# My car of the day, Audi R8 LMX



## Soul boy 68 (Sep 8, 2013)

Audi beats BMW with first laser lights in production car in most powerful R8 ever. The R8 will be Audi's first production model to feature laser powered lights. It's the most powerful R8 yet boasting 542 BHP V10 and it powers to 60 in 3.4 seconds. The so - called laser lights actually shine back towards the car and never leak on to the road, and are used to excite a phospher converter to create a brilliant White light source. The R8 will set you back a cool £172,000.

like it?


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

Where's that 'incoming' picture again.


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## knightstemplar (Jun 18, 2010)

Love the seats, but the car is looking a bit stale now, I think its time for a whole new design. Would still like one on my drive though


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## SteveyG (Apr 1, 2007)

I'm not sure I understand the purpose or benefit of the laser powered high beams. Lasers don't typically have a particularly high output power - certainly far lower than mainstream high flux LEDs, they just excel at being a coherent light source.

The lasers in the Audi are laser diodes anyway. Probably more marketing than anything else.


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## Kerr (Mar 27, 2012)

Nice enough but getting too old now. 

Doesn't come close to having the style or appeal of a Lambo or Ferrari. 

I think you'd have to be utterly mental to consider one at that price considering what you could have.


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## muzzer (Feb 13, 2011)

I like that, i think Kerr is right though, i'd wait for a 6 month old one to come on the market and lost 40-50k in depreciation.


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## Cmak444 (Dec 21, 2013)

I have drove one of the standard R8 and it was good but nothing amazing, don't get me wrong I would still very much like one but doubt I could afford 172k


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## Soul boy 68 (Sep 8, 2013)

Cmak444 said:


> I have drove one of the standard R8 and it was good but nothing amazing, don't get me wrong I would still very much like one but doubt I could afford 172k


Lottery ?


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## Cmak444 (Dec 21, 2013)

You need to be in it to win it


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## RisingPower (Sep 21, 2007)

It looks like... An r8?

Ahhh, it has 10 more horses and different lights?

Tbh maybe it's an audi thing, they seemed to do that with the gallardo too, they just don't do bonkers editions, only minor tweaks.


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## PugIain (Jun 28, 2006)

Kerr said:


> I think you'd have to be utterly mental to consider one at that price considering what you could have.


Like a restored Series 1 Jaguar E type, plus enough petrol money to get to the south of France for a holiday. And still enough to get you back.
And then pay off some of the mortgage.


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## RisingPower (Sep 21, 2007)

PugIain said:


> Like a restored Series 1 Jaguar E type, plus enough petrol money to get to the south of France for a holiday. And still enough to get you back.
> And then pay off some of the mortgage.


Is there enough left over for a flat cap and dentures?


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## mattcoupturbo (Aug 14, 2006)

Always seems to be Audi's with seriously bright headlights dazzling me on the roads.


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## PugIain (Jun 28, 2006)

RisingPower said:


> Is there enough left over for a flat cap and dentures?


No, but there would be enough left over to fix your Datsun, Renault er Datsun 
Datault? Rensun?


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## RisingPower (Sep 21, 2007)

PugIain said:


> No, but there would be enough left over to fix your Datsun, Renault er Datsun
> Datault? Rensun?


Or upgrade your wheels from steelies?


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## PugIain (Jun 28, 2006)

RisingPower said:


> Or upgrade your wheels from steelies?


Steels!
Cheeky. I'll have you know I have 17" BBS Cosmos wheels!
With "Premium ditchfinder" tyres


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## RisingPower (Sep 21, 2007)

PugIain said:


> Steels!
> Cheeky. I'll have you know I have 17" BBS Cosmos wheels!
> With "Premium ditchfinder" tyres


So, basically, steelies


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## Soul boy 68 (Sep 8, 2013)

mattcoupturbo said:


> Always seems to be Audi's with seriously bright headlights dazzling me on the roads.


Err sunglasses


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## Laurie.J.M (Jun 23, 2011)

SteveyG said:


> I'm not sure I understand the purpose or benefit of the laser powered high beams. Lasers don't typically have a particularly high output power - certainly far lower than mainstream high flux LEDs, they just excel at being a coherent light source.
> 
> The lasers in the Audi are laser diodes anyway. Probably more marketing than anything else.







If you look at this video of the BMW i8 with it's laser lights you'll see it makes a pretty big difference.

The light is not provided purely from the lasers, it uses a system called remote phosphor lighting. The way is works is that a blue laser diode shines onto a small piece of yellow phosphor (the same stuff used in white LED chips). The blue light from the laser causes the phosphor to glow ridiculously bright white, the light from the phosphor is then focussed into a useful output by the optics in the headlight.


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## Soul boy 68 (Sep 8, 2013)

Laurie.J.M said:


> If you look at this video of the BMW i8 with it's laser lights you'll see it makes a pretty big difference.
> 
> The light is not provided purely from the lasers, it uses a system called remote phosphor lighting. The way is works is that a blue laser diode shines onto a small piece of yellow phosphor (the same stuff used in white LED chips). The blue light from the laser causes the phosphor to glow ridiculously bright white, the light from the phosphor is then focussed into a useful output by the optics in the headlight.


