<![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1 - Jalopnik Comments]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1 - Jalopnik Comments]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Refreshing approach. For some odd reason it reminds me of Jeremy Clarkson.

DemiGuru

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Excellent review especially the comparative Civic bit.

Note for future 1992-1995 Civic picture taking is to shoot it from a higher angle. Preferably from an angle your eyes would be at when you're standing. That Civic looks a lot better than you're letting it be.

That tow hook at the end can't be any good for real towing by the most beautiful Honda Civic until the current generation.

superbmtsub

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> I have heard so much about the Audi R8: from "Car & Driver", Dan Neil in the L.A. Times, "Top Gear" on BBC America, etc. Murilee, your's is by FAR the best review. Stop referring to yourself as if you are Jethro Clampett and somehow snuck into the fancy party unnoticed! You're GOOD at this. I would have been willing to drive myself from L.A. to the S.F. Audi P.R. event (offering to donate a limb or an organ in the process) for the privilege you just experienced. You dog, you!

As to the car, the rough shifts you described may very well scratch this vehicle off the Christmas list of all those Beverly Hills doctor's trophy-wives that have been described as the target market. Forget the manual; Bambi don't shift her own gears, PUH-lease! She needs that free hand to call her publicist/ manicurist/ divorce lawyer while driving.

charles_barrett

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> MM: Very well played (shoulda yelled FORE!)

This R8 vs. DX review has officially knocked PJ O'Rourke down one notch as my personal favorite auto scribe.

PS: Note to Brock Yates... THIS is automotive journalism that people can enjoy reading. We don't all own DuPont Registry caliber vehicles.

Gaseous Clay

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> How about a comparison between the load capacities of the tailgates on both cars?

the good dr zero

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Great review of a completely stunning car buddy!

There is only one thing though. Please refrain from mentioning the Civic in the same article with the R8 in the future. It angers the gods and you might end up with a lightening bolt up your arse..

As far as bang for the buck I don't think anybody can compete with the R8 and the soon to be hooned RS8.

It's like buying a Lamborgini with a $100K rebate.

apexpredator

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> This is the most Brucetastic piece I've seen here yet.

scotte

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @Murilee Martin: You seem to push the envelope in everything you do.

I like that.

You win a pie.

Rust-MyEnemy is stll out there!

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @jolaszek: Sorry to disappoint, but I bought the Civic from a friend who's bass player- not a bass player myself. He was able to fit a standup bass plus a big monitor amp in the car and drove it to countless gigs in Chicago and, later, the Bay Area. It has a weird square dent in the roof caused by the amp flying forward in a wreck; the insurance covered the front end damage, but not the amp dent.

When I was in a band (Murilee Arraiac), my instrument was the police scanner played through three OD-1 overdrive pedals and a Maestro Wow-Wow. Oh yeah, and a noise gate. Our big influences: Negativland and Throbbing Gristle. Never hit the big time, though I can't understand why.

Murilee Martin

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Nice review, MM. Couldn't agree more about the 6MT thing. The only thing I want flappy paddles on is the boat that the little man sits in. When I upshift and downshift at the same time, my wife goes crazy!

Turboner

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @Mad_Science: Seriously, should have asked them. Since the nuts at Chrysler put a hitch on an SRT8 Grand Cherokee, why the hell not! [www.wkjeeps.com]

HDC

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> And one other thing, MM...

What the hell size bass rig are you using that's easier to get in the back of a '92 Civic than through the back door of the Vic? I tried loading my SWR 4 by 10 in the back of mine and damn near shat out a kidney. I use the Civic to get to work and use my beat-up Rastro as a gigmobile.

Not only my hero and my idol, but an enviro-conscious bass player as well. Could you get cooler?

jolaszek

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @Mad_Science:

(Spoken in my best Butt-head voice, which isn't all that great:)

I see you have a '92 Civic.

I have a '92 Civic too.

