Audi
Audi names new supercar after R8 racer
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November 17, 2005 Audi has bestowed an extraordinary honour on its new sports car by naming it the R8. Presented at Frankfurt Motor Show two years ago as the “Le Mans quattro” concept, the new Audi sportscar will commence production in Q4, 2006 with a market launch scheduled for Q2, 2007. The mid-engined two-seater is powered by a five-litre V10 ‘biturbo’ engine with FSI direct fuel injection, developing 449 kW (610 bhp) at 6,800 rpm. Whilst it will immediately become one of the most desirable roadgoing cars in the world, it will carry a name of legendary motorsport achievement. Since its introduction in March, 2000, the R8 has won 61 races from 77 startsincluding the Le Mans 24 Hour five times and the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) six times in succession and has never had a single engine failure during a race. Read More
The New Audi S8 (with special thanks to Lamborghini)
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October 25, 2005 Ask those who really know performance cars, for a list of the world’s most capable and desirable sporting saloons, and the Audi A8 would surely come close to the top of the list. At the time of its market launch three years ago, this large saloon shot straight to the top of the luxury segment thanks to its dynamic qualities. The brand with the four-ring emblem is now unveiling a sporty top model of the very highest calibre in the luxury segment: the new Audi S8. The Audi S8 is equipped with a new V10 engine that capitalises on the expertise of the super sports car Lamborghini Gallardo. The 10-cylinder power unit develops 450 bhp of power and 540 Nm of torque from a swept volume of 5.2 litres. The torque value is achieved at as low an engine speed as 3,500 rpm. As on the Le Mans winning R8, the most successful racing car in the world, FSI petrol direct injection assures superior power output in the Audi S8. This luxury saloon sprints from 0 to 100 km/h in 5.1 seconds, and is electronically governed at 250 km/h. It will be appearing on the market in the mid of 2006, with a price tag of EUR 97,600. Read More
Audi Shooting Brake Concept
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October 25, 2005 The Shooting Brake concept evolved a century ago from European gentlemen wishing to have enough room for their guns when they were going hunting or to shooting contests yet at the same time drive their sports cars. A "shooting brake" is a modified two door coupe with an estate-wagon back crafted, rather than grafted on. We've written about some beautiful Shooting Brakes in the past such as the Protoscar Porsche 911. Audi unveiled a new highlight in the sporty compact segment at the Tokyo Motor Show: the Shooting Brake Concept is a study vehicle offering a further trailblazing interpretation of Audi's current formal idiom, blending the powerful dynamism of a sports car with a new sense of spaciousness and greater functionality. With its powerful 250 bhp, 3.2-litre six-cylinder engine and quattro permanent four-wheel drive, the Shooting Brake Concept produces a quality of road behaviour that in every respect lives up to its visual impact. The study vehicle sprints from 0 to 100 km/h in just 6.0 seconds, and its top speed is electronically governed at 250 km/h. Read More
Audi A8 Awarded Chauffeur Car Of The Year
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September 27, 2005 While we suspect most of Gizmag’s readers would rather be behind the wheel rather than some feller with a peaked cap, we do think it’s newsworthy that the Audi A8 has been awarded the Chauffeur Car of the Year at the recent Limousine and Chauffeur Show Industry Awards in the UK. Judges applauded the Audi A8 LWB for its performance, rear passenger comfort, engine variants and maintenance costs. The award actually means something - it was judged not only by respected authorities in the chauffeuring industry, but also by professional drivers across the UK who spend most of their working lives in luxury saloons. Read More
The New Audi A4 Cabriolet Breaks Cover
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September 8, 2005 Audi has released images of the new A4 Cabriolet, a vehicle that offers an enjoyable and sporty driving experience, superior and complex technology, classic and exciting styling, and luxury that satisfies even the highest demands of the luxury class. The latest generation of a car that has already become a classic will be shown for the first time in the metal at next week’s Frankfurt Motor Show. Read More
Palm and Audi collaborate on automotive communications tools
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August 23, 2005 Palm and Audi have announced their collaboration in a new generation of communications solutions designed to improve safety and convenience for drivers: easy and totally integrated hands-free calling inside the car. Using built-in Bluetooth short-range wireless technology and the Palm Treo 650 smartphone, drivers of 2006 Audi A6 and A8 vehicles can make and receive calls totally hands-free using the car's MMI (Multi Media Interface) console, voice-recognition interface or steering-wheel controls. Read More
The new Audi Q7
