[4/16/2020] The Twin-Turbo V10 Audi R8 From Hennessey

Turning sports cars into super cars has been a specialty of the Hennessey Performance team for nearly thirty years. The company also specializes in helping elevate supercars with hypercar levels of power and performance. Their most notorious build includes the once worlds fastest vehicle in 2015, the Venom GT topping out at 270mph.

Hennessey has now unveiled quite an upgrade for the Audi R8. It's a twin-turbocharger upgrade for the R8's 5.2-liter V-10, and it sees the output dialed to 912 horsepower. That's a huge jump on the stock R8 which delivers 562 hp in R8 V10 guise and 602 hp in R8 V10 Performance guise. Hennessey, located in Sealy, Texas, incorporates upgrades to the intake, exhaust, oil, and cooling systems, but refrains from making any upgrades to the fuel, driveline, or transmission. Surprising for a build that jumps output by almost 400 horsepower, bring the iconic vehicle into hypercar territory.

Further enhancements include a High-Flow Air Induction System, Dual Inlet Pipes, Dual Blow-Off Valves, Stainless-Steel Turbo Downpipes with Thermal Coating, and a host of additional high-speed components and add-ons. The chassis is dyno tested and road tested for up to 200 miles. 

“Most people know us for our performance enhancements on American vehicles,” said company founder John Hennessey. “But we also apply the same engineering and design excellence to European supercars like the Audi R8 and its Italian cousin, The Lamborghini Huracan.”The Hennessey HPE900 Twin Turbo performance package is available for all Audi R8 V10 and V10 Plus vehicles as well as the V10-powered Lamborghini Huracan, Huracan Performante & Huracan Evo. 

The price tag for these kits are set at $75,000, which may seem quite hefty considering the original price for the car, $169,900 for a 2020 R8. However for pushing the R8 into the power range of other high performing vehicles, the price just might be well worth it. 

• R8. (n.d.). Retrieved April 16, 2020, from http://hennesseyperformance.com/vehicles/audi/r8/

• Vijayenthiran, V. (2020, April 15). Hennessey dials the Audi R8 up to 912 horsepower. Retrieved April 16, 2020, from https://www.motorauthority.com/news/1127817_hennessey-dials-the-audi-r8-up-to-912-horsepower

• Hennessey Performance Juices 2020 Audi R8 to 912 HP and It Sounds Awesome . (2020, April 14). Retrieved April 16, 2020, from https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/enthusiasts/hennessey-performance-juices-2020-audi-r8-to-912-hp-and-it-sounds-awesome/ar-BB12Df84#image=BB12Dhg3|5