Seriously. Got me a trailer hitch too. And I've towed a bunch of stuff with it, on a snowmobile trailer that takes an alarming "down at the bow" list when you hook it up. But I've hauled bikes, bags of Lava Rock, plywood, couches. And the best part is rolling up to the Home Despot's outdoor lumberyard and loading up while the Evo and Scooby fanboy stock workers look on agape. (Yeah, I got to be pretty good at changing clutches.)

This is actually not a bad comparison. Mine's a VX with around 90 hp, and I get to use every ounce of it every day. It's much easier (and fun) to drive a slow car fast than it is to keep a supercar reined in on the commute. They both present their own little challenges and rewards.

Murilee, you were always my hero, but now you're my idol.

jolaszek

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> I think ruggles is off cleaning the sand out his va jay jay

tr0n

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Murilee, you're my hero.

elitza

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @Larry Forney: Hey, for my sake, get out of bed earlier, OK?

Jonny Lieberman

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @ruggels: You're probably just an asshole.

Larry Forney

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @Mad_Science: It may not be very good for towing due to the low ride height but I'm sure it would excel at dragging and/or pulling.

Hm.. 4 wheel drive, a bunch of torque.. maybe with a lift and some knobby tires it could be a high-revving off-roader? No?

skaz

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @Mad_Science: I bet the S5 is a decent tow vehicle, and I'll be reviewing it as well. Now I'm sorry I didn't ask Herr Audi about that.

Murilee Martin

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @Murilee Martin: I've found them to be pretty hazardous to the shins, too. Particularly on a vehicle like this, where you'd never think to look out for it.

Seriously, though. You should've asked Ze Germans what the towing capacity was. (Answer: Nein!)

Mad_Science

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> I had the chance to drive an R8 about a month ago. My cousin has one. Red with the R-Tronic. Like Murilee I'd agree about the box round town in auto mode. It shifts like my mother. My cousin says that you get used to it, or that it learns your style.

Anyway - the real magic happens when you've got room to play with. I'd driven a mile in auto mode and my cousin said just to hit the down shift paddle and it would then go into manual mode. One downshift later, with the throttle blipped for good measure, I though to myself "oh, that was nice". I looked at the rev counter and realised I could down shift again, so I did. So you're in a £100K car with the most awesome sounding V8 at 4.5K rpm in 4th, holding steady speed what would you do next?

Yup, mash the throttle - click up a gear at the redline, now in 5th with the V8 screaming and still the revs build furiously along with the speed. Redline again, click up, now in 6th, fuck me it's still going. I backed off just shy of 140 with the most huge grin on my face.

It's definitely quick, but there is just absolutely no drama other than that quite glorious engine note. I believe the Loverman described the RS4's version as a Volcano making love to an Avalanche - and it's spot on. I've driven faster cars, but none that make going quickly seem quite so trivial.

But at the same time, oh so enjoyable.

st3ph3n

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @Mad_Science: Just been meaning to post on the Mystery Trailer Hitch for a while, and this saves me the trouble. Actually, the hitch serves a most useful function in San Francisco: punching holes in the front bumpers of bad parallel parkers. Ka-runch!

Murilee Martin

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @Mad_Science: Oops... big block of comments got past me. Sorry.

Murilee Martin

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @Murilee Martin: And the response?

Mad_Science

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @Murilee Martin: Dude:
Did you miss this?

Mad_Science

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> probably the best review i've read on jalopnik thus far. just awesome.

DeanFun

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> I'm surprised nobody has commented on the trailer hitch on my Civic, visible in the photo. I wish I could track down the original owner who installed it and ask: what the hell can you tow with a FWD car that weighs 18 pounds?

Murilee Martin

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> "Technical writing and fetish porn" = automotive journalist. Possibly even over-qualified automotive journalist.

NovaloadMissesPolar

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> WAIT A MINUTE!

Murilee is a guy?.....

bananaDoc

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @bobdobbs: COTD!

RoninianHoon

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Judging by the development so far, the upcoming V10 version may make you feel like your world is going to end even if you don't floor it.

