Supercar you can use for everyday transport

But then you spot an overtaking opportunity. You just point the car and press the throttle: the car leaps forward, the exhaust immediately deepens to a growl and then a bellow, the numbers on the speedometer climb so rapidly they're just a blur.

And then, with hardly time to draw breath, you're past, safe back on your own side with an open road before you, once again making progress in luxury saloon serenity.

That's what you get with a turbocharged, 5.2 litre V10 engine, more than 600bhp and 560NM of torque, plus a redeveloped quattro all wheel drive system which makes sure all that power does down smoothly, without spinning the wheels and snaking the rear end.

This is the Audi R8 experience, behind the wheel of a 200mph road car directly related to one of the greatest cars in endurance racing history. But so safe and effortless to drive it doesn't put an element of edginess into the daily commute or trip to the shops.

The new, second generation R8 comes in two versions with 540PS or 610PS, at £119,500 and £134,500 respectively. Yes these are supercar prices and don't expect to see one on every street corner, but Audi has taken over as the biggest selling premium brand in the UK. And it's not just about sales in this exotic sector of the market: the new R8 is the company's 'hero' car, a performance flagship demonstrating its capabilities throughout its sporting range.

Many cars are claimed to be descended, or closely connected to, their racing cousins but in reality they have little in common.

Not so with the R8, The new model, for example, shares 56 per cent of its parts with the new LMS (Le Mans Series) race car which won the Nurburgring 24 Hour Race only weeks after it was launched.

The R8 story is an illustration of how, over more than a century, motorsport has driven the development of everyday, road-going transport. LMS endurance racing isn't just about sheer power (although that's obviously important), it also has to be about weight, fuel consumption and reliability.

For example, Audi's innovative TFSI (turbocharged fuel stratified injection) engine was developed for the original R8 and helped it to a unique record of success of track. The same is true of the car's lightweight space frame construction.

Both transferred to the roadgoing R8, as have the new laser headlights developed to give racing drivers longer, clearer and brighter visibility while pushing the limits in the hours of darkness. TFSI petrol engine technology has also spread throughout the Audi and Volkswagen family of cars: laser lights will undoubtedly follow.

The new flagship version, the 610PS R8 plus, is the fastest and most powerful production car Audi has ever built: 0 to 62mph takes a mere 3.2 seconds and top speed is 205mph, both small but signiificant improvements over its predecessor.

The 'standard' R is also quicker than its predecessor, its 540PS and 540Nm of torque producing figures of 0 to 62mph in 3.5 seconds and a top speed of 198mph.

While power and performance are up, fuel economy is actually improved – 23 and 24.8mpg. The latter figure, for the 540PS car, translates to a CO2 figure of 272g/km which is a 12 per cent improvement.

That's partly because the new cars have a start/stop system with energy recuperation. The transmission now has a freewheeling mode while the engine has a new 'cylinder on demand' system which shuts off the fuel injection and ignition to one bank of cylinders under low loads.

Both new models have more power and torque than their predecessor, but the new space frame is 50kg lighter and 40 per cent stiffer. It's also directly linked to the sports suspension, a combination of improvements developed for improved handling.

Plus there's an even faster version of Audi's superb seven-speed S Tronic dual clutch automatic transmission and an upgraded quattro all wheel drive system, which can virtually instantly divert up to 100 per cent of the power to the axle with most grip.

It's such advanced technology which makes the R8 special on the road. It's what allows you to use all that power: to put your foot down with the confidence that you'll get the best acceleration advantage without the rear end trying to overtake the front and put you through a hedge or worse. It inspires confidence even in the wet conditions of my first test drive: not only in hard, straight line acceleration but around the corners, too. Turn-in is quiick and precise, and the car holds its line up to (and probably past) that point allowed by my nerve.

The suspension plays a major part, too. While it is designed for high speed cornering, it provides a surprisingly compliant ride in normal conditions and even under braking there's no discernible nose dive.

The wheels are 19-inch alloys with 245/35 tyres at the front and 295/35 at the rear The ventilated 'wave' discs are clamped by six piston calipers at the front and four at the rear, while the R8 Plus also gets the benefit of high performance ceramic brakes.

The interior has a high tech 'virtual' instrument display, with a 12.3 inch display in front of the driver, who controls individual functions via steering wheel remote controls. The beautifully shaped 'bucket' sports seats, and much of the interior trim, are made of fine nappa leather. There is, naturally, a multimedia and satellite navigation system.

On the outside, the R8 is lower, wider and flatter but still sits high enough to negotiate some pretty vicious traffic-calming road humps on the test drive.

There is no manual transmission option, largely as a result of most customers for the previous car opting for the superfast S Tronic system, which in any case offers manual changes via steering column paddles.

Audi's first road-going R8 was originally to be called the Audi Le Mans, but by the time it hit the road the R8 name had already become a legend for its dominance in endurance racing.

The wraps were barely off the new race car before it was winning, too, and the new R8s for the road have benefited from the same race experience and technological advances to make winners too.

They have a genuine racing provenance and performance, but with the sort comfort, safety and controllability which makes them pracatical everyday transport and not something that stays under wraps for the occasional summer weekend.