The Audi R8 is 2008 World Performance Car

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A team of leading international jurors who made the selection said it has “solid credentials on paper thanks to its mid-mounted 430Nm torque, V8 engine and aluminum construction. But where it excels is in the exceptional balance, refinement and control that grant the driver the confidence to push it to the limit. It has astonishing precision for a car of its size category”.

Last year, the Audi RS 4 won the World Performance Car award.

This year there were two models from Audi in the final stages of voting with the Audi S5 also one of the top three finalists for the award.

For the 2008 World Car Design of the Year award, the jurors praised the Audi R8 for “transforming the sports car landscape. The R8 design is striking, original and full of interesting details, from the nose strakes to the much discussed vertical ‘blade' behind the B pillar”.

World Car design expert Tom Matano, Executive Director of the School of Industrial Design, Academy of Art University, San Francisco, USA, said the Audi R8 is “a great visual representation of the technology within, a complete package of techno-iconic design”.

Last year, the Audi TT received the World Car Design of the Year award, so Audi has retained this design crown for the second year in a row as well. Audi won the overall World Car of the Year title with the Audi A6 sedan at the inaugural World Car of the Year awards in 2005.

With one overall win and four category wins in total, Audi is the most successful manufacturer in the World Car of the Year awards.