Motor Trend: First Drive: ABT-Sportsline Audi R8 GT-R
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07-06-2010 | 11:12 AM
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Motor Trend: First Drive: ABT-Sportsline Audi R8 GT-R 
"R-Rated: Lighter, Faster, More Exclusive"
Every car nut with a thirst for full-blown track attack machines has been salivating like Pavlov's dog ever since Audi dropped pictures of the R8 GT on the world. It's a lightweight version of the Audi R8 V10 with a heap of race-bred attitude. Surely it can't get any better than that? Well, actually, yes it can. In fact, it just has.
ABT-Sportsline, the tuning specialist behind the DTM touring cars and a good portion of the Porsche GT3 race car, has thoroughly upstaged its Ingolstadt overlords with this, the ABT GT-R. And it's here right now, pulsating in front of our eyes.
OK, so the front end isn't as pretty, and its Chrysler 300C-esque grille flies in the face of the Audi's elegant lines. But the GT-R costs more than $400,000, and it needs to look different enough to justify it price tag. The side profile is much better, with subtle side skirts and that gigantic rear wing that looks a lot like the GT3's.
The hood, front and rear fascia, the rear wing, and tailgate have all been replaced with the purest carbon-fiber, and the vented rear window and side windows are made from polycarbonate. With a stripped-out interior that includes racing seats and Alcantara dressing (which offsets the weight of the rollcage and then some), and super light wheels, ABT has stripped some 220 pounds from the curb weight of the car. Oh, and if you don't like the color, tough. The matte titanium grey and black is the only one on offer.
If all the vents and gills seem a little optimistic, they're not. ABT has wound that V-10 to a massive 620 horsepower with the help of a new air intake, exhaust, and ECU. We're about to find out how hot it gets in the engine bay under duress.
We meet the GT-R at the dream location, the Nurburgring, where the GT3 cars went to war in the 24 Hour race just two weeks before. There's only one downer: I can't drive on the 'Ring. Pushing a car this fast on the Nordschleife would be like playing Russian roulette with a fully loaded gun, so ABT has brought 24-hour racer Christopher Mies to show me what it can do on this rollercoaster of a road before handing the keys over.
Read more: ABT-Sportsline Audi R8 GT-R First Drive - Motor Trend
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