Amazingly written review.

burglar

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @Mad_Science: I thought that photo was a hilarious choice for the novel's cover, given that the book's main female character wore only the finest Italian business attire while humiliating her victims and lived in upscale Orange County... naturally, the Virgin art department figured that a dom dressed in dime-store bondage gear and squatting in a London alleyway was the appropriate image.

Murilee Martin

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Probably the best review of a car i have ever read.

westondeboer

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @Mad_Science: ZOMG, I could be a craigslist regular

"Hitler won Man of The Year"

Mad_Science

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Much like Hitler one Man of The Year, I nominate Ruggles for Commenter of the Day.

@Murilee Martin: I'm sure the stern Germans were very fond of the opening picture are murileemartin.com

Mad_Science

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> The very thought of a front licence plate on this beast sends a shiver.

johnnycanada

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @ruggels: stick to your shiny mags, buddy, this here is entertainment.

camp6ell

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Hey, I actually have a '92 Civic! It's like he's talking directly to me!

Jon

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @bobdobbs: No, see, that was the scarily efficient thing about them- they'd done their homework and knew who I was.

Murilee Martin

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @ruggels: OK, here's the thing -- every buff mag and their mother will attempt to one-up each other to try and get to you with the "here's how we've used the newest technology to show you within a millimeter how quick it can stop." What we try to do here is to give you another take -- a different look at a vehicle. You know, something special -- something that entertains you and...you know what...I think the rest of our commenters have already answered this one.

@RalphieDC: Yes, he's treading on thin water, ain't he?

Ray Wert

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> From my (limited)experience of professional road test journalists, they spend more time trying to impress each other than anything else.

You have succeeded in cutting the crap and actually telling us how the car made you feel. This is what we want.

Hats off. Murilee, I owe you a drink.

Rust-MyEnemy is stll out there!

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Best.Car.Review.Ever.

Look out Dan Neill...

JonathanS

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @CEman: Careful Wert may ban you for comments like that!

RalphieDC

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Any sneers from the "real" journalists present?

I bet you scared them.

TinaChow

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Don't worry, guys, in the second part Murilee definitely experiences the 100% limit of the car in traditional EVO/CAR fashion, with the fastest guy in the press crew ;)

The comparison to the '92 Civic is far more relevant than, say, a comparison to the GT-R Nissan. Go Murilee!

ViergangFuchs

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> that made me laugh. the german in me doesn't often let me do that.

harumph

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @Mad_Science: I'd imagine you tow a trailer made out of sheets of styrofoam, filled with cotton balls, and bubble wrap.

Paul Y. -- Now With More Sodium!

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> MM, this review just simply kicks ass. thank you.

i think you should be Jalopnik's foreign ambassador, charming quaint inbred folks across the pond with your lovable american barbarity. and driving their freakin' cars.

akier

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Great review, 'cept for the thing that matters most: The picture of the Germans' faces when they found out you're not a chick.

bobdobbs

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> I finally got to see one of these in the flesh last week. What a fugly asseed POS. Even fuglier in real life than in pics.

CEman

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Mebbe' if we all pitch in we can buy 1 R8 and share.

mytdawg

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> What MM doesn't realize is that after the germans saw him w/ his untucked odd ball shirt, stubbled facial hair, beat up no tags honda civic, and that crazy american glint in his eyes they enabled the hidden "Remote Pilot" feature. So the whole time you thought you were driving in reality some ubber skilled driver in german was calmly piloting the vehicle. The whole bogged down issue you ran into was just bandwidth issues they were having since its a new feature.. still working out the bugs. Why else would this car cost so much.

Great article and keep up the good work

no_face

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> i just think it's awesome you can afford a "beater bass-player"

i can only afford to keep one around, and i make him play all dang winter

NICKNICK

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> As a fellow P71 owning, beater hatchback driving, junkyard scrounging, beer swilling, weird vehicle loving hairy car guy, I give this article and your experience a huge round of applause.

