Fire STORM!

738 pounds!!! This thing is going to tear other cars to pieces with all the pavement that will be flying out the back. But seriously 500 horsepower, 738 ft/lbs of torque, and AWD? Balllllin

Diesels rule. I want one.

How much weight will this add? How will it effect the cars stellar chassis balance? If the gas turbo was canned because it caught fire? What makes the diesel turbo safe?

DSL FTMFW

Diesels run cooler than gasoline, so that’s a good thing. Audi should consider offering both V8 and V12 TDI engines.

Given Audi’s Le Mans successes this could prove to be a very formidable automobile. And, ServeEarly, I wouldn’t worry too much about the chassis. Those Le Mans cars seem to the handle the corners about as well as they do the straightaways.

SwerveEarly, diesel fuel makes diesel turbo safe. It has no fumes and much higher point of heat tolerance and combustion.
Actually diesel fuel generates more heat when it burns (its weight is 30% more then gasoline so it is much more denser fuel). Diesel engine is designed to cope with very high stress of combustion (stronger blast from detonation) and higher heat output of diesel fuel. Turbo charging has little effect on already sturdy engine construction. In gasoline engines turbo generates additional stress and heat and that may affect gasoline vapor or produce vapor under the hood.

Yes, autonut, but diesel engines still RUN cooler. I know it’s weird to think that since diesel takes a higher temp to ignite but it’s just a fact. Why do you think diesel truck drivers in the north even use grille covers in the winter to keep the engines warm? I would never try that on a gas engine.

That torque number is beautiful, btw. Plus, torque tends to peak at a very low rpm on a diesel engine. I bet they’re having trouble finding a street tire with enough grip to handle acceleration.

Big torque means less shifting and a midrange that would make a Bugatti Veyron weep, as if rich people had tears.

lol @ meanpants

So much for all those orders we’ve taken for convertable’s and V8’s….

Diesel produces much higher temperature in the cylinder then gasoline. The reason engine needs cover in the north, because diesel fuel “gels”. It literally becomes jell consistency and does not flow through tubing. To keep it warmer next to the injection pump drivers use blankets and electric warmers.
In addition, internal combustion engine is work more efficient at standard/constant operating temperature. During extreme cold condition engine can experience parasitic losses trying to keep temperature at optimum. Blankets minimize work or energy spend on balancing the temperature of the engine and heat loss.

As long as the 0-60 gets closer to the GT-R. It’s kinda embarrassing to have a pure sports car from Audi that’s a sec slower than something costing 40% less.

veda – is it a brand thing with you too.

The 0-60 isn’t nearly as important with a diesel. Talk 30-70, or 50-100 instead. THe diesel R-8 will probably do 50-100 in 2 seconds flat. It’s called the TORQUE TSUNAMI, that not even a Veyron QuadTurbo could touch. Here in SF, if you scoot away too fast from a stoplight, you get slammed by the CHP anyway- there’s a cop car for virtually every block downtown.
Also people- please remember, that Diesels are always OVERENGINEERED. That’s why they lst upto a million miles without overhauls.
I think I could drive the diesel R8 from San Francisco to San Deigo and back on one tankful, and never once miss pulling over- twice each way for gas.

I want to see someone do a big smokey AWD burnout in one of these babys

i wonder what it will be able to tow

cardesigner5: Brand thing? I didn’t mean me owning, rather the fact that a “premium” brand like Audi makes something so expensive and slow. Really, I don’t care if it’s called Porsche or Ferrari if it’s 200% more expensive than a faster no-name car, I’d always get the cheaper one.

sanfranmac: Diesel’s stronger than regular gas engines but they are just as susceptible to bad gas. Unfortunately, good gas isn’t always available when you’re in the field somewhere on the mountain or in the jungle.

Diesels are not OVERENGINEERED. The do require high precision construction (the weakest point in US car manufacturing). Smaller diesels require even more precision. US produces the largest and most potent diesels for trucks (which are much less precise), but car diesels in Europe (and some Asian/japanese) are really marvels of engineering. The manufacturing process is almost like chronograph construction.
Veda, technically diesel is run on diesel fuel not gas. For poor quality fuel there are chemical additives and cleaners, just like for gas. And if fuel is bad it is converter and filter that will be damaged.

Bring on the turbodiesel!! I had a 2005 VW Tourag V-10 turbo diesel for a week and oh my god…it had incredible power and pulled me back in my seat every time I accelerated..all of this and 26MPG on the highway. Can’t wait to see it in a lighter car like the R8..blastoff!!!

