At this year's New York Auto Show back in April, Audi Sport lifted the wraps off the race-ready R8 LMS GT4, essentially a track version of the R8 V10 road car. Joining the automaker's race car roster alongside the R8 LMS GT3 and RS 3 LMS, Audi Sport is now accepting customer orders for the R8 LMS GT4. It's currently only available in Europe and carries a hefty asking price of $232,000, but Audi Sport is also accepting orders from North America, Asia, and Australia from prospective buyers to compete in international race events.

GT4 models are eligible to participate in 13 racing series worldwide. The R8 LMS GT4 is positioned as Audi's entry-level racer, and is described as an "ideal race car for amateur campaigners." It shares 60 percent of its parts from the road-going R8 V10 equivalent. That means it's powered by the same naturally aspirated 5.2 V10, but the GT4 race-spec R8 produces up to 495 horsepower and 405 lb-ft of torque. Unlike the four-wheel drive R8 V10 road car that's fitted with a 5.2-liter Quattro V10, the race car features a rear-wheel drive layout. Power is sent through a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox. When the R8 LMS GT4 was first announced, it represented the only rear-wheel drive R8, but this is no longer the case.

At this year's Frankfurt Motor Show, Audi Sport revealed the limited edition R8 V10 RWS restricted to just 999 units, which adopts a rear-wheel drive layout perfect for performing tire-shredding tail slides and dizzying donuts. Depending on the settings, the R8 LMS GT4 can do the 0-62 mph sprint in less than four seconds and top out at over 155 mph. Without any fluids, the race car only weighs 1,460 kilograms by removing the R8 V10's Quattro system and luxury features. Deliveries are set to start this December.