LTDScott, Porcubimmer pilot

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Wicked review Murliee! Quite refreshing from the usual cold, inane reviews that most mags/sites normally spew out.

racerx

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @ruggels: What other automotive publication has a guy with a '92 civic drive an Audi R8 around on the street and write a review? Perhaps one that knows the vast majority of its readership is nearly the exact same person as Murilee.

Like 99.99% of the American driving public, I'll never own an Audi R8. He'll, I probably won't own an Audi A4! Why would I want some sort of 'consumer reports for the filthy rich' review comparing it to other cars I've never driven and most likely never will?

If I wanted that, I'd go buy one of your vaunted automotive publications with reviews by guys three times my age with car collections that are worth more than my house.

Murilee got to drive a car that the rest of us never will and gave us his impression, not the Audi PR department's line about where the car shines and why it should be a trailer queen for rich bald guys to take to track days aso they can brag to their friends about its inheirent neutrality and closed-circuit credentials.

I'm with Murilee. $120,000 should buy you a car that comes this close to scaring me every time I put my foot down - even in the real world.

Gavin082

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Bee-Gee's?

Chuckie_A

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Great work, Murilee. This is as good as a Dan Neil piece.

This is, in fact, the most useful an R8 review could be. For the most part, the only reason to publish reviews of cars that cost more than $90,000 is so that the "average guy" can dream of what it would be like to drive a supercar. So why not have an articulate "average guy" do the review? Brilliant.

stu-rock

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Am I being really stupid, MM's doing both parts of the review isn't he ?

6street

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Ruggels, you're doing about as well as the hypermiling guy from that "car club" on the impressing the commenters thing.

Al Navarro

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Love the comparison to the Civic!

niterunner

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Love the trailer-ball on the Civic. You should've compared their trailer-hauling abilities.

(wtf do you actually tow with a 102hp, 8lb-ft Civic?)

Otherwise +1 for a review that's not just a PR hand-job.

Mad_Science

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @ruggels: The point is to read Murilee's review of this car. Which is admittedly different from a review written by a veteran auto journalist.

Thats the gold in this review. If you want Csaba Czere's opionion, I'm sure Car and Driver will provide you with all the professional criticism you can handle.

danio3834

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> damn, a review that is honest and fun to read -- ye gods man, don't you know you will upset the balance?
I want someone with that attitude delivering the 5 o'clock news. Honest delivery of real news and unadulterated mockery of everything else!

OK, that may be a bit much, but I really want Jalopnik to do more test drives and real world writeups of cars - super and mundane.


GreatSunJester

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Mr. Murilee, you certainly hold auto reviewers and PR/marketing schlubs in far higher regard than is merited.

Well crafted good sir. I hope you left that R8 smelling of Schlitz and burning tires. If so, mission accomplished.

HDC

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> I like your review style. While I do drive different new cars from time to time, Ive never owned a new car, nor do i feel compelled to pay for one. But it sure is fun to give em hell and give em back.

Its fun to play at the rich rid's house now and then.

danio3834

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @ruggels: Also, "then again that's just my opinion (tracked it most recently this past weekend)" - I think this just wont DBCOTD.

no_slushbox

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Go MM! I loved the sidestory about Otto! :) :) :)

wonkydonky

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @ruggels: You're still not reading the article well enough. Counter to your "he's not the guy who drive it on the track[sic]" claim Murilee IS the guy that track tests it.

Why are you so angry, did someone dent your Golf.

no_slushbox

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @skaz:
Now I'm sort of disappointed that Wert isn't writing this review; I bet if he was there'd be dragons (Yes, plural) involved.

Tocsin

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @Tocsin: Nah, I just came from the EVO and CAR review to this one.

