Audi’s R8: “the slowest car we’ve ever built”

Audi has labeled its R8 as “the slowest car we’ve ever built” in a new tongue-in-cheek ad campaign designed to bring attention to the laborious process of manufacturing the largely hand-built high-performance sports car.

The facts of course, tell a very different story. As the fastest production car Audi has ever produced, the all-aluminum, quattro four-wheel-driven, 309kW, 4.2 litre V8-powered two-seater achieves 0-100kmh in 4.6 seconds with a top speed of 301kmh and maximum torque 430Nm.

Only 450 cars will be delivered in the UK this year, and 750 in 2008, with prices starting at £77,000.

Audi UK is reportedly investing more than £6 million to support its R8 high-performance sports car with one of the most ironic claims in the history of advertising: "the slowest car we’ve ever built".

That story of how the car is built will be told in a 90-second commercial filmed over eight days in Germany, with each frame requiring a minimum of 20 different shots and four layers to achieve its unique visual effect.

The R8 will begin making two-day appearances on the concourses of major UK stations to give travelers a glimpse of the finished article.

For more info see the Audi website.