Thanks for taking the time to educate us Laurie, very informative. :thumb:


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## SteveyG (Apr 1, 2007)

Laurie.J.M said:


> If you look at this video of the BMW i8 with it's laser lights you'll see it makes a pretty big difference.
> 
> The light is not provided purely from the lasers, it uses a system called remote phosphor lighting. The way is works is that a blue laser diode shines onto a small piece of yellow phosphor (the same stuff used in white LED chips). The blue light from the laser causes the phosphor to glow ridiculously bright white, the light from the phosphor is then focussed into a useful output by the optics in the headlight.


So the question still stands - what is being offered by the lasers other than marketing/bragging. Even some of the best laser diodes have a lower overall radiant power than typical high flux LEDs - they only excel at producing a coherent light source which is only offering remote location of the diode in this instance.

Once the light strikes the phosphor you no longer have a coherent light source and you're in the same position as if an LED was mounted in that location.


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## Laurie.J.M (Jun 23, 2011)

SteveyG said:


> So the question still stands - what is being offered by the lasers other than marketing/bragging. Even some of the best laser diodes have a lower overall radiant power than typical high flux LEDs - they only excel at producing a coherent light source which is only offering remote location of the diode in this instance.
> 
> Once the light strikes the phosphor you no longer have a coherent light source and you're in the same position as if an LED was mounted in that location.


You're right in saying that once the laser hits the phosphor you're basically getting the same output you get from an LED, the difference is the lasers give output of a high output LED but the unit is much more compact, uses a fraction of the power and doesn't get nearly as hot judging by the lack of heatsink. The LED headlights audi have run on their le-mans cars use high power LED's, they may be very bright but the lights get so hot that Audi have to run a cooling duct exclusively for the headlights, that might explain why they're running the lasers on this years car.










This is headlight on the new R8 LMX, the laser light is that tiny little light second from the right on the bottom row, the fact that the diodes don't need much in the way of cooling means that the laser units can be kept very small and fitted seamlessly into the headlight housing, you'd never know it was there. If Audi had used a high power LED for the high beam booster/spot lights they'd have to design in a huge heatsink and cooling fans. If you've ever worked with high powered LED chips you'll know just how much cooling they require.


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## Soul boy 68 (Sep 8, 2013)

Laurie.J.M said:


> You're right in saying that once the laser hits the phosphor you're basically getting the same output you get from an LED, the difference is the lasers give output of a high output LED but the unit is much more compact, uses a fraction of the power and doesn't get nearly as hot judging by the lack of heatsink. The LED headlights audi have run on their le-mans cars use high power LED's, they may be very bright but the lights get so hot that Audi have to run a cooling duct exclusively for the headlights, that might explain why they're running the lasers on this years car.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Feeling educated Stevie G ?


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## SteveyG (Apr 1, 2007)

Laurie.J.M said:


> If Audi had used a high power LED for the high beam booster/spot lights they'd have to design in a huge heatsink and cooling fans. If you've ever worked with high powered LED chips you'll know just how much cooling they require.


I'm an optoelectronics engineer and work with LEDs and lasers all day. Lasers are far from being more efficient than LEDs. We still have to use a peltier heat pump to dissipate the heat from the diode and the light output drops far more significantly with increasing temperature than LEDs to so in fact they require more cooling than a comparable LED would. If you'd ever worked with lasers you'd know this.

What on earth makes you think that lasers don't require cooling, use significantly less power and can output more light than an LED?

The only possible benefit is that the laser can be remotely mounted onto appropriate heatsinking allowing the lens to be smaller, but the rest of your statements are false.


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## Steve (Mar 18, 2014)

SteveyG said:


> I'm not sure I understand the purpose or benefit of the laser powered high beams. Lasers don't typically have a particularly high output power - certainly far lower than mainstream high flux LEDs, they just excel at being a coherent light source.
> 
> The lasers in the Audi are laser diodes anyway. Probably more marketing than anything else.


They seem to be wowing everyone with it. I dont really see the point either.

Few of the boys have been on the factory courses as this technology is going on the A8 etc.

Meh.


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## SteveyG (Apr 1, 2007)

sjk said:


> They seem to be wowing everyone with it.


I think this is probably the main point. It does sound cool to the layperson however.


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## Steve (Mar 18, 2014)

SteveyG said:


> I think this is probably the main point. It does sound cool to the layperson however.


:thumb:


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## Soul boy 68 (Sep 8, 2013)

SteveyG said:


> I'm an optoelectronics engineer and work with LEDs and lasers all day. Lasers are far from being more efficient than LEDs. We still have to use a peltier heat pump to dissipate the heat from the diode and the light output drops far more significantly with increasing temperature than LEDs to so in fact they require more cooling than a comparable LED would. If you'd ever worked with lasers you'd know this.
> 
> What on earth makes you think that lasers don't require cooling, use significantly less power and can output more light than an LED?
> 
> The only possible benefit is that the laser can be remotely mounted onto appropriate heatsinking allowing the lens to be smaller, but the rest of your statements are false.


Oops think I put my foot in it. Sod's law you are an optoelectronic engineer.


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## SteveyG (Apr 1, 2007)

Soul boy 68 said:


> Oops think I put my foot in it. Sod's law you are an optoelectronic engineer.


:lol:


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## Steve (Mar 18, 2014)

Soul boy 68 said:


> Oops think I put my foot in it. Sod's law you are an optoelectronic engineer.


One might say owned?


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