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August 17, 2005 Audi has finally unveiled the details of the Q7 it has been eeking out to the global press for the last few months - a vehicle that marks a new development in the Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) segment. The Audi Q7 combines sportiness and versatility, sophisticated technology and the luxury of a premium-class vehicle. On the road it excels with the performance and driving dynamics of a sports car; off-road it redefines the benchmark in its category. A vehicle whose technology delivers on its promise – on any road and in all conditions. The Audi Q7 – the performance SUV from the creator of quattro. Read More
Audi Q7 clocking up millions of pre-release kilometres
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August 3, 2005 In one of the most meticulously planned and carefully orchestrated pre-debut publicity campaigns ever undertaken for an automotive product, we got to see more of the evolving Audi Q7 story this week when the German company’s PR machine released images of the Q7 undergoing equally exhaustive testing from Southern Africa to the Nurburgring. The Q7 has already notched up millions of test kilometres prior and worldwide testing under demonstrably extreme conditions for reliability, handling, comfort and flexibility makes an impressive story prior to its public showing in Frankfurt next month. Read More
Audi Q7 SUV portal signs prospects by the thousand
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July 1, 2005 Multiple medium promotional campaigns using internet sites as the campaign hub continue to grow in functionality and capability and response, as the world penetration of internet connectivity trends towards ubiquity. Accordingly it has been interesting to watch the surge in traffic to Audi's online Broadband portal, “Q7 Globe” - it's the biggest multi-channel marketing project ever undertaken by the company for the launch of a new model and although the Audi Q7 SUV will not have its premiere until the Frankfurt Motor Show in September, the "Q7 Globe" online portal has already signed up 110,000 prospects. Read More
Audi’s All-Seeing Diode to Benefit Future Drivers
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March 18 2005 Venturing into the third dimension at the 9th International Forum on "Advanced Microsystems for Automotive Applications" in Berlin, Audi Electronics Venture GmbH is presenting a pioneering innovation in the form of an anticipatory, optical proximity sensor system. This ultra-sensitive sensory system, which is being showcased in Berlin in a test vehicle, is capable of supplying a three-dimensional image of the scene in front of the vehicle. It offers a glimpse of things to come and although is still several years away from being ready for series production, it opens up an exciting realm of possibilities in the field of both vehicle safety and driver assist and convenience functions, such as stop-and-go assist and parking aid systems. Read More
AUDI's RS4 Super Sedan debuts in Melbourne and Geneva simultaneously
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February 23, 2005 The all-new 2006 Audi RS 4 super car will make is worldwide public debut at Geneva Motor Show on March 1 and the Melbourne Motor Show on March 3, 2005. The all new RS 4 is the top-of-the-range model in the A4 series, with its 4163 cc V8 developing 420 bhp, exceeding the 100 bhp per litre mark to produce a luxury, thoroughbred saloon to rival BMW's M3 super sedan, with the company's all wheel drive Quattro system an added drawcard. Read More
Audi DSG manual gearbox arrives
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Audi has a long tradition in the development of innovative transmission technologies and their use in production vehicles and the company's latest variation on the theme is the Direct Shift Gearbox or DSG. The DSG is a six-speed manual transmission that can offer both manual and automatic transmission. It uses all the same ingredients as a manual transmission but with an extra clutch. Read More
Building the Audi RSQ for
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The convergence mix is bringing some unlikely partners together as vertical market borders are blurring and morphing not just product categories but entertainment genres. The upcoming movie "I, ROBOT" has all the makings of a film of epic status – a script inspired by the classic Isaac Asimov short story collection and the public’s first detailed introduction to the capabilities of personal robotics. Everything had to be entirely believable for a film set 30 years from now so when the script called for a futuristic vehicle, a loose tender was put to the world’s leading automotive design studios and Audi won the job. Read More
Audi reveals 'Le Mans quattro' concept
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Friday September 12, 2003: Audi have unveiled the stunning Le Mans Quattro sports car concept study at the 60th International Motor Show in Frankfurt. Described as having inherited the genes of the Audi R8 - three-times winner of the Le Mans 24-Hours race - the high-performance mid-engined two-seater is powered by a longitudinally installed V10 'biturbo' engine, developing 449 kW (610 bhp) at 6,800 rpm and making 0 to 100 kmh in 3.7 seconds. Read More
Audi A8 Aluminium Sports Limousine
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Friday June 27, 2003: Audi Australia will launch the new A8 sports limousine on 20th August 2003, following confirmed production for the company's first 50 locally-specified units. Read More
Audi Nuvolari Quattro on show at Le Mans
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Audi's Nuvolari quattro concept car was presented to motorsport fans before the Le Mans 24 Hour Race in June 2003 before being driven for the first time on a racing circuit in front of more than hundred thousand spectators. Read More