I love diesels, you can step into gas @ 1500rpm and get a blast off.
@autonut: the r8 will have no problem with a too cold motor cause its in the back of the car. They even will have a problem with a too warm motor, cause the most diesel r8 will be situated in warmer regions than canada or alaska… And for the colder regions you would have a WinterDiesel with chemical additions the efficiency do not interfere with.

@veda: don’t, and i mean really don’t call this audi slow. In comparison to the audi, the nissan is a japanese crap car. The luxury and comfort is not comparably to a nissan.
It’s clear to buy the cheaper one, but if you want anything exciting you buy a european sports car.

US diesels are the biggest crap since building motors. It’s no problem to build motors big cubic capacity and much horsepowers. The US car manufacturers should learn to bild motors with more efficiency. I’ve seentrucks (dodge,…) with V8’s!!! and ‘only’ 300hp. Thats bull****, and they smoke like hell.

Actually, AustrianJoe, Dodge uses an Inline-6 engine with ‘only’ 350hp and 650lb-ft of torque. Oh and it is supplied by one of the biggest diesel manufacturers around, not in house. Its a powerhorse meant for work, not for play. Believe me i love Audi, just look at my tag for christs sake, but following your logic, based on the fact that a 6-cylinder dodge ONLY has 650lb-ft of torque, a TDI with DOUBLE the cylinders (V12) surely should have more than a ‘meager’ 738lb-ft of torque. Dont bash american trucks, especially when we’re the only ones who know how to build them. I dont see mercedes having the balls to bring their trucks onto our shores, granted id love to see an Actros in America, but mercedes doesnt want to ruin their whiney old fart image with some heavy duty equipment. Oh and thanks for the Unimog, its an awesome vehicle, but ive only seen two in my lifetime in this country.

A4, I know, I have exaggerated a little, but in Europe the American engine technology is totally tore to pieces. I even know that this sort of cars is used to work and for fun, but why aren’t this manufacturers able to build their cars a little bit environment friendlier?
An Audi TDI engine is not only laid out on strength, but on speed, it is not probably surprising that it performs ‘only’ 738 Nm torque. A standard Dodge Ram also never accelerates on 320 km/h, 200mph.

The Unimog is a great german vehicle, but I don’t understand why MB brings no trucks to America. They are powerful and they look so cool. I love this Euro-truck style. Do you have Scania, Iveco, MAN or DAF trucks in the US?

autonut: you don’t understand, I meant diesels mixed with cooking oil and **** like that and that’s what’s happening in the field due to drivers stealing gas money from the company. It happens all the time in Chevron and unfortunately with the Ford Rangers…

AustrianJoe: If the R8 finishes second to a jap crap GT-R, I will call it an overpriced german crap regardless of how much comfort and luxury you put in it. If I want luxury I wouldn’t be buying a “sports car” like the R8. I’d get a Maserati Granturismo or a Vantage V8, both which are IMO more beautiful and versatile, not to mention CHEAPER. Plus they and the GT-R probably won’t have the peeling interior problem like in all Audis. If you own one, you’d admit at least that problem! So is that what you call luxury? Having said that, I love Audi more than any other brand in the market and will always have at least 1 in my collection.

BTW, where I’m at there’s a bunch of stripped down tuned to hell Honda Fits that can outrun a 328i on the track. It’s hardly “exciting” when you’re in the bimmer and the guy in the Fit finishes first.

There are a few Iveco’s and MAN’s here and there but very very rarely do i see them, and when i do, they are small box trucks – not long haulers like in Europe. Volvo is really the only major european supplier of 18-wheelers in the US, and of course they are the best looking on the road. The rest are all North American built – freightliner, peterbilt, ford, international, mack, etc.

and Veda… the Vantage V8 is more versatile to you than an R8? Maybe it has a more graceful shape, but id have to say the R8 with its Quattro and comfort is one of the most practical low-end exotics on the road today. Certainly more practical than the Vantage V8.

I want one! I would love to blow the doors off other sports cars and leave them in a cloud of diesel fumes. The look on the other driver’s face would be priceless. Hell, I would give up my Z06 for one of these, and I like my car a whole lot.

Better yet, run B100 biodiesel after conversion, and say F.U. to OPEC.

With that much torque and AWD, this car would be a rocket 0-100. It’ll make the GT-R look slow by comparison. Just hope they use a CGI block or it’ll be way too heavy. Coming from Audi’s R1 racing program, I’m sure it is. They also need to find a driveline that can handle that much torque without breaking in pieces at full throttle launches. Not easy.