This new Audi R8 is going to be the better version of the 2018 RWS Audi R8 which was sold in a small amount, fact that made getting one pretty hard. They are giving us another chance at getting one next year with this new model.
Quattro all-wheel-drive is also a signature of the Audi brand however it doesn’t mean each automobile the automaker sells is provided with it. Back in 2018, Audi introduced the edition R8 RWS, which featured rear-wheel-drive rather than the R8’s traditional rear-biased Quattro system. Within the American market, the current 2020 Audi R8 is only available with Quattro AWD however a recent slip up by the EPA might prove that a brand new RWD version is coming back for the 2021 model year.
The government’s official fuel economy web site shows ratings for a “2021 Audi R8 2WD 5.2 L, 10 cyl, Automatic” and a “2021 Audi R8 Spyder 2WD 5.2 L, 10 cyl, Automatic.” These RWD models have already been introduced in Europe however it’s like we are going to finally get them stateside.
With 2 fewer wheels to drive, the RWD R8 coupe and Spyder reach slightly better fuel economy figures of 14/23/17 mpg city/highway/combined compared to 13/20/16 mpg for the Quattro models. Since fuel economy is probably going an unimportant statistic for supercar owners, it’s more vital to research the performance. In Europe, the RWD R8 models are supercharged by a 5.2-liter V10 producing 533 H.P. And 398 lb-ft of torque.
This is a bit less power than the Quattro models, that produce 562 H.P. And 406 lb-ft of torque from the same engine in base form or 602 hp and 413 lb-ft in Performance pretext. The RWD R8 is additionally slower to 60 mph at 3.7 seconds compared to 3.4 seconds in the base Quattro and 3.2 seconds in the Performance model.
It may be slower off the road however the RWD R8 coupe solely weighs 3,505 pounds, dropping around 230 pounds compared to the AWD model. This suggests it should feel more nimble around corners and since it’s less complex, should cost less as well. Audi solely sold 999 units of the RWS and only around 320 of these came to the US. If you missed your chance to get an R8 RWS once they were new, this may be your last chance to get an R8 with RWD.
