IN DESPERATE SEARCH OF AN AUDI SUPERCAR.(Column)(Column)

Byline: Matt Davis

There's always at least a perceived limit as to how far we let this or that manufacturer go in search of its rakish/hip side. Sometimes said manufacturer would do well to take heed of what us hacks and you readers think, and then in some rare instances they've had the audacity to prove us all wrong.

In North America, Ford-despite its global financial pains-is leading the way with all the GT excitement, that being the finest recent example of Yankee super-muscle. Japan cruises along with its sort-of-super Acura NSX (a Honda in Japan). But it's Europe that inspires other continents to even think about building such nutball business cases, so it wins the supercar war hands down. Within the European community, we somehow patently accept Italian and British high performance as being the real deal and all that more desirable for having such long histories-mostly now past-of makeshift build quality and temperamental engineering done in ill-lit World War II airplane hangers and the like.

What's the deal here? How did this psychological perversion get started and then nurtured? It bears asking, because the Germans really want to know the answer. Mercedes has the spectacular SLR McLaren and Porsche a spectacular Carrera GT that may be just what the world needs to alter this bizarre mentality once and for all. Aren't supercars that work and look great-and are impeccably put together-better? Shouldn't they cause more passion?

It is Audi in particular that's exploring this matter the hardest. The Nuvolari shown in Geneva last March is more chunky-handsome than it is beautiful. I personally look at the Le Mans quattro from this past Frankfurt show and am definitely impressed, but at the same time know ...