 TT - and although there's no word on emissions, Audi says it'll meet the 2014 Euro 6 regulations.
All of which sounds like an intoxicating combination, leaving us with just one worry: weight. Audi doesn't quote how much heavier the TDi unit is than the petrol V8, but too much extra weight could play havoc with the R8's delicate, wieldy handling.
However, Audi has managed to shave some weight from the diesel block by using stronger cast iron, allowing for thinner crankcase walls, which reduces weight by some 15 per cent.
Although the bodyshell of the R8 V12 is taken straight from the petrol version, the diesel-burner does get a few cosmetic enhancements. There's a glass roof with a NACA air duct in the middle, as well a new single-piece front bumper and bigger air intakes.
Inside the cabin, there's a bit of extra carbon fibre and, you'll notice, a manual gearbox. Word is that all the diesel torque would simply devour the DSG box, so a six-speed shifter it is - good news, because that's the box we liked on the petrol R8 anyhow.
We won't see the diesel R8 on the road until after the new Lamborghini Gallardo - and you'll see a V10 petrol version of the R8 beforehand, too. The V12 TDi could be the most tempting of the bunch, though - if the Audi engineers can make it handle like the petrol version. Here's hoping.

Powerful and elegant

The R8 V12 TDI concept with matt "Grace Silver" bodywork looks even wider and more resolute than the core model. It shows its potential through its muscular proportions, accentuated wheel arches and even larger air apertures.
Focused on aerodynamics
The aerodynamics experts at Audi have done their work so thoroughly on the study car that, as an added benefit of its elegant shape, the body actually generates downforce – unlike many other sports cars. This aids directional stability at high speeds. It is achieved partly by means of an extending rear spoiler that is much larger than on the production version, and also thanks to the fully clad diffuser underbody. Two large-format diffuser apertures in the rear bumper demonstrate just how much aerodynamics dictate the shape of the study vehicle.
Large glass roof
One new aspect is the glass roof of the passenger compartment with two large transparent sections. These, together with the glazed engine compartment behind, create a radically new formal element. The unmistakable NACA duct in the middle of the roof is a functional detail that is normally reserved for racing cars. Its ingenious shape accelerates the air drawn in here for the two cylinder banks of the V12 TDI engine.
A "showroom" for the engine
The V12 TDI is displayed as the beating heart of this sports car, like a work of art inside a large showcase. Its look, underscored by the air deflectors located beneath the restyled rear glass lid, differs clearly from its production counterpart. The engine can even be seen after dark, when white light-emitting diodes illuminate the engine compartment – as on the production R8 version.

Innovative LED technology
The LED taillights of the Audi R8 V12 TDI concept have a three-dimensional look that can’t be missed. But the absolute highlight is the all-LED headlights of the study vehicle. With their lenses and reflectors, not only do these innovative light sources have a ground-breaking appearance, they also have an enormous functional advantage: LED light, with its color temperature of 6,000 Kelvin, resembles daylight much more closely than xenon or even halogen light.


The Audi R8 V12 TDi Le Mans is the world's first diesel-powered supercar. At least that's what some are calling it. Audi is smart enough to call its new R8 V12 TDi a super-sports car, pitching it against the likes of the Ferrari F430 rather than full blown supercars of the Bugatti Veyron, Ferrari Enzo and McLaren F1 ilk.
But be in no doubt; this is a proper £100,000-plus exotic – and the first to drink from the dark side of the pump.
It's still a concept car for now, but only until the dust settles, the media monitoring results come in, and Audi's suspicions are confirmed. It's convinced, you see, that the time of the mid-engined, V12, diesel-powered, quattro-driven sports car has come. But for good reason? Read on...

What's it like?

