Discussion
Trevor555 said:
Trev450 said:
Indeed. You would not want to purchase an early model without checking the front suspension turrets first.
Is that quite an involved job?I'm guessing a workshop job to have it stripped out?
therealsamdailly said:
What is the general opinion on engine reliability and serviceability?
Presumably the V8 engine being shared broadly around the VAG group would mean that its a solid unit and parts should be easy enough to get hold of (I guess the same goes for brakes, electronics, switch gear)
Obviously access for certain jobs is going to be an issue, as an ex Boxster and current 911 owner this is something I'm familiar with
Engine wise, providing it's regularly serviced they are generally rock solid. Many examples for sale on Autotrader with 70,000 miles on the clock.Presumably the V8 engine being shared broadly around the VAG group would mean that its a solid unit and parts should be easy enough to get hold of (I guess the same goes for brakes, electronics, switch gear)
Obviously access for certain jobs is going to be an issue, as an ex Boxster and current 911 owner this is something I'm familiar with
Service wise, £500 for a minor, £1,000 for a major.
Overall I've done 10,000 miles in 3 1/2 years and have spent just over £6.5k which includes everything (4 services (1 major and 3 minor), oil, carbon clean, 4 x alloy refurbs, insurance, breakdown cover, tax, MOT's, new battery, new rear fog light, replacement of a couple of engine and cam shaft sensors) apart from petrol
Ive had 2 R8s, one manual V8 and one auto V8 bought around 15k miles driven till around 25k miles.
Once on each car I’ve had to have something done with air conditioning, I think fluid replaced? I think it cost £500 each time from an Audi main dealer along with the service.
Had a comedy of errors with West London Audi so would give them a miss.
Generally they are great cars though. I use mine as a daily and it’s always an experience. There aren’t many cars I would swap one for.
Once on each car I’ve had to have something done with air conditioning, I think fluid replaced? I think it cost £500 each time from an Audi main dealer along with the service.
Had a comedy of errors with West London Audi so would give them a miss.
Generally they are great cars though. I use mine as a daily and it’s always an experience. There aren’t many cars I would swap one for.
Owned one for 2.5 years and 30,000 miles before moving to a Boxster. Would agree with all the comments above. Absolutely loved every minute of my R8 ownership. It was a very reliable car except for one failed magride during my ownership, an absolute blast on B roads, and there wasn't a journey I couldn't take it on. A very practical and easy to live with car when taking it easy, and fast and fun when pushing it.
Exhaust is pretty quiet for this type of car. Many owners look for a third party solution.
Audi dealership experience ok, but far from great.
Exhaust is pretty quiet for this type of car. Many owners look for a third party solution.
Audi dealership experience ok, but far from great.
Edited by NewNameNeeded on Wednesday 6th May 22:00
I had a manual v8 for a year or so and did 6k miles, all the common issues have been talked about and overall these are robust cars (if cared for). There are plenty of tired examples now so its worth waiting for a good one and extending the budget to get a cared for example. I miss mine more than I expected, I now have a new C63s Coupe but I still think fondly of the R8 and the manual box, albeit the R8 is massively down on power in comparison. I went for a Milltek exhaust on mine and it was well worth it without buying obnoxious loud.
I'm in the market for a gen 1 v10.
From what I've read and heard most of the known issues, magride, aircon, front suspension turret cracks (rare) have been mentioned here.
One other area to consider is the clutch/flywheel, apparently it can be £4k+
to replace and 30k miles is about the time where it may need doing. R-tronic models may be more prone to early wear as well, one other reason I don't want one!
Anyone selling a nice manual or s-tronic v10 let me know
From what I've read and heard most of the known issues, magride, aircon, front suspension turret cracks (rare) have been mentioned here.
One other area to consider is the clutch/flywheel, apparently it can be £4k+
to replace and 30k miles is about the time where it may need doing. R-tronic models may be more prone to early wear as well, one other reason I don't want one! Anyone selling a nice manual or s-tronic v10 let me know
nickrex said:
I'm in the market for a gen 1 v10.
From what I've read and heard most of the known issues, magride, aircon, front suspension turret cracks (rare) have been mentioned here.
One other area to consider is the clutch/flywheel, apparently it can be £4k+ to replace and 30k miles is about the time where it may need doing. R-tronic models may be more prone to early wear as well, one other reason I don't want one!
Anyone selling a nice manual or s-tronic v10 let me know
Never heard of the clutch/fly wheel being a common issue unless it's specific to a V10? Clutches can't last 50,000 miles easy - all depends how they've been driven.From what I've read and heard most of the known issues, magride, aircon, front suspension turret cracks (rare) have been mentioned here.
One other area to consider is the clutch/flywheel, apparently it can be £4k+
to replace and 30k miles is about the time where it may need doing. R-tronic models may be more prone to early wear as well, one other reason I don't want one! Anyone selling a nice manual or s-tronic v10 let me know
Besides £4k for a supercar clutch seems a fair price to me - R8's are solid but expensive to fix if they go wrong.
NewNameNeeded said:
FWIW my R-Tronic was still going strong at 65k miles. And if you're entertaining an auto then please don't discount the R-Tronic until you've driven one.
