Category: Audi

Audi is set to scrap its highly desirable 21st century Quattro model, according to Car magazine. Worse, the technology already created for the project, including the EA555 five-cylinder engine, could end up in another bloody SUV. Apparently the market for conventional sportscars is heading south and the fashion conscious Evoque-like crossover is king.

So, instead of reviving the memory of the legendary Ur Quattro, we need to start using the Crosslane coupé as a voodoo doll. Car is referring to the new performance-based crossover as the Q-coupé, we’re referring to it as that bitch who stole our dreams.

The Quattro concept was first shown at the 2010 Paris Motor Show and we’ve been smitten ever since. We loved its sharp lines, marvelled at the reviews of pre-production models and anticipated its production launch with baited breath. Now, we’re just sulking in the corner. FML.

[Source: Car]

This may look like any ordinary Audi SQ5, but it actually costs a bit over one and half times more than a standard SQ5. To use its correct title, this is the SQ5 TDI Audi exclusive concept.

Only 50 will be made and the model will be launched in Paris at the end of the month. Essentially it’s an SQ5 with some fancy leather and alcantara bits. The exterior is differentiated by the Aral Blue crystal effect paintwork and, to us, they look like rather nice model specific alloys as well.

But there’s a cost. In Euro pricing the SQ5 is €58,000 and for a sparkly paint job, some new wheels and a flash interior Audi reckons you’ll be begging them to pay €92,000 to drive this limited model out the door.

Yikes! They haven’t even fiddled with the 230kW 3.0 litre V6 TDI.

Audi has, quite literally, just lifted the lid off its new RS5 Cabriolet. Quite why anyone wants a topless RS5 we’re not sure, but that’s beside the fact.

Under the bonnet you get the same 331kW 4.2 litre V8 as the RS5 Coupé but in just 15 seconds you can have the wind through your hair and the sound of that V8 rushing past your ears. Curiously, you need 17 seconds to close the lightweight soft top roof.

The RS5 Cabrio goes on sale in Europe early next year, so expect to see them in Australia sometime in the second quarter of 2013.

UPDATE: Audi Australia says, “The Audi RS5 Cabriolet is currently being evaluated for possible introduction into the Australian market.”

Audi has released this video teaser for its upcoming RS5 Cabriolet. The official reveal is due on Thursday 6 September (approx 9pm AEST). You can watch the reveal yourself on Audi’s RS5 microsite.

The 2013-spec RS5 coupé recently arrived in Australia and we expect it could take 6–12 months before we see the cabrio down under.

It’s been far too long since we’ve read any speculation on the 21st century Audi Quattro, which debuted at the Paris Motor Show in 2010. Previously there’s been strong suggestions the car will go into full production and last we heard was in February last year when a Quattro prototype under an A5 skin had been tested.

Now we’re hearing the Quattro, codenamed Q35, will be released in 2015 with as many 10,000 models built per year. A worthy launch date for the Q35 could be March 2015, the 35th anniversary of the Ur Quattro.

Word is the Quattro will be position the four-seat coupé between the TT and R8 (although we’ve heard different before, albeit with a smaller production run). As far as competitors go Audi is expected to set its sights on the BMW M3/M4 and Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Coupé.

Let’s hope the 300kW five-pot from the show car makes the step to final production. And we’d also like to hang on the almost impossible hope that the car will feature a traditonal manual gearbox, instead of a less involving S tronic twin-clutch jobbie.

[Source: Auto Bild via WCF]

The next-gen Audi A4, codenamed B9 and due in 2014, will be the first model from Ingolstadt to adapt Audi’s Le Mans winning e-tron quattro hybrid technology for the road, Car magazine reports.

So, rather than tricky diffs and fancy coupling devices, the new A4 will drive the front wheels through a conventional internal combustion engine (petrol or diesel), while powering the rear wheels with a pair of electric motors.

The B9 will ride on a new architecture too. Like the smaller MQB platform, the MLB matrix is expected to help the A4 shed around 100kg from finished production models compared to the current B8 range. That means entry-level A4s should tip the scales at around 1330kg.

[Source: Car | Rendering: Christian Schulte]

WorldCarFans brings us a good selection of undisguised pics previewing the 2013 Audi A3 Sportback. It’s the best look yet at the five-door A3, which is expected to be on show in Paris.

As we’ve noted before, this is the model our Australian readers need to pay attention to. We’ve previously been tipped that the Sportback is the only layout of A3 ‘hatch’ we’ll see down under. Local fans of the three-door A3, which debuted in Geneva, will be left pining for the sleeker and slightly smaller A3.

It’s not known what the exact difference will be, but the adaptable MQB platform means Audi can use a larger wheelbase for the Sportback. Looks like all will be revealed next month.

Everything we’ve seen inside the new A3 should translate to the Sportback. We reckon Audi has done enough to maintain their position as the maker of some of the nicest car interiors to experience as well.

[Source: WCF | Pics: Automedia]