Challenging. Different. Fascinating. And also genuinely quick, if lacking in a few of the other attractions you normally get with exotica like this.
The word is that Audi had several multi-million dollar offers for this concept car at the Detroit motor show, on the strength of its looks alone. That's probably because it's a devilishly purposeful-looking car.
In making it, the stylists substituted most of the standard R8's carbonfibre for aluminium, and added bumper- and sill-extensions in the same polished alloy, as well as a proper underbody air diffuser. The result looks threatening and aggressive, like the kind of car that devours roads, and whatever may be on them, without so much as a change of gear.
Which is exactly as it should be, since this particular R8 has the wherewithal to do exactly that. Powered by a Hungarian-built twin-turbodiesel V12 (the same, but for a dry sump, that you'll find in the new Q7 V12), this car will do 62mph in 4.2sec, 100mph in less than 10sec, and more than 190mph flat out.
More phenomenal than that is its in-gear pulling power, which is the truest measure of everyday performance on the road. 738lb ft is almost as much twist as a BMW M6 and a Ferrari F430 muster between them. In a car that should weigh just 150kg more than a V8-powered R8 in road-going guise, or about 1750kg. Doesn't take a genius to work out why Audi has been so excited about performance diesels, does it?
This car will also do an average 25mpg, of course, and emits about 250g/km of CO2 – which are figures usually associated with hot hatches, and never before with near-200mph supercars.
So does it feel as savagely fast as the figures suggest? Well, on the back of this test drive it's difficult to be definitive. Audi's test route was short, and its concern for the one working prototype of this car considerable. We weren't allowed to do more than 35mph, proper cornering was forbidden, and full bore starts were out too.
That effectively reduced us to a couple of runs around what amounted to little more than car park access roads. So I can report that this R8 appears to steer and ride much like a standard one (ie very nicely indeed). It's got Audi's excellent magnaride adjustable dampers, which add a couple of new dimensions to its ride and handling repertoire.
And yes, its certainly quick – quicker even than anybody really knows yet. I risked a knuckle-rapping by giving the car full throttle in 3rd, from 25mph and 1000rpm; it mugged the tarmac and began hurtling at the horizon with an urgency that made me painfully aware of the driver’s seat’s lumbar support. There was no wheelspin, no turbo lag. I only felt the full savagery for a couple of seconds, but that was enough to convince me that this car deserves a future in production.
And here comes the really mad part; apparently, that was literally just half the story. Audi had to fit an A4 gearbox into this car, as it doesn't currently have one small enough to fit, but man enough to handle 1000 newton meters. As a result, the car's V12 is only running at half-wick; 369lb ft. Believe me, then, when I state that the road car will be quicker than, and yet almost wholly unlike, any sports car you've ever driven.

Should I buy one?

Well, you'll probably have to wait until 2010. That's as soon as Audi is likely to be able to put the R8 TDi into production, probably with a new transverse 7-speed DSG gearbox.
And you'll have to have quite a particular taste in fast cars. You'll have to like them as frugal and low-CO2 as possible; interesting to listen to, but not at all sonorous; riveting to drive, without being quite as involving as a high-revving petrol; and you'll have to be into massive real world performance delivered in an easily-accessed, totally undramatic way.
If you run a Porsche 911 GT3 then, you'll probably hate this car, and would be well advised to steer clear. But if you drive an AMG Merc, on the other hand – and there are plenty of those on the road these days – this R8 could be right up your alley, heater plugs and all.
Audi R8 V12 TDi Le Mans 
Price na; 0-62mph 4.2sec; Top speed 202mph; Economy 25mpg; CO2 250g/km; Kerb weight 1750kg; Engine V12, 5934cc, turbodiesel; Power 493bhp; Torque 738lb ft; Gearbox 6-speed manual

The Audi R8 concept, with a 5.9-liter V-12 diesel engine capable of pumping out 500 horsepower and 738 lb-ft of torque, is more than a mind-numbing show car. It's a mind-boggling vehicle that could actually go into production—and may even be sold in the U.S.
Step one was to blow our minds with the concept's debut at the 2008 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, and then gather feedback once our tongues were rolled back into place.
Step two is to show the mid-engined supercar concept in March at the Geneva auto show and see if the autobahn crowd clamor equally loudly.
The decision on whether to proceed to production will be made in the first half of the year, Michael Dick, Audi's member of the board of management for technical development, tells Car and Driver in an interview at the NAIAS.
Mark Your Calendars
If Audi gives it the thumbs up (write your favorite Audi exec now!), it will take two to three years to bolster the lightweight car for production, Dick says.
"The technical modifications are big," Dick says, in an obvious understatement. Serious rear-bulkhead reconstruction would be needed to cram in the V-12—not to mention a gearbox stout enough to manage almost 740 lb-ft of torque—into the car.
Adjustments would also be necessary to compensate for about 330 pounds of additional weight, and overall stiffness must be enhanced to achieve desired crashworthiness, Dick says.
Make That a 2010, Please
For now, the current R8 with a 420-hp, 4.2-liter V-8 gasoline engine is sold out in Europe for the year, Dick says. The order bank in the U.S. is filled until at least the fall, maybe later, with some dealers having already sold out their allotment for the year.
Audi can build 27 R8s a day at its Neckarsulm, Germany, plant using a "special production system" that is almost akin to hand-made, where even the body is 75 percent hand-welded. There are less than 5000 for sale globally each year, of which less than 1000 are earmarked for the U.S. Dick says there are no plans to boost production.
Meanwhile, Audi still plans to sell the Q7 TDI SUV with the same twin-turbocharged V-12 diesel that is in the R8 concept—but in Europe, in the second half of the year. No decision yet to sell it in the U.S.
Americans must be content with the 2009 Q7 3.0-liter TDI that is due mid-year, which Audi will use to gauge acceptance of diesels in this market, Dick says. It's a pleasant compromise, for now, as the 3.0-liter V-6 turbodiesel produces 233 horsepower and 369 lb-ft of torque