First Drive

[Niall McMahon]

Drove my first R8 tonight

Here is the write-up I put on the Fiat Coupe forum about it:

"Had the R8 for about an hour this evening. It was a black one with black (non-carbon) blades and black wheels. Very, very mean and menacing looking. 18000 miles, Jan 2008 reg.

First impressions are of an extremely well-built car - a typical Audi and with all the quality and toys you would expect of a high-end saloon car. It has no bad angles in the metal, my favourite being the front and rear 3/4s. The glass engine cover rocks also. Inside there is plenty of room even for me (6'4") and the seating position is low but provides excellent views of the road. Turn the key and the engine surges into life with a metallic growl. Pulling away (manual car of course) the clutch is just as light as an A3 and the engine is silky smooth and throttle response instant (normally aspirated 4.2 V8). The gear change is quite clicky with a close, metal gate which demands precision and a firm hand. I think it would take a day to get used to, no more. The ride is very smooth, again like a high-end saloon car - until you enable the magnetic suspension when it becomes firmer and far sportier and more informative. It's not as hard as a GT3 - more like an Elise but with greater... class. I can't think how else to put it. Either suspension mode is excellent depending on the mood you are in. The engine? Well I took it down the A12 only to be met by ubiquitous, 50mph traffic. However, when I exited and took the slip road to rejoin the other side I found myself with an open acceleration lane and nothing to brake for as I reached the carriageway. It's fast. Very. I would say equivalent to the two GT3s I drove and not far off the 996 Turbo. The sound that engine makes is stunning - exotic. Imagine a 70s US muscle car sampled, digitalised and slightly raised in pitch. It sounds like something from a sci-fi film and sends a shiver down your spine. Awesome. There may be faster cars but it was much, much quicker than my 235 bhp coupe and would be plenty for 99% of people. Add in that phenomenal throttle response, the handling, the precision of all the controls, and the sheer quality of the dash, interior finish and those vampire looks and you have a really, really special car. Seriously, it was absolutely lovely with none of the drawbacks of a GT3 (well ok, it only has 2 seats and the storage is only enough for a weekend trip) or garrishness of a Lambo. I can't imagine we will find a car better suited to our situation and tastes."

Hopefully I will have one in around 6 months - you guys are really lucky to have one of these on the drive everyday.

Incidentally, I am putting together a website intended to help people who want to buy 2nd-hand performance cars. I have been through this forum with a fine tooth comb (literally read every single promising looking thread on all 140 odd pages) so I already have lots of information. If, however, anyone is willing to add anything, especially regarding parts/maintenance and servicing costs in the UK (yes I know you all have warranties but even so) then I would be very grateful. Any detail or tip, however small, would be priceless. I will post the url when the site is running. There will be a page dedicated to the R8.

[harrison]

Verrry Cool !!

[Davey_Dee]

Good to know you love the R8 too Don't have an R8 yet so can't give the information your looking for but look forward to seeing your website and maybe once I can I'll help

[Niall McMahon]

Thanks Davey.

Tell me that list of cars is your wish list - you don't actually own them all?

[harrison]

This is a pic of DESPARADOS' son at Concourso Italiano, next to a VEYRON similar to Daveys. I hope I am lucky enough to see Davey drive her down my street !!

[ianerrid]

My best friend has a Veyron and he tried to sell it to me. Over a beer we had a chat about running costs and that put the nail in the coffin.

How's these stats:
• 1st Service $24645 includes $9500 labour...
• Bespoke tyres only available direct from Bugatti at $9325 each and Bugatti insist they are replaced every 2500 miles!!
• Every 7500 miles all 4 wheels must also be replaced at $44,900 a set
• Extended warranty ? that will be $59500 a year please

That sealed it, I am really tight about spending on maintenance and said thanks but no thanks ;-)

[Davey_Dee]

The cost of the first scheduled service on a Veyron is £13,645 ($22,322), with later services getting more expensive. Tires need to be replaced approximately every 4,000 kilometres (2,500 mi). The cost of tires for a Veyron is £6,325 ($10,347) a set, and they can only be fitted by Bugatti. Bugatti says that labour is the bulk of the cost at £6,000 ($9,815), which also includes checking the many complex systems on the car. At every third tire change, the roadwheels must be replaced. The cost to extend the original two-year new car warranty is £38,000 ($62,164) for 1 year, and £63,000 ($103,062) for 2 years

Thats from wiki, both are basicly the same so lotsa dosh

[ianerrid]

What's a Wiki, we didn't invent it so it doesn't exist ;-)

[KfabR8]

My best friend has a Veyron and he tried to sell it to me. Over a beer we had a chat about running costs and that put the nail in the coffin.

How's these stats:
• 1st Service $24645 includes $9500 labour...
• Bespoke tyres only available direct from Bugatti at $9325 each and Bugatti insist they are replaced every 2500 miles!!
• Every 7500 miles all 4 wheels must also be replaced at $44,900 a set
• Extended warranty ? that will be $59500 a year please

That sealed it, I am really tight about spending on maintenance and said thanks but no thanks ;-)

Good God! I just heard something directly behind me snap shut!

I had no clue!

Let's see... I'd be on my 13th set of tires ($484,900 - some Ferrari?), fourth set of wheels ($179,600 - a loaded V10!) and who knows what service number.

And I thought that the Dymags were on the expensive side... (but I love them!)

[KfabR8]

Oops - tire set is 10K - $130,000ish so that's only a used V10...