And driven one as they were meant to be driven, and not as an auto! By which I mean, drive it as a robotised manual (which is what it is).Edited by andy97 on Thursday 7th May 12:50
PompeyReece said:
Never heard of the clutch/fly wheel being a common issue unless it's specific to a V10? Clutches can't last 50,000 miles easy - all depends how they've been driven.
Besides £4k for a supercar clutch seems a fair price to me - R8's are solid but expensive to fix if they go wrong.
I've read about it somewhere but if its it's not that's one less area of concern then. Besides £4k for a supercar clutch seems a fair price to me - R8's are solid but expensive to fix if they go wrong.
NewNameNeeded said:
FWIW my R-Tronic was still going strong at 65k miles. And if you're entertaining an auto then please don't discount the R-Tronic until you've driven one.
They seem to have love/hate feedback, but I've seen more negative than positive. I will hopefully get to try one after lock down, but my first choice will be a manual all things being equal.Trevor555 said:
There was an early R8 up on the ramp at my local independent a while back.
He showed me an oil pipe that had deteriorated.
He said it could lead to a new engine if it failed.
Just thought I'd mention it if anyone's buying, maybe something else to check.
Or maybe it was just a one off?
Definately not a one off. The oil return pipe is powder coated mild steel and prone to corrosion. Generally, they start to leak and this is quite evident around the area so unless it was not spotted, it is unlikely to result in a total failure and large scale oil loss. The replacement pipe is made from stainless steel so a peace-of-mind mod for anyone too concerned.He showed me an oil pipe that had deteriorated.
He said it could lead to a new engine if it failed.
Just thought I'd mention it if anyone's buying, maybe something else to check.
Or maybe it was just a one off?
Had a 2011 v10, got it at 3k and let it go at 16k iirc about 18months later , lovely car, one of my favourites , I had the r Tronic and having had single clutch systems before didn’t long to get use to.
It went back in for dash trim refits (rattles) once and a annual service other than that rock solid , I pretty much daily used it.
Can’t comment on what they are like once the mileage goes up, mine was under Audi warranty , not sure I d want to run one without a decent back stop but then I m like that with all my cars tbh.
I have recently been looking at a 2018 rws version, but given the climate taking on more liabilities didn’t seem the smartest move .....still sorely tempted though.
Trevor555 said:
There was an early R8 up on the ramp at my local independent a while back.
He showed me an oil pipe that had deteriorated.
He said it could lead to a new engine if it failed.
Just thought I'd mention it if anyone's buying, maybe something else to check.
Or maybe it was just a one off?
I enquired about one a few months back and that had had an oil pipe replaced, I think it was a £1k bill. He showed me an oil pipe that had deteriorated.
He said it could lead to a new engine if it failed.
Just thought I'd mention it if anyone's buying, maybe something else to check.
Or maybe it was just a one off?
Any idea where the pipe is located?
IMI A said:
The other thing to look at on these R8 now they are older is coking in dfi engine? I can't think of a better supercar out there if those chassis crack things on early cars not an issue. I love these. Just a nice thing to own and reminds of build quality from back in the day.
Yeah, for me it's a dream car. I've always loved the look of the Gen 1, I think Audi nailed it. The fact they're great handling, quick and about as reliable as a car like this gets is icing on the cake. I 've had 2 Gen 1 R8. The first one is a 20011 V10 Manual and the second a 2014 V10 Plus Stronic.
The 20011 V10 Manual was low mileage when I bought it. I did about 20K miles and had a couple of issues with it: rear brake caliper leaked and as well as front mag ride dampers. The manual gearbox was fun at first (gated) but after a while, I found it clunky and less engaging when driving fast. My personal view is that if it has more than 400bhp, you really need a DCT as things happen too fast to change gear and hold the steering wheel at the same time and you end up not changing gear as frequently as you should. That's my personal view but I am an old fart!
I 've had the 2014 V10 Plus Stronic for a couple of years now and have done about 12k miles. I bought it because I wanted a DCT and did not want to deal with leaky mag rides dampers (the gen1 v10 plus has fixed damper) and I like the carbon trim inside and out, the bucket seats and carbon brake discs (no need to change them!). The ride is a little firmer with the fixed damper but it is not too bad. I have had 2 issues under warranty.
I was going to upgrade to a gen 2 but I was disappointed by the drive (torque steer in extreme acceleration) and the looks (too angular).
I have driven the R8 V8 for an extended test drive and it seems more agile than the R8 V10. But the V10 engine is epic and it is such a rarity compared to a V8. Lookwise I found the V8 more elegant and the V10 more agressive.
This vids shows the different R8 in action:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWAV7jyJDWE
Option wise: go for extended leather dash and as much carbon as possible. An aftermarket exhaust is nice. There is some guilted leather seat option as well on gen 1 facelift. I like the wingback seats (bucket).
The 20011 V10 Manual was low mileage when I bought it. I did about 20K miles and had a couple of issues with it: rear brake caliper leaked and as well as front mag ride dampers. The manual gearbox was fun at first (gated) but after a while, I found it clunky and less engaging when driving fast. My personal view is that if it has more than 400bhp, you really need a DCT as things happen too fast to change gear and hold the steering wheel at the same time and you end up not changing gear as frequently as you should. That's my personal view but I am an old fart!
