FRANKFURT MOTOR SHOW: Audi reveals R8 RWS

Audi Sport is turning its mid-engined R8 supercar into a tail-happy rear-wheel driver, but it’s not the car most people are thinking of.

Far from the precursor of the expected entry-level V6 biturbo version of the R8, the R8 RWS will stick with naturally-aspirated V10 power sitting behind the driver, playing the 'purist' card so successfully used by Porsche with its 911 R.

While there will only be 999 R8 RWS (Rear Wheel Series) cars built, it will come in both hard-top Coupe and soft-top Spyder versions, of which Australia is expected to be allocated 30 vehicles combined.

Saving 40kg over the standard all-wheel drive R8 V10, the R8 RWS will whip to 100km/h in 3.7 seconds (or 3.8 seconds for the Spyder), in spite of the hindrance of only attacking the start line with the rear tyres.

Audi Sport claims it will have a 320km/h top speed in Coupe form (318km/h as a Spyder) out of the 397kW version of the 5.2-litre V10.

“The R8 V10 RWS is made for purists,” Audi Sport CEO Stephan Winkelmann insisted.

“A limited-edition special model for customers with an appreciation for essential driving enjoyment, the R8 V10 RWS is an absolutely exclusive offer.

“With its mid-mounted V10 engine and rear-wheel drive, it successfully brings the driving concept of our R8 LMS racing car to the streets.”

It is an absolutely exclusive offer, too, except of course for the rear-wheel drive Huracan that Winkelmann also pushed into production during his time as President of Lamborghini.

The Huracan and the R8 share their core architecture (from their chassis to their suspension layout to their engines and transmissions), so turning the R8 into a rear-drive car might not have been such a stretch for Audi Sport’s engineering team.

At 1590kg (3503lb), the coupe ditches the standard R8’s propshaft, front differential, multi-plate centre differential and a host of other giblets, leaving 59.6 per cent of its mass over the rear axle. That figure shifts slightly for the Spyder, which hosts the roof mechanism behind the driver’s head.

There’s also a drift mode, sort of. Its Dynamic handling mode, combined with the Sport setting for the skid-control system, allows it to be slid easily at the limit, with the electronics preventing sudden lurid spins.

The car rides on black 19-inch cast alloy wheels with 345/35 R19 front tyres and 295/35 R19 rubber at the rear.

A rare beast these days, the V10 one of the few naturally aspirated engines left in the sports car world, which explains why it has only 540Nm of torque and why that torque turns up so late in the rev range, peaking at 6500rpm.

Audi Sport claims it will pull 12.4L/100km, and 283 grams of CO2/km.

Built by hand in Audi Sport’s Böllinger Höfe R8 factory, the R8 RWS is visibly distinguished by its matte black grille, with an optional red film to create what used to be called a “GT stripe” along the length of the car.

Böllinger Höfe is under fire from Audi’s unions, who want to turn the Audi Sport signature R8 production plant into a dedicated flagship battery-electric car plant.

Australian pricing for the R8 RWS is yet to be confirmed.