Points taken on the lightening up,I've just read significantly better, non kitsch/cute "har har ancient civic vs r8" reviews, here on Jalop. Who knows, maybe it's a new feature? BlueDevil vs 94 VW Calbriolet?

zamafir

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> The best automotive review I've ever read period. Thank you sir, may I have another? Can't wait to hear the rest of the story. Trackside. Let 'er buck!

Spiderbag

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @ruggels: Holy shit, dude. All Jalop review are in two main chunks and then one wrap-up. And he ended the first half of the review saying "Stay tuned for Part 2: Racetrack Hoonage With The R8!"

He was giving his thoughts on the car. If you don't like his perception of it then don't bother. Jalops know who's writing the review and read it as such. I'm sure if Wert were reviewing this car it'd just be a masturbatory erotic tale of a boy and his Audi.

skaz

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> No disrespect to Ms. Martin but I think that a lot of us have had it up to here with "self-respecting" car journalists. It's a pretty safe bet that I'm not going to be getting a R8 - ever. I like to hear about them, I like to look at them. But taking it seriously is like criticizing Angelina Jolie movies, it's pretty much pointless.

mytdawg

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @Tocsin:
Lighten, even. Christ, I should proof-read my comments a bit before I click submit.

Tocsin

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @ruggels:
Do you work for the print-media, is this some sort of guerilla marketing tactic aimed towards undermining the credibility of the non-print variety or something? Seriously, though, I think you need to take a step back and chill for a bit.

Also, attempt reading the review; unless I'm somehow colossally mistaken, Murilee, in the second part of the review, will tell us how it was to hoon it out on the track. The civic provides a nice point of reference for your average bloke, it's sort of like Top Gear pitting some mind blowing supercar over a shite Vectra to show just how awesome it is.

Light then the heck up, alright?

Tocsin

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Great review! You definitely have to do more of them, and I hope you are the one to do the upcoming Challenger. I would really like to see your take on it.

GameBreaker

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @ruggels: news flash, I don't want to read a review done by a "professional", Got it? good...

RoninianHoon

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @jonnyliberman, I did. but that's not the point. The point is that print magazines (EVO, CAR) have led some of us to expect an intrinsic critical thought in automotive journalism. IE: "compared to my point of reference (a 92 civic, and no previous Audi driving experience)my main complaint about this car: It's not crazy enough..." Now here's the fun professional, critical thinking part that i'll add "... on the street due to it's inherent development as a very neutral and capable track car which flatters any driver who sits in it"
I mean, seriously, You've got a journalist with no previous audi experience, claiming a 92 civic as a point of reference, and he's not the guy who drive it on the track? What other automotive publication takes a car out like this and foolishly decides it's wise for someone to take a supercar on the street, provide a half assed review, then let a completely different reviewer take it on the track? seriously?

I'm sorry, back yourself into the ignorant "man this reader must not have read this article" box all you want, but the point stands, very poor decision on your guy's part to split it up like this, which leads to implicitly juvenile and ignorant criticisms as the one I am taking issue with.


zamafir

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> I'm fat and hairy, dress like I'm on my way to a glue-huffing party located in a burned-out Winnebago at Pick Your Part, and I have the software geek's intuitive fear and loathing of The PR Suits and their world. A schlub.

My god, are we related? No wonder I think your reviews are hilarious. Best. Comparo. Ever.

mytdawg

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Excellent review! I'm assuming the Audi will beat the Civic in on-track performance, though I'm also waiting to see how the R8 does as a bass-player gig-rig.

My wife's Outback does the same thing from stoplights, and I'm wondering if I just don't know how to drive an automatic trans.? Maybe it thinks it's in hill-hold mode or something, because for the first bit of pedal:nothing, a little more: nothing, more still: it thinks I'm trying to light up the tires and off we go. No modulation of throttle whatsoever.

jimmythefly

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> yes, an excellent review! it speaks to the rest of us, those who can't compare this supercar to the other supercars we've driven...because we've never driven any. i mean, come on, i drive a '91 celica. sure, it sounds like a beast, but not because of any performance mods, it just has 224K on it. but reviews like this give me a really good view of what this car is like, compared to my daily driver.

looking forward to part 2!

tr

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @ruggels: Don't worry, I hooned it real good on the track. But you must wait to read about it.

