THE AUDI R8 SPIDER has been a hot topic since way back in 2007. Now, finally, the days until its debut - likely at the upcoming Frankfurt Motor Show in September - are running down.
What will it look like? Something, you’d expect, like these photos of a mystery convertible version spied out testing around the Nurburgring in Germany (where else?). These may be the clearest shots yet of the upcoming soft-top monster.
With weight-saving being a primary goal, Audi has opted to go with a soft-top rather than a folding hard top.
Perhaps the most obvious design elements separating the Spider from its hardtop brother-in-arms are the absent ‘blades’ that run from the side skirts to the roof of the hardtop, and the addition of a longer, more prominent intake cut deep into the sides of the car.
The fuel cap has been relocated to the top of the rear guard, as opposed to the rear pillars (absent from the convertible R8).
While it’s likely to be somewhat distant from the production version, the R8 Spider shown in these photos features a roll-cage running through the inside of the car, up and along the line of the windscreen. (Audi will have other plans there.)
The Audi R8 Spider is expected to be powered initially by the hardtop’s 313kW 4.2 litre V8, with a 5.2 litre V10 version expected to follow some months later.
