Reggie

That's R8 time is newer than I had seen before

JoeyJoJoeJrShabadoo

They share very, very little. Engine is similar, but not the same.

NorthshoreRS4

bought it 3 years old for about the same as the R8 was going for..........<ul><li><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wXnW1skhVY">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wXnW1skhVY</a</li></ul>

RS Maniac

The similarities between the RS4 and R8... start and end with the engine! That's all, and more often than not I'd be compelled to think they were not made from the same DNA (visually especially). I had a chance to try the R8 and RS4 (including hot laps at Infineon), and you would not think they have ANYTHING in common (with the exception of the high strung engine as mentioned above). Talk about nose heaviness vs tail happiness and overall balance and composure, entirely different way of approaching and taking/exiting an apex (if you jumped from one car to the other immediately after a hot lap you will almost crash unless you adjust your approach, but I digress). So R&amp;D accts for a huge factor to build this car from the ground up (vs. dumping an engine in an existing A4 body [granted minor mods on the fenders/bumpers] and having to worry about improving the suspension, basically). The one-of-a-kind nature of the R8 means custom, expensive and specific products and materials that need to be developed that by definition will not be rolled into another setup (aluminum frame, carbon, full interior/cabin and specially developed trim, etc.) In other words, such cost cannot be disbursed and absorbed across a wider model range.

Look over to the BMW camp. Take the latest M5 and M6 for example. Same engine, marginally different in pricing ($85K vs $102K base). But those cars are just about the same, short of the 2 extra doors. Both front engine (technically mid engine), same suspension setup, tranny, brakes, exhaust, intake, etc. etc. Then BMW has the luxury to spread the R&amp;D and production costs over a lot bigger base (both bodies were developed for the entire range of engines). There will be 2,000 total RS4s imported in the US vs 25,000 M5s (5K per year times 5 model years). Ditto for the M6 vs. R8 where that figure will be even more drastic given the limited production of R8 (which again gives the manufacturer grounds to raise price based on a 'loose' interpretation of the principle from economics - Perfect Price Discrimination). Now if the M6 didn't have sybllings in the form of 630i (Europe), 635i, 645i/650i, 630D/635D (Europe) but was a 'custom' built body just for the M6 and didn't leverage off so heavily from the M5, then I recon it would be double it's price.

I don't think the price differential of the R8 to the RS4 is stratospheric all things considered (probably because the RS4 is so expensive to begin with, think about it, it is the priciest compared to anything in its class: ///M3, C63, IS-F, CTS-V). Some might say it is prepostorous to pay for 1 RS4 what you can pay to have 2 A4s. To each there own. So while I don't have an issue with the relative price of RS4 vs. R8, I have an issue with the absolute price of the R8 (especially since up until a mere few months ago you couldn't even get it at sticker). It is not an exotic in the pure sense of the word (looks maybe, performance def not), so for that ballpark I would personally rather go for something from Stutgart, or add a bit to the budget and find where Maranello is on the map (or Bologna for that matter) ;-o)

Now with the V-10 off the Lambo, it is approaching exotic car territory, but if Audi slaps it a 200K+ price, than I think they will shoot themselves in the foot...

ismelllikepoop

mercedes had a lot of success rewrapping the e-class into a cls, bmw less success making the m5 into the m6. for an emotional purchase, i'd imagine most people would opt for the sexier design even if it does cost more money. i mean coupes always cost more than sedans even tho the difference is two freakin doors.

TwentyValveB5+S4

These are very different cars that happen to share an engine and badge.

Nicht ein A4

that shares more with the Gallardo than any other Audi product. Yes the engine is very similar to the RS4, but the R-tronic is out of the Gallardo.

It is not just some gussied up lesser Audi product.

Europa

LMAO

ismelllikepoop

audi used rs4 parts to make a baby gallardo. so you are saying the chassis is worth an extra 70k? im not saying it's bad or anything, hell if there's any car around 100k i'd have a hard time choosing between this and a maserati gran turismo, i doubt there was much cost difference for them to make an r8 versus an rs4 when the platform was already engineered. before it came out it was supposed to be priced closer to a 911 s, and now it's at the turbo's price level. they know they had a winner and charged accordingly.

ismelllikepoop

yeah of course it had to be reworked for the midengine platform so it costs more money overall, but the engine is mostly the same. I have no qualms with specific parts being more expensive for a low production car, or reworkings, but for what the OP was wondering about costs, I still feel that in the end you are still paying 70k for the engine to be in the middle than up front (i know other stuff is different but you get my general point).