- Hey, Austin, this is Austin,
and today I'm here in Austin, Texas
at Circuit of the Americas for one reason:
I'm about to go faster than I've ever gone in my life.
Well, I mean, in a car, at least.
And I'm doing that thanks to Audi,
who not only were able to sponsor our video,
but also let me drive the R8 on the track.
The Audi Driving Experience starts
by putting you behind the wheel of the car
that I drive every single day, the Audi RS3.
The day begins with a simple slalom and lane change exercise
and ends with the braking zone.
You know, like the license test in Gran Turismo
that I always missed the braking zone in.
Next up, I got some seat time
with the autocross course in the TTRS.
Now I'll admit, even though it's the same 400-horsepower
turbo five cylinder with all-wheel drive,
as well as the seven-speed dual clutch,
it feels a lot more lively.
I got the car sideways almost every single lap,
especially in the wet area,
which is just a giant test of patience.
So after a little bit of time
in both the RS3 as well as the TTRS,
it is time for a full track session
on the main Circuit of the Americas track in the R8.
This is going to be the full R8 Plus.
We've got the 600-plus horsepower V10,
seven-speed dual clutch transmission,
huge tires, and a whole of track to use it on.
It is an incredibly hot day here in Austin.
Right now the temperature reading is 102 degrees Fahrenheit,
but the cars are actually holding up pretty well,
and that dual clutch, I mean, it just feels so responsive.
I grab a paddle and I am immediately there.
And with that V10 right behind us...
(engine accelerating)
Oh!
And we're short-shifting a little bit
because I don't want to overheat it.
I may have overheated a transmission earlier in the day.
Listen to that!
(engine accelerating)
100 miles an hour.
110.
120.
125.
130.
And hard on the brakes, hard on the brakes.
The speed is serious in such a car like this,
and there is definitely a lot more in it.
Circuit of the Americas is an F1 track,
so they do other types of racing here,
and the Audi Experience actually does take advantage
of this track for events like this,
but this is really designed first and foremost
as an F1 track, and you can tell.
It's wide, it's fast, it's very technical.
There's certain sections where
if you get it a little bit off,
you can totally mess up the next couple of corners.
But the R8 is forgiving.
I don't have a ton of track experience,
but I feel really comfortable pushing the limits
of at least what I can do.
Definitely not what the car's capable of.
All right.
(engine accelerating)
Full throttle, let's do it, let's do it!
(engine accelerating)
Dude, the shifts are instant!
You hit a paddle and you're immediately going.
And I love being able to really haul down
on these ceramic brakes.
I mean, we've been going, it's a hot day,
and they have not faded one bit, which makes sense, right?
I mean, that's why you buy
incredibly expensive ceramic brakes
on your very, very pricey Audi R8.
Pulling on the straight.
Full throttle, let's go.
(engine accelerating)
I'm legitimately convinced, mid-engine.
I've never really fully experienced
what a mid-engine car feels like,
especially on a track, but I get it now.
Like, that balance, just being able to place the car
exactly where you want it.
This car, this car is something else.
I mean, first of all, look at it.
It is absolutely beautiful.
The performance on the track?
Man, I'm in love, I'm in love.
V10, mid-engine, all-wheel drive?
Sign me up.
Today was absolutely awesome.
I can't think Audi enough for not only
of course sponsoring the video,
but for letting me have the opportunity
to drive the R8, the TTRS, and the RS3.
If you guys ever get the opportunity
to do a driving school like this,
absolutely go for it.