zie hier. IK begrijp wat ze zeggen maar zou voor dagelijks gebruik toch de 911 mee naar huis nemen. In een ideale wereld staan ze allebei in je garage natuurlijk. Toch maar weer eens met de loterij meedoen
Quote uit Car&Driver
2008 Audi R8 vs. 2007 Porsche 911 Carrera S - Comparison Tests
Incestuous infighting: an informal comparion.
BY BARRY WINFIELD, PHOTOGRAPHY BY DAVID DEWHURST
April 2007
Click here to read our 2008 Audi R8 Road Test Download the stats.
We wanted to stage a comparison test of the Audi R8 against its obvious rival, or rivals, right after the car’s introduction in January in Henderson, Nevada. But it was an international debut and didn’t allow us access until it was too late for this issue. So we drove a Porsche 911 Carrera S to Henderson for the pictures you see here as well as to get a sense of how the Audi would compare. Here is an eight-category summary of how we rate the two cars.
EXTERIOR: The 911 has a classic shape that has burned itself into the minds of generations of car lovers. If it weren’t great, it would no longer be around. The R8 is altogether new, and it attracts attention like a free-beer stand. But based on what we heard from passersby, the Audi’s shape is more controversial than the Porsche’s. Advantage: 911.
INTERIOR: This is harder to call. Both cars have fresh interior designs, clear instrumentation, and logical control layouts. But we’d have to score the Audi’s cool flat-bottomed wheel, artful dashboard, creative surface textures, and gated shifter a little higher than the Porsche, which, although fresh, has that oh-so-familiar look. Besides, the Audi’s lap timer has a digital readout in the dash, not a clunky stopwatch atop the dash. Advantage: R8.
PRACTICALITY: Both cars can accommodate tall occupants and reasonable amounts of luggage, but only the Porsche has actual rear seats (those vestigial perches have been around since the 356). Still, we have known people to sit in them, whereas the space behind the front seats in the R8 will take golf bags or luggage but no kids or dogs. The 911 has better all-around visibility and is marginally easier to get into and out of. Advantage: 911.
RIDE: Both cars have optional adaptive shock systems that soften their rides for normal driving conditions, but Porsche’s varies shock performance by selecting different valve-orifice sizes and Audi’s applies current to magnetorheological damping fluid, thereby altering its viscosity. By definition, it’s a stepless mechanism with finer gradations. Not only that, the R8’s mid-engine configuration avoids the Porsche’s rear-cantilevered engine-weight problem, greatly helping control pitch. Overall, the R8 rides flatter and more smoothly. Advantage: R8.
HANDLING: Neither car has any engine mass on the front axle, and both turn in willingly. Any tail-end eccentricities on the part of the 911 are convincingly tuned out of the equation until the driver does something monumentally stupid or hits an unexpected patch of black ice with the stability-control system turned off. It almost never happens, but the 911 does reveal the unusual strategies employed to keep the tail in line by bounding and jinking at speed on bumpy surfaces. The R8 is about as benign as a mid-engined car can be. If there’s any weirdness in there, we didn’t find it. Advantage: R8.
STRUCTURE: Porsche’s steel body shell is a paragon of rigidity, particularly in coupe form, and there’s no serious complaint with the way it damps suspension impacts or insulates sound. But the R8’s aluminum space frame is even better, resisting flex on the biggest bumps and insulating the passengers from bump and wind noise the way a luxury sedan does. Advantage: R8.
PRIMARY CONTROLS: Both cars have control mechanisms with a direct feel and no lost motion, but the Audi has slightly better isolation at moderate speeds, which some may feel is less communicative. The Audi’s steering is certainly more inert than the Porsche’s when cruising. Although the R8’s manual six-speed is lighter and more fluid, its lever has to negotiate a metal maze, clicking from slot to slot as it does. Some drivers might prefer the short, silent stick in the Porsche. The R8’s paddle-shift system sometimes seems unduly slow to respond, and we had a tough time finding drive while making three-point turns. Advantage: Draw.
ENGINE: As much as we love the wonderful howl of a flat-six going about its business, there’s little that can compare with a four-cam V-8 at full throttle. The Audi’s exhaust has valves to muffle its exertions up until you’re really standing on it, and then they open to emit full-on ALMS sound effects. And the thrust of those 420 horses seals the deal. But this question needs to be asked again with Porsche’s 415-hp, 8400-rpm GT3 in the equation. Advantage: R8.
THE VERDICT
The Audi R8 is a unique realization of the carmaker’s art, with everything you’d expect in a 21st-century sports car. The Audi raises the bar in refinement, all-season practicality, and accessible performance. The 911, on the other hand, is an old brute groomed and tamed to a surprising level of sophistication. At least in this informal duel, the R8 appears to be the better sports car.
Click here to read our 2008 Audi R8 Road Test
