Open Top = Better

2012 Audi R8 GT Spyder (Sketch)

It comes to everyone's attention now and then that anything without a top on is always better, whether it be a girl, a guy, or even a car. Audi has taken this theory once more into their premiere sports car, the R8. We've seen the R8 Spyder do its work on people. Now, Audi wants to see how popping the top off their lightweight R8 GT will do on the wealthy. This is just a sketch of what will be the 2012 Audi R8 GT Spyder. Like all convertibles, it will be slightly heavier than the original GT Coupe. But, it will still have the 5.2-liter V10 engine producing 556 horsepower mated with Audi's R-Tronic 6-speed auto-manual transmission. Audi predicts the car to top out at about 193 MPH, 6 less than the GT coupe, 3 less than the regular V10 coupe, but about 2 more than the V10 spyder. All the same lightweight stuff will carry over like the rear spoiler, the front splitter, and the rear diffuser, as well as the awesome Alcantara interior. Production might be the same as the coupe (333 units) with a slightly higher price tag. Audi plans to officially debut this car this fall at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Hopefully, we'll have more info then.

Shift 2 Unleashed Car Profiles: Lexus LFA

2011 Lexus LFA

This is by far one of the best cars you will drive in this game. It's the most expensive Japanese production car ever created with a base price of $375,000 ($250,000 in the game). It's the fastest production car out of Japan with a top speed 202 MPH. Most importantly, it's a Toyota. Ever since it was unveiled, the Lexus LFA has proven to be all that and more. I've only driven the car in real life and in Gran Turismo 5 and both test drives were very good. So, because of Shift's unmanageable handling, of course you would think that this car would be terrible in this game. Hah! Think again!

'Ring Thrashing

I gave this car a proper thrashing at the Nürburgring and found it quite surprising how it handles corners so gracefully. It's looks you don't even have to think about it. You do have to be precise though, or else it will eat you alive. But, because the car was mainly built from lightweight Carbon Fiber and Aluminum, it's quite dainty (3263 lb.) and stable for an FR (front-engine rear drive) car. In a straight line, with the Launch Control engaged, it will do 0 to 60 in just 3.5 seconds and hit 202 MPH. The brakes on this car are phenomenal. After just thrashing it around the 'Ring, I wasn't really getting tired at all. They are that good.

Highway Speeding

After I had fun on the 'Ring, I took it home to Tokyo to have more fun. I also entered it in a few races. No one, not even the those Turbocharged ricers could keep up with me. Now I have to compare it to the Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4, since I have driven it and it is the LFA's closest rival. Both cars have the same amount of horsepower, the same top speed, the same number of cylinders, and the same number of car reviewer praises. The only thing that makes the LFA much better than the Gallardo is that it's more exciting. The Gallardo has the grip, the power, and the goods, but after driving it for a while, you'll get bored. As for the LFA, you can drive it for 11 hours and you'll never get tired. And, since it's a rear wheel drive car, you can pull some insane drift angles with it. It just goes to show; rear-wheel drive is more fun.

Sexy, isn't it?

The LFA is a well-rounded supercar with a passion for perfection. If it wasn't so ridiculously expensive, it would've been the supercar of the century. But, since Lexus put in 10 good years perfecting this car, they call it their masterpiece, and only want the true and fortunate driving around in one of these. So if you're true and fortunate, and have about $400,000 to spare, you can hurry up and get a real one. Or, you can just buy Shift 2 Unleashed for $60.00, get this car, and start having fun in it in no time. Your choice.

P.S: I'd go for the second one ;-)

Top of the Line

2011 Audi R8 GT

Audi's top of the line supercar, the Audi R8 GT, has finally made its way over to our shores. Only 90 of these cars are coming in, each costing $196,800, which is actually not bad for an exclusive supercar. The R8 GT is the pinnacle of performance from the R8 branch. Under the hood is a Lamborghini-derived 5.2-liter FSI V10 producing 560 horsepower. 0 to 60 MPH is done in 3.6 seconds on its way to the 200 MPH top speed mark. This is car is 180 lb. lighter than the standard R8 V10 since the car all around is made from Carbon Fiber. If you are one of the 90 who get this car, I'm pretty sure you'll have more fun with this than the regular R8. Unfortunately, manual fans might not have as much fun since the R8 GT only comes with Audi's 6-speed R-Tronic sequential transmission with paddle shifters. But, it won't matter. Manual or Automatic, this car just looks fantastic and I'm betting that this will translate to how well it drives. I'll find that out for myself.

R8 Madness

2012 MTM R8 V10 BiTurbo

I'm going to introduce you to another insane tuner from Germany. They go by MTM and they specialize in tuning Audis. This is their newest creation, the R8 V10 BiTurbo. You can see that they've done some heavy modification to the body as well as the engine. A standard Audi R8 V10 produces 525 horsepower. MTM decided it needed lots more power. So, what they've done is they've put in two turbochargers and some modifications to the engine itself so it can produce what makes no difference 766 horsepower. That's more powerful than a Zonda R. 0 to 60 is done in less than 3.4 seconds on its way to a top speed of just 216 MPH. Of course with so much power, they had to think of a way to keep it all balanced. Well this is an Audi so, of course it has Quattro all-wheel drive. On the outside, they've fitted the car with 20-inch rims, very shiny chrome paint, a new front lip and rear spoiler, and a massive rear wing. The price: €400,000, and it will only be available in Europe. MTM had no plans of releasing this car over in North America. Anyway, this car is set to shine at Geneva this week. Check it out there.

Casino Royalty

2011 Audi R8 Spyder 5.2 FSI Quattro (Test Drive Unlimited 2)

If you've been playing TDU 2 for a while, you've probably ran into to this car a couple times. It's the Audi R8 V10 Spyder. Legend has it that the only way to receive this movie car is to win it in the slots at Casino Island. That legend is true, but totally useless. The slots grab $10,000 out of your pocket for different tries. Try too long and you'll end up having nothing. Luckily, I'm here today with another awesome way to receiving this awesome sports car. Are you ready? Cuz here it comes. Wait for it...buy the car! It's the easy thing you'll ever do. All you need is $2,000,000, some space in your garage, and a big smile on your face. The money isn't even hard to earn either, but earn it early with championships, lest you spend a very long time doing single races. Once you have the money, convert it to Casino Tokens, go up to the car, click on buy, and you're done. It's the best thing you'll ever do on the island. I hope this tip was helpful. More tips coming up!

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