While mainstream automotive manufacturers push hard to develop even more frugal forms of eco-forced induction – turbocharging and supercharging very small engines to mix reasonable performance with next-generation economy – there are those in the aftermarket that simply can’t resist a bit of old school turbo and ‘charger tuning. Take an already big and powerful motor, ram a chunk of extra air and fuel down its throat, and stand back to light the touch-paper of mind-bending performance.

And it seems that American forced induction fiends, STaSIS Engineering, have been up to their old Audi tuning tricks again. We’ve seen their 410bhp, 2010 Audi S4, now they’ve turned their tuning attention to Audi’s flagship supercar; the R8 V10. And the supercharged result is this 710bhp, torque-tweaked, seconds-shaving super-Spyder. Say hello to the red devil Audi R8 V10 Challenge Extreme Edition.

Here’s what you get in the kit:

– Engine – Eaton / Magnusson TVS 2300 supercharger running 7.5psi of boost, independent charge cooler system to ensure consistent charge air temperature, durable CNC billet alloy machined intake plenum, high performance STaSIS ECU remap – performance increases to 710bhp and 523lb ft of torque

– Exhaust – 3-inch TIG welded stainless steel, cross-flow exhaust system

– Brakes – Alcon 390mm front and 355mm rear, two-piece floating brake discs

– Suspension – Lowering springs to stiffen handling and give a lower, more aggressive stance

– Wheels -20-inch x 9.5-inch front and 20-inch x 12-inch rear ultra-lightweight forged aluminium wheels with high-performance low profile tyres

And this is what you get on the road:

Factory Audi R8 V10                                       STaSIS Audi R8 V10 Challenge Extreme Edition

Power: 525bhp                                                  710bhp

Torque: 391lb ft                                                 523lb ft

0-60mph: 3.7secs                                              3.1secs

Lateral accel’: 0.99 G                                        1.01 G

Brake decel’: 1.02 G                                          1.05 G

3.1secs to 60mph is pretty darn serious – that’s McLaren MP4-12C-quick and beats the Ferrari 458 Italia by three 10ths. Even the rare and uber-expensive Veyron gets a nervous look over its shoulder with its 2.5secs performance benchmark.

But don’t go thinking that this STaSIS boost-up system is cheap; you’ll be looking to splash £45,000 with Brackley-based tuners APS; UK agents for STaSIS, to take your R8 to the next dimension. However, should supercar-tuning cash be a little tight right now, you can always buy bits and bobs of the kit as you go; although the supercharger side of the tune is always going to be a fair chunk of change.

For all the details and prices, see the APS website: www.autops.co.uk

And if all this frenzied forced induction is tickling your flights of fancy, then you might want to take a look at this. It’s a ‘street racing’ video from the States, featuring some very naughty hyper-tuned supercars, some near-nuclear 1500bhp powerplants, wild driving and even a couple pf F-bombs. Not exactly beautifully shot, but the sound of these huge turbos slamming on-boost is definitely spine-tingle-time. You have been warned…

By Daniel Anslow

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