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Audi has been teasing us with the great looking R8 for so long that  when Audi finally let every car magazine test drive and photograph one recently in Nevada, R8 was plastered on the front cover of the April issue of every major car magazine.

Access to the car must have been contingent upon signing a deal with the devil of "marketing journalism" because everyone was seemingly forced to compare the R8 to a far inferior and far cheaper base model 911 and to a far more expensive exotic car.

The intended message was that the R8 smokes a Porsche 911 and can hang with a Ferrari or Lambo, but the signal I get is that Audi knows the identically priced Porsche 911 GT3 smokes the R8. Why else would they be so afraid to let the car magazines review it against its comps?

Of course, when the R8 is available for public consumption later this year and auto journalists are allowed to test it against a GT3, it will be on the cover over every major car magazine for the second time in one year.

GR8 marketing! Let me know when the gag order is lifted so I can find out just how stupid it will be to pick the looks of an R8 over the performance of a GT3.  

By all accounts thus far, the R8 beats the 911 in terms of everyday civility for driving purposes.  However I would still, perhaps prematurely, strongly argue that the 911, along with the Cayman S, is the most pure a sports car one could purchase.  And, in the end, I would still purchase a 911 Targa 4S over the R8, and I am really convinced that no amount of the R8’s drivability or speed, if you will, would sway me away from my decision in favor of a 911.  For Porsche, in my view, has it right as “there is no substitute” for one of these awesome 911 Porsche cars.

In terms of marketing the R8, however, I am basically indifferent to tell you the truth.  For I am sort of perplexed as to what the R8 actually is.  For the R8 does look decidedly like an exotic, from the pictures at least, but it aims and is priced more towards dethroning the 911 than it does the Italian makes.  All of this is odd, in my view.  Because if I wanted to create a 911-beater, I would seek to create a compact vehicle that is extremely functional, driver-oriented, and purposeful.  As it stands, however, the move by Audi to treat the exotic-looking R8 as merely a mainstream 911 competitor mirrors Acura’s, dare I say, bargain-priced NSX strategy.  Now to me, Honda realized that Acura didn’t have much clout in pricing a car that looks like an exotic near what a typical exotic is priced for.  And so my view is that the relative affordability of the R8 does not necessarily play in Audi’s favor as this pricing strategy conveys to me that Audi, as a luxury brand and like Acura, does not have the confidence to price this extremely exotic-looking car within the company of Ferrari, for example.  

In turn, I think that the odd placement of the R8 will not only raise some eyebrows, but may in turn also hurt the brand image of Audi as an exclusive automaker simply because of the fact that the R8 may be interpreted as a poor man’s exotic, if you will.  In my estimation, the R8 design is so radical, that the main aim of Audi with the R8 should’ve been to not make a profit on the R8, but to treat this car as Audi’s definitive expression of its most cherished design philosophy, and to price it near $300,000.  But as it stands now, to compare an R8 with a 911 is fundamentally incorrect, as the 911 is the utmost definition of a drivers car while the R8 is merely a fast looker.  

Given the prototype "Le Mans" and the production name "R8" (which conflicts with the A8 line of names), it seems pretty clear that Audi's primary motivation for the R8 is to attempt to dominate the GT class at LeMans.

Since Volkswagen owns both Audi and Lamborghini, it wouldn't make business sense for Audi to compete in Lamborghini's "true exotic car" segment, but it would make sense to compete against Porsche 911, Corvette Z06, Dodge Viper, Mercedes SL55 AMG, Acura (2009) NSX, and Lexus (2009) LF-A in the "kind of exotic car I can drive every day that still costs less than my house" segment.

The R8 is quite literally a cross between an Audi TT and a Lamborghini. While both the R8 and 911 are in a class of their own, the 911 GT3 is the most similar car to the R8.

Audi paid a lot of attention to driver experience - even a lot of "exotic cars" don't have the engine in the right place these days. Audi was not, however, willing to sacrifice comfort and luxury for performance.

If you want a true exotic car but you're not willing to risk getting charged with felony reckless driving and/or having your vehicle confiscated, and you're not planning on participating in competitive racing events, and you don't have the compulsive need to own the car with the biggest numbers on paper, and you actually earned the money to buy the car yourself, the R8 is the best car on the market.

If you want a weekend race car that is the ultimate driving experience, get a Tesla (Lotus Elise with a much higher powered electric motor).

Or a 911 GT3.

It would be interesting if Audi came out with a "racing edition" R8 that sacrificed luxury for a 400 lb weight reduction.  

No I do agree with you, xanderale, that the R8, by all accounts thus far, is a comfortable exotic.  Moreover, I have no reason to doubt the latter claim as Audi is known for designs that are impeccably tailored to satisfy occupants in its cars.  And I also agree with the notion that a Tesla is a good pick for driving excitement.  In fact, a Tesla car is the only electric I would consider today and I think that the fantastic Tesla car would not disappoint the great Serbian inventor it was named after either.

But, fundamentally and frankly, here is my problem with the R8 and with Audi’s approach:  Audi, who will buy your exotic-looking 911 competitor?  For my question/argument rests upon two integral areas: 1. Price and 2. Image.  

The price of the R8 in my view is odd.  I think this way because the car looks like an exotic, it simply does.  Even in some car magazines, some writers have stressed that when parked next to a 911 or even an F430, the R8’s dramatic design garners more attention.  To be sure, that’s a strong implication.  So then I would ask, “why price the R8 in an arena where it does not belong?”  For the R8 is a very fast car that looks pleasant, important, and revolutionary (though the rear is a sore in my view).  In addition, in terms of athleticism, I simply cannot imagine that this car could overtake the functional and seemingly eternally undaunted Porsche 911 nor even a Cayman S, let alone the GT3.  And so, my conclusion is that the R8 is a fast car with good abilities and one that looks like an exotic, not a conventional sports car meant to overtake a 911.  Thus, logically, the R8’s price should reflect this difference it has with the 911 and the more similarity it has with Ferrari and Lamborghini.  But to price the R8 in the mainstream Porsche range may possibly convey the image of the aforementioned “poor man’s exotic.”  Paradoxically, then, the cheaper price of the very exotic-looking R8 may actually potentially hurt the R8 more than it may help it.  

Another important issue for Audi, in my view, is image.  Because I don’t think Audi quite has the powerful image that simply must exist to command respect for cars it may price above $100,000.  The latter is simply my view and I realize that many would contest that.  Nonetheless, at least in Europe, an Audi is viewed as the understated make that depends upon reliability over flash and antagonism (all of which, collectively, represents the antithesis of a $100,000+ car maker).  And so, given this, and given that I heard reports that the R8 will be priced from anywhere in between $100,000 to $120,000, what makes Audi so sure it will turn any profit on this automobile?  For from even the cars you listed, xanderale, only one is viewed as profitable, the 911 (and I cannot understand who would purchase a $100,000+ new NSX and/or LF-A, respectively).  And even image conscious Mercedes-Benz has problems selling its $130,000 SL55, let alone the shockingly expensive SL65.  Because in territory above $100,000, potential profits for mainstream automobile companies are extremely difficult to come by.  This is, of course, because Aston Martin, Maserati, and even Ferrari are within the $100,000 to $200,000 range.  And so, since in all probability the R8 will be within reach of $110,000, how would someone respond when they find out a V8 Vantage is within that territory?  I think, more often than not, the Audi label will prove the difference in choosing between the R8 and the more exclusive labels in this very exclusive price range, no matter the R8’s extension of its successful Le Mans blueprint.