Topic: CD Article: 2008 Audi R8 Trans-Canada Tour

[wing]

It won't be available until next year unfortunately, with testfest coming up next week then winter close at hand.  I'd have to pick it up in Montreal unfortunately which is 2 days lost.

[Lesley]

Thanks James
Although it was amusing for a minute or two to be taken for someone's "fancy woman"

Yes, you really must try to get some time in this car! Who cares if the weather turns - it's quattro!
Practical-schmactical, the only way you're gonna get golf clubs in it is if they're flexible, although you probably could stow a few of them (without the bag) in the catch net behind the seats. The trunk (front) was big enough to hold two camera bags, my pocketbook a towel & windex. That's it.
  Going through Tim Horton's? No problem, although it's a bit of a reach up towards the window.  Daily driving? Again, no problem... as long as you don't mind attracting an entourage. Visibility is about what you'd expect - but I found it really easy to be aware of the outline of the car and where the wheels (and curbs) were.
The biggest problem I encountered was that very low front lip - had to be uber careful exiting parking lots with curbs.
As far as driving impressions go... don't get me started. I'm still in mourning.

Oh and Railton? Here's a peace offering.

[quadzilla]

It won't be available until next year unfortunately, with testfest coming up next week then winter close at hand.  I'd have to pick it up in Montreal unfortunately which is 2 days lost.

Did I read that right? You would pass up driving the R8 just because you would have to drive to Montreal. Which is what...2 hours away?  Turn in your press pass 

[wing]

I could get RR's and such as well, but it is 2 days off work to do it.  If they let us keep the car for 2 weeks it would be worth it, but it's one week only. 

[mdxtasy]

It won't be available until next year unfortunately, with testfest coming up next week then winter close at hand.  I'd have to pick it up in Montreal unfortunately which is 2 days lost.

Did I read that right? You would pass up driving the R8 just because you would have to drive to Montreal. Which is what...2 hours away?  Turn in your press pass 

 

[sirAQUAMAN64]

I could get RR's and such as well, but it is 2 days off work to do it.  If they let us keep the car for 2 weeks it would be worth it, but it's one week only. 

I'm with Quad. Can't believe it. Hell I'd drive there for that... further if I had to!

Mind you, you've already seen the car.

[sirAQUAMAN64]

Saw an S5 yesterday. Looks much wider and longer than a 3-Coupé. Good 'tweener strategy IMO, although the S is pricey ($72-74,000 perhaps?).

Audi sees sporty cars as image-changers

Diana T. Kurylko
Automotive News
October 22, 2007 - 12:01 am ET   

WASHINGTON — Audi is spicing up its image with dream cars, adding sporty, exciting vehicles that lure more people to the brand, says Marc Trahan, Audi's No. 2 U.S. executive.

Audi is launching three such vehicles in the United States (all prices include shipping):

1. The midengine, $110,000, 420-hp, space frame R8 sports car went on sale in September.

2. The $82,675, 420-hp RS 4 cabriolet, built by the Quattro GmbH high-performance division, debuts next month.

3. The $51,275, 354-hp S5 performance sports coupe will be available in mid-November.

Audi executives have hinted that other cars are in the pipeline. The A7 coupe, positioned above the A6 models, has been confirmed. It is likely to debut in the next several years, along with an S7 high-performance model. RS versions of other cars also are expected.

The sports cars "help to further strengthen and clarify what Audi is all about," Trahan said at a press event here. "They help us sell in new markets. The S5 and the R8 are also completely new segments for us."

Trahan, director of product quality and technical service, says Audi has never offered a premium sports car. The S5 is a high-performance version of the A5 coupe that goes on sale next March.

Trahan says Audi decided to offer the sportier model first to stir attention.

Audi expects to deliver about 300 R8s this year and 1,000 to 1,200 units in following years. The R8 is back-ordered through the end of next year, he says.

"We are headed for another record sales year, and our incentives average about $3,000 a car — over the past three years we have been able to keep our spending relatively stable," Trahan says.

Audi has tried to increase sales in several key markets. For the year to date compared with 2006, Miami sales are up 24.7 percent; Phoenix, 18.6 percent; New York, 13.9 percent; Chicago, 9.0 percent; and Los Angeles, 7.4 percent.

On the reliability side, Trahan says the Audi A8 large sedan was rated the best in the industry by J.D. Power and Associates in the 2007 Initial Quality Study — an achievement the brand plans to begin touting. 

[Mitlov]

Saw an S5 yesterday. Looks much wider and longer than a 3-Coupé. Good 'tweener strategy IMO, although the S is pricey ($72-74,000 perhaps?).

My understanding was that the S5 was supposed to sit halfway between the 3-series coupe and the 6-series instead of competing directly with the 3-series coupe.  That would explain the size and the pricing.

[mrthompson]

Here's the R8 I drove, RTronic with carbon fibre trim.

Peterborough Lift Lock?  Nice pic.

[safristi]

..How come Railton geta a "peace"....and i'm left starkers...?