Murilee Martin

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Ascendence of the Jalop schlub continues unabated. Next week, Corvette Blue Devil, or perhaps the next edition of the Scag?

lascauxcaveman

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> While you state "I'm fat and hairy, dress like I'm on my way to a glue-huffing party located in a burned-out Winnebago at Pick Your Part, and I have the software geek's intuitive fear and loathing of The PR Suits and their world." (BTW COTD!)

I see you wore your standard issue Jalopnikian super car driving sh*t eating grin...

With that in mind I believe you are the perfect one to review this car. Audi knew what they were doing giving you this beast. You have no reason to talk it up, this review is well written, funny, and hands down honest. No offense to Wert but I believe every other sentence would of had a 'gasm...

Can't wait to see the next review and your standard issue Jalopnikian track driving sh*t eating grin (with a super car in MURILEE's hands!).

RoninianHoon

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @ruggels: Or perhaps if you read the entire article you would notice that tomorrow comes part 2, where Murilee talks about the R8 on the track?

Jonny Lieberman

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> "And that brings up my main complaint about this car: It's not crazy enough"

And this bring up my main complaint about your article. That's the F*cking point. Go take it on the track, a few times, run lap after lap after lap, and you'll understand exactly why it's as balanced as it is.

then again that's just my opinion (tracked it most recently this past weekend), well and that of various other notible automotive journalists.

Maybe I'm the only one who thinks it's a little trite to take a car named after a track dominating monster, which has widely been aclaimed as really showing it's stuff on the track, and just take it up and down a few city streets and highways. Perhaps that's why the print magazines still sell quite well?

zamafir

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> I just re-read the review to see if it could hit me again, and it did. The break where it you say:

"It is all about the engine."

And then show the pictures of the glorious piece of machinery with light breaking from behind it, struggling to overwhelm the monster - fantastic. Your writing is art to the layman.

skaz

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> when I was in high school I had the chance to buy three partial Audi 100s for $50, with (allegedly) enough parts between them to make a single running car, but declined. The Germans seemed puzzled by this observation (Ach! We are making the giant mistake!), but seemed to take it in stride.

Love it! Keep up the great writing, all you Jalops!

Also, Audi, give Wert a break and let him have it for the weekend.

SwatLax

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> @junkman: Yes, exactly.

Car reviews anywhere else piss me off, because everything is held to some insane standard, where if it doesn't have an Audi's interior, Ferrari performance, and ride-quality, the car is a complete failure. This is why 8 seconds to 60mph is considered "slow," incidentally.

Considering we're reading a comparison of a supercar to a beater Civic, this is a pleasantly fair review that doesn't talk down to the rest of us schlubs.

Thanks, Murilee, for being halfway normal!

Paul Y. -- Now With More Sodium!

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Finally, a supercar review from an automotive journalist I trust. Give 'em hell, MM!

junkman

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Right. You should definitely be writing more car reviews; because unlike the majority of car reviews that I end up reading, that was enjoyable to read and actually had me laughing a bit at the start.

Can't wait for the second part and information on how it really preforms. Also I bet the Audi PR squads are tickled pink by the fact that you're comparing their uber-mobile to your beat-up Civic.

Good show.

Tocsin

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> I get to drive the R8 on December 3rd. Strange, some of your observations were what I was expecting. Still going to do my best to hoon it up.

ProfessorFate

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Murilee: I would like to come to your house with my El Camino, a dozen boxes of engine/go-fast parts, a dozen more boxes of assorted tools and another dozen bottles of cheap vodka. I would then like to spend the weekend in an abandoned K-Mart parking lot and get hammered while trying to make the El Camino more suicidal.

Please.

skaz

]]> <![CDATA[Audi R8, Part 1]]> Murilee is movin' on up!

Grib

]]>