The Audi R8 could hardly be called a shrinking violet, but compared to the new R8 LMS racing version - destined for the 2010 FIA GT3 Championship - the standard car looks positively demure.
Taking the fixed-head Audi R8 coupé as a starting point, engineers at Audi Sport and Quattro GmbH - the German manufacturer's specialist tuning and performance offshoot - have added a bespoke carbon fibre composite body to a stripped-out interior in the bid to reduce weight without compromising rigidity. The muscular 5.2-litre V10 engine from the road car is retained and coupled to a race-spec sequential gearbox.
The R8 LMS is effectively a fully prepared, race-ready machine for paying customers willing to part with £267,000. According to Audi, this price is 'already justified' after the car achieved 23 race victories throughout Europe in its 2009 debut season.
Newly formed racing operation United Autosports - based in Leeds, Yorkshire - is campaigning two of these lightweight, carbon-clad racers for Audi in the coming season. The team will make their first outing in the British GT Championship at Oulton Park, Cheshire, on Easter Monday (April 5th), before running in the FIA Euro races at Silverstone, Northamptonshire, on May 2nd.
On a (slightly) more accessible level, the new Audi R8 Spyder road car is set to hit UK roads in the spring. With 519bhp on tap from what is basically the same V10 engine used in the race version, the Spyder will cover the 0-62mph sprint in 4.1 seconds, with a claimed maximum speed of 197mph. Prices are £111,955 with the manual gearbox, or £117,155 for the R Tronic version.
David Hamilton - 25 Jan 2010
