Slideshow: Audi R8 Captured with a Facelift
Recently, our friends at Autoblog captured some spy shots of a certain car that shows Audi isn't done with the R8 yet. What's your opinion on the new look?
Caught
While Car and Driver reported that there are "no plans" for a new generation of R8, these new spy photos, published by Autoblog, seem to indicate that Audi intends to keep their sporty mid-engined car around at least long enough to justify a facelift. While they're not earth-shaking changes, they are significant enough that you're not likely to mistake an updated car for the current version. Most noticeably, the honeycombed large central grille has been narrowed near the bottom, and in a sort of reverse-Lexus effect, the top portion has been widened. The effect is more geometric overall compared with the current grille.
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Front and Center, and Side
The honeycombed grilles to the outsides of the central grille are slightly smaller and slightly pointier than the current grilles. The front splitter/skirt has new openings not found in the current version as well. The nose appears lower to the ground as a result of the new treatment, though some might feel as though the changes give the R8 too much of a family resemblance to the A6, A7, and A8. Turning to the car's profile, the side skirts have slotted scoops built into them on the test car, a departure from the solid skirt in use now.
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Back 40
Joining the changes to the nose and flanks are changes to the car's tail. While the current R8 only has grilles/vents below the tail lights, the honeycomb grille on the test car continues across the entire back of the car, slightly interrupted by the license plate. The grille is also less rounded, with sharper angles, and is accompanied by a slim slotted vent below it, similar to the new slots in the nose and skirts. The diffuser and taillights appear the same or nearly the same as are in production now. Another significant departure from the current iteration is the disappearance of the two rectangular dual-tip exhaust outlets. In their place are sizable oval exits that protrude slightly on the test car. The change looks back to the first gen R8, and is more in tune with the exhaust treatments found on most RS models.
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Inferences
The fact that we're seeing changes is a good thing for fans of the R8. Especially after the report from Car and Driver, which quoted Audi head of R&D Peter Mertens (after a talk at the Geneva Motor Show) as saying, "I would say so," when it was suggested that there would not be another generation of R8. Audi has other plans in store for the R8 before it is discontinued, which Automobile reports will be in 2020, coinciding with the demise of the Lamborghini Huracán, which shares a platform the Audi.
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Be on the Lookout
These changes mean the upcoming V6-powered R8 will likely debut in this bodywork. The 2.9 liter, twin-turbocharged six is said to be a welcome addition to the R8 line-up in China. Wherever you shop for your Audis, expect the revised R8 to debut this year—which would align it with a leaked plan that called for an updated model in 2018. And don't worry, you can still have one with a V-10 if a V-6 isn't your thing.
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