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RS5 to get same engine as R8 but 450HP!!

17K views 36 replies 22 participants last post by  willyjp 
#1 ·
Why is it Audi can extract 450HP from the 4.2L V8 for the RS5?

Our current V8 R8 should have shipped with the 450HP 4.2L V8 from day ONE!

Anyone know how to unleash 450HP from the current R8 V8??

Audi stinks!!! :(
 
#2 ·
Its requires more than a remap, for sure

Where did you hear the RS5 has 450HP, I have one on order - I believe due out on week 6, 2010
 
#4 ·
The RIGHT exhaust, chip, and air filter kit, and you have 460 H.P.or more .
 
#6 ·
I understand what you are all saying, BUT, the RS5 has standard AUDI filters, STANDARD AUDI exhausts and it punches out 450HP.

I'm sorry, but we got SHAFTED with the R8 V8 engine. It was outgoing technology 2 years ago. Now the RS5 makes this engine OBSOLETE!!

Audi screwed us. Period.
 
#7 ·
A G A I N... they owe -us !!!:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mat I guess this is progress. What's next?????? An AUDI triple turbo W 12 deisel that pumps 1000 H.P. funded by us HIGH paying R 8 buyers??
 
#8 · (Edited)
I hear everyone but... there is more to a car than horsepower, no? If it was about horsepower, we'd buy a Z06 Corvette or an M5. If it was about horsepower for the money and we wanted a german car, we'd get the TTS. You can pump all the horsepower, technology, and refinement you want into an A5 and call it an RS5. I dont feel jipped at all. The R8 is an awe inspiring piece of automotive artistry. Its appeal crosses all demographics and all generations. For the 27 people who see an RS5 and have a keen enough eye to know what they're looking at, good for them. For the rest of the world, it simply disappears into a sea of cars. There is a forum called "The looks and stares" http://www.r8talk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2784&highlight=stares. There are 71 posts talking about all the wild and fantastic reactions the R8 elicits from people of all ages... literally stopping traffic.

An RS5 might be the "latest and greatest" from Audi and may take you from here to there a touch faster, but an R8... the R8 takes your breath away. I was parked last week and several cars stopped for a look and a chat. Two boys, 18 and 19, will be talking about that car and the conversation we had for weeks... knees buckling as they recount the story of getting to sit in an R8. You can keep the RS5. Technology, by its very nature, will improve but nothing will eclipse the "x factor" of an R8 for years and years to come.
 
#13 ·
Your right on it Russman. I already have 500 horsepower in my M6 (for sale BTW). When do I get to use M6 to it's full power potential in Los Angeles traffic?? I don't track it. There are many performance cars out that beat R8 in H.p. and less $$$. R8 is not about horsepower. It's about the R8. So far the best car I've owned. I met a guy with Z06 2 days ago. He was checking out R8. I asked him how he likes Z06. He told me his back is killing him. He drives his E class more often.
 
#9 ·
Once again gentlemen, the R8 is mid-engined and the RS5 is not...........

We have near perfect weight distribution and get [much] better handling on R8.

I echo RUSSMAN. If it is straight line acceleration you want buy a Caterham


If you really want to get on your soapbox, we can moan about TT-RS as well. Same acceleration as R8 V8, but half the price. But it is front engined, so above caveat applies.


Anyway, dare I mention R8 V10 ?? BZ, I know BZ that you are not buying one, but it does put R8 ahead of RS5.............
 
#10 ·
I agree with Harrison, ive got a non res miltek exhaust, APS remap and soon to be installed PPI air filter kit, im sure all of this must take the car to approx 450hp....but thats not getting away from the fact the RS5 will come with this out the box, do feel slightly dissapointed that Audi would out stage the R8 in this way....but i guess thats considered progress in Audi's eyes.
 
#11 · (Edited)
Guys, let's stick to the facts. Yes, the R8 is a better overall package. There is no doubting that. I know that there are faster cars. My arguement is not about this.

Don't you feel short changed, when you know the engineers could have made some small adjustments to the V8 engine and made it as special as the rest of the car!! Get what I mean??? The R8 is a special vehicle and should have got a SPECIAL V8!!!

The V8 engine released with the current R8 should have been state of the art!! THEN, the technology should have filtered down into other models! NOT, the other way round.
 
#14 ·
Ditto. I have driven the A5 and it couldn't handle as well as my old A3. I have driven the RS6 and its straight line woooof is phenomenal, but its still an A6 beyond that. Be happy guys, the R8 IS the complete package, the engine IS fantastic as it is, the car IS startlingly attractive, and the handling IS awesome.

Pumping a few more hp into the thing is just for muscle that it doesn't really need, except for when sparring with a GT3. But then maybe that's what this is all about??
 
#15 ·
I could not agree more with Russman -- the R8 is automotive art on a scale unmatched by other Audi cars, regardless of power.

