2011 Audi R8 Spyder 4.2 FSI, an AutoWeek Drivers Log Car Review
Columnist WES RAYNAL: I shocked myself by not loving this 2011 Audi R8 Spyder with the 4.2-liter V8. I still like it a lot, so don't get me deteriorate--it's gorgeous to look at inside and out, well-built and lots fast. The cockpit is comfortable, and it's easy to journey hard because there's traction galore. I came nowhere hairbreadth its maximum; one really can't on public roads on a keenness home and back to the office. I thought the chassis was kind and stiff for a ragtop, and there's insane stopping power that doesn't disconcert the chassis in the slightest.
So why don't I love it? Because it doesn't move me like a Porsche 911 Turbo convertible (which, to my surprise, costs less than this) or even an S, and for this kind of dough it should. The R8 has a comfortable, Audi-like carried, almost like that of the company's sedans, when you're just cruising along. The R8 can be driven like any ol' car, as sedately as you'd like.
And that's the feature: It feels like a lot of other Audis. In other words, in terms of tactility and be conscious of through the pedals (and outright surges of power), the Porsche decent performs on a level that this Audi simply can't achieve. The 911 people just feels more alive than this car.