I 've had the 2014 V10 Plus Stronic for a couple of years now and have done about 12k miles. I bought it because I wanted a DCT and did not want to deal with leaky mag rides dampers (the gen1 v10 plus has fixed damper) and I like the carbon trim inside and out, the bucket seats and carbon brake discs (no need to change them!). The ride is a little firmer with the fixed damper but it is not too bad. I have had 2 issues under warranty.
I was going to upgrade to a gen 2 but I was disappointed by the drive (torque steer in extreme acceleration) and the looks (too angular).
I have driven the R8 V8 for an extended test drive and it seems more agile than the R8 V10. But the V10 engine is epic and it is such a rarity compared to a V8. Lookwise I found the V8 more elegant and the V10 more agressive.
This vids shows the different R8 in action:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWAV7jyJDWE
Option wise: go for extended leather dash and as much carbon as possible. An aftermarket exhaust is nice. There is some guilted leather seat option as well on gen 1 facelift. I like the wingback seats (bucket).
Edited by paddy1970 on Thursday 7th May 16:54
nickrex said:
Trevor555 said:
There was an early R8 up on the ramp at my local independent a while back.
He showed me an oil pipe that had deteriorated.
He said it could lead to a new engine if it failed.
Just thought I'd mention it if anyone's buying, maybe something else to check.
Or maybe it was just a one off?
I enquired about one a few months back and that had had an oil pipe replaced, I think it was a £1k bill. He showed me an oil pipe that had deteriorated.
He said it could lead to a new engine if it failed.
Just thought I'd mention it if anyone's buying, maybe something else to check.
Or maybe it was just a one off?
Any idea where the pipe is located?
paddy1970 said:
I 've had 2 Gen 1 R8. The first one is a 20011 V10 Manual and the second a 2014 V10 Plus Stronic.
The 20011 V10 Manual was low mileage when I bought it. I did about 20K miles and had a couple of issues with it: rear brake caliper leaked and as well as front mag ride dampers. The manual gearbox was fun at first (gated) but after a while, I found it clunky and less engaging when driving fast. My personal view is that if it has more than 400bhp, you really need a DCT as things happen too fast to change gear and hold the steering wheel at the same time and you end up not changing gear as frequently as you should. That's my personal view but I am an old fart!
I 've had the 2014 V10 Plus Stronic for a couple of years now and have done about 12k miles. I bought it because I wanted a DCT and did not want to deal with leaky mag rides dampers (the gen1 v10 plus has fixed damper) and I like the carbon trim inside and out and the bucket seats. The ride is a little firmer with the fixed damper but it is not too bad. I have had 2 issues under warranty.
I was going to upgrade to a gen 2 but I was disappointed by the drive (torque steer in extreme acceleration) and the looks (too angular).
I have driven the R8 V8 for an extended test drive and it seems more agile than the R8 V10. But the V10 engine is epic and it is such a rarity compared to a V8. Lookwise I found the V8 more elegant and the V10 more agressive.
This vids shows the different R8 in action:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWAV7jyJDWE
Option wise: go for extended leather dash and as much carbon as possible. An aftermarket exhaust is nice. There is some guilted leather seat option as well on gen 1 facelift. I like the wingback seats (bucket).
Cheers paddy.The 20011 V10 Manual was low mileage when I bought it. I did about 20K miles and had a couple of issues with it: rear brake caliper leaked and as well as front mag ride dampers. The manual gearbox was fun at first (gated) but after a while, I found it clunky and less engaging when driving fast. My personal view is that if it has more than 400bhp, you really need a DCT as things happen too fast to change gear and hold the steering wheel at the same time and you end up not changing gear as frequently as you should. That's my personal view but I am an old fart!
I 've had the 2014 V10 Plus Stronic for a couple of years now and have done about 12k miles. I bought it because I wanted a DCT and did not want to deal with leaky mag rides dampers (the gen1 v10 plus has fixed damper) and I like the carbon trim inside and out and the bucket seats. The ride is a little firmer with the fixed damper but it is not too bad. I have had 2 issues under warranty.
I was going to upgrade to a gen 2 but I was disappointed by the drive (torque steer in extreme acceleration) and the looks (too angular).
I have driven the R8 V8 for an extended test drive and it seems more agile than the R8 V10. But the V10 engine is epic and it is such a rarity compared to a V8. Lookwise I found the V8 more elegant and the V10 more agressive.
This vids shows the different R8 in action:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWAV7jyJDWE
Option wise: go for extended leather dash and as much carbon as possible. An aftermarket exhaust is nice. There is some guilted leather seat option as well on gen 1 facelift. I like the wingback seats (bucket).
I'd still rather a manual but take on board what you're saying. I'd love a v10+ with passive dampers but unless the market falls further (I person think it will) they are probably out of budget. I agree on spec, extended leather, cruise, as much carbon as possible, Alcantara headlining, quilted leather, upgraded exhaust would all be nice!
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