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Aug 06, 2023

The Last Audi R8 Gets 830 HP Thanks To Bolt

The R8's production is ending soon with the 2023 Audi R8 GT, but VF Engineering gave it a worthwhile farewell with their supercharger kit. The Audi R8 has had a long-lived and successful run, but all

The R8's production is ending soon with the 2023 Audi R8 GT, but VF Engineering gave it a worthwhile farewell with their supercharger kit.

The Audi R8 has had a long-lived and successful run, but all good things do come to an end. The Audi R8’s production will end soon, with the last available model heading to the market. The 2023 Audi R8 GT gets only 333 production units with a lucrative V10 engine and a goodbye sticker price of $250,000.

With that in mind, automotive tuner VF Engineering’ has released a supercharger kit for the last production Audi R8 supercar, the 2023 Audi R8 GT, that boosts the performance capabilities of the car’s V10 engine to 830 hp and produces 625 lb-ft of torque.

All things considered, VF's bolt-on supercharger kit might just be what the 2023 Audi R8 GT needs. For those who can't get their hands on the limited last-run model, don’t worry. VF’s add-on kit works with every Audi R8 V10 model dating from 2016 to 2023.

While many other performance-turning companies like to outfit the Audi R8 with turbochargers, VF went the route of opting for a supercharger overhaul for the 2023 Audi R8 GT with cross-compatibility for R8s dating back to 2016.

If your R8 boasts a 5.2-liter V10 that produces anywhere from 560 to 602 hp and 398 to 413 lb-ft of torque, then expect to increase those performance metrics to around 800 hp and 600 lb-ft of twist. The tuning company’s bolt-on supercharger kit is compatible with the base model R8 V10, the R8 V10 RWS, and the R8 V10 Plus.

VF’s new bolt-on supercharger kit gets an exquisite name, the VF8XX. It packs some sweet tech such as an Eaton TVS2300 twin vortices series roots supercharger supplemented by an air or water after-cooling system.

This system packs a water-cooled cast manifold along with a standalone water reservoir and heat exchangers. Adding to the list of sweet tech, you also get an internal bypass system that’s engineered to decimate any losses at cruising speeds.

There’s also the relatively tame entry-level supercharger kit known as the VF800. It’s rated to boost the performance of your 2023 Audi R8 GT up to 805 hp and 610 lb-ft of torque. Moving to the upper end of the spectrum, you get VF’s top-of-the-line VF8XX kit that’s rated for 830 hp and 625 lb-ft of torque. Expect to get performance metrics like these only on 91-octane fuel.

RELATED: Here's Why Gearheads Looking For A Supercar Should Buy The Audi R8

To make things even sweeter, customers can pay an additional $3,000 to give their supercharger kits a custom paint job of their own liking. While not necessary, custom super-charger kits can make or break the aesthetics of your R8 when you pop open the hood.

You’d likely get more bang for your buck if you go the route of a twin-turbocharger kit, but there’s something you should keep in mind and that is driveability. On paper, a 1,000+ hp Audi R8 with a turbocharged engine does sound sweet, but handling that much hp could be a challenge.

That said, this supercharger kit doesn’t come cheap. According to VF, you’ll have to pay $31,995 to get the supercharger kit. Add the custom paint job to the list of overhauls, and you’re looking at a grand total of around $35,000.

So, the question stands–why is Audi ending the production of the Audi R8, specifically in 2023? Considering growing emission concerns and the fact that Audi is one of the few car manufacturers that produced V10s along with BMW, it appears that Audi is going to electrify the Audi R8.

Even Audi hinted at this subtly a year ago, where many have presumed that the automotive company is ditching the V10 in favor of an all-electric powertrain. This has sparked some outrage in the performance and supercar community.

Following suit with many other automotive companies who plan to go all-electric in the future like Mazda, Audi is planning to electrify its lineup of cars in the near future. Audi broke the news that the R8 and TT are no longer relevant in the electric future.

There are rumors surfacing that we might get an all-electric Audi R8 by the turn of 2030. Still, there’s no clear evidence as to when we’ll get to see further production versions of the Audi R8 in the future.

RELATED: Why The First-Gen Audi R8 Is The Perfect Budget Daily Driving Supercar

The Audi R8’s exit in 2023 is no doubt, a dramatic one at that. We likely won’t be getting another V10-powered R8 or any V10 supercar from Audi for that matter. The head of Audi’s RS division, Dr. Sebastian Grams, stated that the limited-edition R8 GT V10 marks the final nail in Audi’s current generation.

The Audi R8 made a thunderous debut back on the circuit back in 2008. And making well-needed improvements, we got the Audi R8 GT, which was manufactured between 2010 and 2013. It was agile, nimble, louder, more powerful, and handled exquisitely on track.

Following suit, 2023 follows the legacy of the first R8 GT made back in 2010. The Audi R8 featured only two generations of supercars. With those two generations, we get some worthwhile trims and variants, which all have something unique to offer.

The Audi R8 went beyond the realms of the automotive industry and made its way into the mainstream public sphere via theaters. The general public witnessed the elegance and roaring power of the Audi R8 in the Iron Man film, birthing a new era of automotive enthusiasts.

Over the years, we witnessed numerous iterations of the Audi R8, receiving some timeless and well-deserved overhauls that got better each year. It’s no surprise that Audi’s commitment and dedication to its legendary supercar shaped the automobile segment single-handedly, creating widespread concern among other competitive automotive brands.

With a sticker price of nearly $250,000 dollars and only 333 production models available worldwide, Audi is gracefully wrapping up an era of gas-guzzling combustion engine high-performance V10s. While it’s pretty pricey, Audi should have no issue moving those units due to their limited nature.

RELATED: Why We'd Choose The 2023 Audi R8 Over The 2023 Porsche 911

If you get your hands on one or any Audi R8 V10 from 2016-2022, slapping VF’s bolt-on supercharger kit could give you the time of your life.

Naseer's been in head-deep in the motorsport and JDM scene. He loves to breathe new life into beaters and is crazy about all things' aftermarket. And when he's not burning rubber, you can catch him playing Forza on PC.