2010 Audi R8 5.2 FSI quattro

On final approach to Malaga, Spain, the view from the 737's porthole is of countryside lately rained on. Getting closer to the ground, roads can be discerned as half-dry with damp patches. A 518-hp, mid-engined Audi R8 5.2 FSI quattro supercar awaits outside the terminal building. Now normally, the prospect of piloting such a machine in these conditions would cause more apprehension than anticipation.

Not with this Audi though. The R8 has always been such a delightfully trustworthy machine -- an inanimate object that displays the animate characteristic of appearing to be on your side. So it seems reasonable today to put faith in it once again, even as its power scales more breathtaking heights than ever.

In the cause of the extra combustion, the "sideblades" in the V-10 flare outward at the air intakes, channeling to bigger side-mounted radiators. That's probably the main recognition point over the V-8, though the list also runs to bigger, 19-inch Y-pattern rims. They're gorgeous-looking, too. The front grilles are also restyled, there are all-LED headlamps, and more pronounced sills and diffusers.

The new engine nestling at the heart of the R8's aluminum space frame is essentially the same direct-injection unit as in the Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4. But whereas the Lambo makes 552 hp in U.S. trim, the Audi manages with 518. And it weighs more too. Audi has traded this trivial 5% of power in order to make the noise levels more liveable day to day. And trust us, this is a car you'd want to use daily. The power deficit is almost entirely down to intake and exhaust differences.

But, hey, milder than a Lamborghini doesn't mean it isn't wild. The new R10 accelerates, its maker says, from 0-to-62 mph in 3.9 seconds, and if you keep going flat out it'll knock on the double-century mph door.