Yahoo Autos 2020 Audi R8: Exterior Tweaks and Extra Power for a Nominal Price Jump
Refreshed for 2020, the R8 features new exterior and interior colors, styling tweaks, a power upgrade, and a special-edition model called the Decennium.
For the first time, every R8 model can hit 200 mph.
The 2020 R8 starts at $172,450 and arrives at dealers this summer.
As one of the last two production cars in the world with a V-10, the Audi R8 has made it through an entire decade untouched by turbos or electrification. We've already detailed the mid-engined supercar's refresh and briefly drove it in Europe, but Audi has since decided to skip the 2019 model year in the United States. Feast your eyes instead on the 2020 R8 coupe and spyder.
The R8's top trim changes its name from V10 Plus to V10 Performance. There, its 5.2-liter V-10 makes 602 horsepower and 413 lb-ft of torque and sends it to a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission and all-wheel drive. The one-year-only Rear Wheel Series, formerly the least costly entry into the R8 fold, is no longer offered. But now, every R8 can hit 200 mph (starting with the spyder, followed by the coupe at 201, the Performance spyder at 204, and the Performance coupe at 205 mph). That's because Audi added 30 more ponies to the base V10-if a V10 could ever be called base-for a total of 562 horsepower. Torque is up, too, from 398 to 406 lb-ft.
The R8 LMS GT3 and GT4 race cars inspired the larger, more angular grille and the three faux inlets above it. A more aggressive splitter and wider side intakes like on the 2019 TT RS, along with triangular brake cooling cutouts, combine with a chin spoiler in gloss black, silver, or carbon fiber. Those three finishes also extend to the new side skirts and rear diffuser, which features an enlarged pair of woodchuck-sized exhaust tips. Ascari Blue is a new color limited to the Performance, while the metallic Kemora Gray is for all R8 models. Performance models offer the option to black out all the Audi badges and paint the brake calipers that grab the the carbon-ceramic discs red. They now ride on 20-inch wheels instead of 19s, while the Performance spyder comes exclusively with a black windshield surround. Inside, R8 owners may delight in two new leathers in silver or brown, plus a wireless phone charger. The Decennium edition has exclusive trim including copper stitching, extra microsuede, and gold wheels.
Audi fiddled with the power steering feedback-both the standard electromechanical rack and the optional variable-ratio setup-and added Dry, Wet, and Snow driving modes to the Dynamic Select system. Engineers also modified the stability control for improved braking and crafted an optional carbon-fiber front anti-roll bar that saves 4.4 pounds.
Don't expect to save money. The standard 2020 R8 coupe costs $5000 more than the 2018 model, at $172,450 to start, including a $1300 gas-guzzler tax. The spyder and V10 Performance coupe are each $1500 more, at $184,650 and $198,450, respectively. The V10 Performance spyder is unchanged at $210,650. The 50-unit Decennium, essentially a V10 Performance coupe with an appearance package, is $217,545. That's relatively stratospheric. But for 10-cylinder fury with a factory warranty, you can't exactly shop around.
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