My S6 had a more powerful engine than the R8, but even after just a few days with the R8, I don't miss the S6. Had I wanted simply more power, the Z06 or Z01 would have been cheaper.

But the R8 is simply in a class by itself. In a sea of Corvettes and 911s and even M5s and M6s, the R8 eclipses all. My dealer told me that a guy recently returned his R8 to get a Ferrari because he was tired of all the attention that the R8 drew -- quite a statement.

I'm still grinning everytime I walk by my car, to say nothing of driving it. The R8 is simply sublime.
 
#16 ·
I'll have to ditto the sentiments above, so I won't rehash them, but on BZ's comment regarding the HP bump... There might be several things that led to that, and who knows, the 2010 V8's might get a HP bump as well.

I don't feel shafted though... Audi played it safe on its first run and still managed to get a lot right
 
#18 ·
To Quote Russman “The R8 is an awe inspiring piece of automotive artistry. Its appeal crosses all demographics and all generations.”

The R8 is an expression of Audi’s desired automotive “Excellency”, a true “Culmination of Form and Function”. A well balance Mid-Engine Super Car, without the Super Car Entry Cost!
You have the option to leave you R8 as you found it or the choice to Individually Express Yourself.
The Choice is YOURS!
As they say “IT”S ALL GOOD”.
 
#19 ·
Once again, I'm not talking about the R8 as a "Package", I'm talking about the old V8 Technology it inherited from the RS4 without any improvements...

Anyway, everyone is entitled to their opinion, but the fact remains, the V8 shipped with the R8 was NOT State-of-the Art. at least I'm looking at the engine arguement WITHOUT rose coloured glasses...

Enjoy.
 
#20 ·
Im glad I'm not alone in my feelings. However, in BZ's defense, I see his point. When you buy the 'flaghship' of the line, you expect the manufacturer to pull out all the stops. The fact that technology that was superior to that in the R8 existed is what is upsetting. However, apart from the 37 of us in this forum and a few autophiles on the outside... no one will know the subtle technological nuances between an RS5 and an R8.

All I know is that I just got home from a drive and while I was parked along the road talking to a friend... a bus stopped to let a child off. I saw one head pop up out the seat and look at the R8. Within seconds... every little kid on that bus chnaged seats and was looking, gasping and pointing with smiles ear to ear. These guys were no more than 8 or 9!!! All ages, all demographics... this is a special car
 
#25 ·
well said Russman. Horsepower is cheap, it's how it's applied that counts. I was getting ready to walk into a Chipotle today for a burrito when a 19 year old kid met me at the door, gushed all over me and the R8, and offered to buy me a burrito for a quick ride around the parking lot. How many RS5 owners will that happen to? Also, as stated it's the power vs weight, the mid-engine balance, and the aerodynamic body chassis design that will make the difference. We're in tough economic times (or so were told) and you can't blame Audi for sweetening the pot a little to keep sales up. Will I be afraid when an RS5 pulls up next to me with his extra 30 ponies? NAY....
 
#26 ·
I likely think different than some here, but I don't see myself getting upset over this, or getting into a HP arms race. I don't track the car, and I cannot find a driving situation where I can even use the power I have now. All products get one-upped in some way by the next best thing. That's just the way things go.

I fully expect our cars to be caught to some degree by the pack as time passes. If something comes along that beats the R8 in total experience, then maybe I switch then, but we are a long way from that point I think. Without knowing the circumstances, I am not inclined to be upset with Audi about the missing 30 horses.

If I ever encounter an RS5 owner, I don't expect to get into some kind of contest with him either. By the way, how much will that car weigh anyway? R8's will likely be a long way ahead in terms of HP/Weight if that makes anyone feel better.

So for me the R8 is plenty of car. If I was inclined to get upset about HP, then I would go for a Vette or something.
 
#28 ·
bz88---your point is well taken. To be sure, the fact that you could elicit so many responses in a short time is a good thing. I've had two RS4's (2007) that FSI engine was the best powerplant choice at the time. I think it would cost production to incorporate a new engine at this point. The 2008 & 09 R8's production lines were well in place before the new Super-charger engines coming out in future models. In the end, I'm sure Audi decided that the price (Units sold) was more important than 30 ponies. So, in short, it wasn't 'Out-of-date' technology---it was the design at the time. (Probably 2005/06) Your point of contention is well deserved and it's great that you could cause so many of us to react. Bravo...
 
#29 ·
If I had The better set up I would'nt be living at the red line ,rather a few thousand rpm's lower and then my engine would probably last 150 thou miles. But,maybe, just maybe...the engine's POWERBAND is the real feature on this car...smooooth power.:D
 
#32 ·
I think the RS5 has the same engine as the 4.2 in the current S5 but turbo-charged, not the same as the 4.2 in the R8.
Do some research from credible sources...
He only said he thought that.. no need to get snippy, we're supposed to be keeping it light here :D
 
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