The Audi R8 is a great used supercar bargain

Buying a used supercar is a great opportunity to get top level performance for a fraction of the cost. Many supercars tend to depreciate poorly as new models come out and owners upgrade. The Audi R8 is one car that has been victim to depreciation over its lifetime and now models can be purchased for under $60,000 - or the price of a new A4.

Background on the R8

The R8 came out 2006 and is ending its production run in 2023. This car was the only mass market mid engine car from Audi and it gained a strong following, especially after being featured in the Ironman movies. The car had 2 engine options, a V8 and a V10 as well as a couple or convertible body type. The first generation R8 was made until 2015 and used an Audi designed chassis and Audi designed engines. After 2015, the car shared a platform with the Lamborghini Huracan and would eventually lose its manual transmission

Used car market for Audi R8

Being produced from 2006 through 2023, there are a lot of used R8s on the market, with at the time of writing over 500 being listed on a popular car listing site. With such a wide selection, you can find early models for as low as $59,000 for V8 models and $69,000 for V10 models. With the cheaper cars, you are likely looking at 2006-2009 models and most will have the automatic transmissions. Manual R8s typically sell for $15-$20K more than the automatics. In terms of mileage, for the lower end price you will find cars with around 30-45,000 miles on them.  

Is a used R8 good value?

In my opinion, yes. When looking at the car, you are getting a lot of performance and style out of a sub $65,000 purchase. When looking at the current market, you will be hard pressed to find similar value out of a new car. A fully loaded Audi A5 has an MSRP of $60,000, the same price as the cheapest R8s. You would also be buying a car that was in production for a long time, so parts support exists with around 8,000 cars sold in the US alone. The engines were also sourced from other Audi models, with the V8 being in the RS4 and the V10 making its way into S6 and S8 models from the time. Given the fact that the car was discontinued, there is a likelihood that we are at the bottom of the depreciation curve and we can see values hold at the current price for several years.

Are there similar values to the R8 available? 

The other attractive supercar in a similar Sub $70,000 price range is the BMW i8. You can find cars for under $55,000 listed for sale, but this car does have the added complication of a hybrid drive train and potential for battery replacement.