Spy Shots: Audi R8 V10 at the 'Ring?

To the untrained eye this might appear to be just another run-of-the-mill Audi R8 lapping the vaunted Nurburgring Nordschleife. But a closer look at the details reveal that this may just be the production-ready V10-powered version of the supercar from Ingolstadt.

Firstly, eyewitness accounts relate that the vehicle pictured above has a distinct exhaust note over the V8-powered version. We could take that at face value, or take a closer look at the revised intakes that would be needed to cool the larger engine lest it burst into flames like previous prototypes. The side intakes underneath the blades behind the doors are larger, and the front side grilles underneath the sinister headlamps have two bars instead of one. Audi has several versions of the V10, including the twin-turbo unit in the devastating RS6 and the normally-aspirated version in the latest Gallardo LP560-4, but we'll just have to wait – possibly until Paris – to find out which version has been shoehorned into Iron Man's choice mode of transportation.

[Source: Bridge to Gantry]