Ulrich Hackenberg, in charge of research and development department of Audi on the sidelines of the exhibition of Los Angeles Auto Show said that the next generation Audi R8 will weigh about 50 to 60 pounds less than the current generation because of the central tunnel, carbon and carbon floor.
While the new R8 (codenamed AU724) will be made on the new MSS (Modular Sports Car System) platform of the VW Group, at the same time and that the Lamborghini Cabrera, Hackenberg confirmed that the two cars will have their own road behavior.
It will go on sale in 2015 and has a carbon-aluminum monocoque chassis (23% of carbon and 77% of aluminum) which will weigh 198 pounds. The new R8 will have 13% more torsional rigidity than the current generation, with its weight not exceeding 1,500 kg. The body and the anti-roll bars are made from CFRP, while time carbon-ceramic brakes and exhaust titanium.
Designer has large air intakes, side flaps and smaller “double diffuser”, inspired by the racing R18 of Le Mans. It has several gadget as Head-Up Display, digital dashboard, digital central mirror , new infotainment system MMI and the new Matrix LED luminaires with variable intensity .
Under the hood there will still be the same V8 and V10 engines that will yield more horses but will consume less gasoline. The V8 4.2-liter will yield close to 450 horses while the V10 5.2-liter will yield close to 570 horses. The engines will be associated with a start / stop, system shutdown half cylinders so as to contribute to reducing fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by 10%.
Previously there was the rumor that the V10 5.2-liter will be replaced by the new 4.0-liter TFSI V8 bi-turbo of S8 , and will pay close to 600 horses, while the new R8 will be available exclusively with a new 7-speed automatic transmission DSG
