Category: Audi

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Accessories & Tech Audi

Driverless Audi RS7 laps Hockenheim

Audi RS7 piloted driving, Hockenheim

Audi has been leading the way in the world of driverless technology and that was further highlighted in a live demonstration during the season-ending DTM round at Hockenheim on the weekend.

With the strangely named Audi piloted driving technology onboard, making it sound like the car has a pilot at the wheel, a driverless RS7 lapped the famed German grand prix track in just over two minutes, reaching a maximum speed of 240km/h. Apparently that’s a world record top speed for a driverless car.

The specially prepared RS7 used a combination of GPS, WiFi, high-frequency radio and 3D cameras to guide itself around the circuit. As you’ll see in the highlights video below the accuracy of the car’s cornering lines is very good and so too the positioning of the car in the pole position grid spot at the end of its lap.

If you think the end is nigh and we’ll all one day have the joys of driving taken away from us, Audi has this to say:

It might sound futuristic, but it’s already at the starting gates. For Audi, piloted driving is one of the top drivers of innovation in the coming years and is a logical, evolutionary step in the development of the car. It’s an evolution that has the potential to revolutionise the experience of driving a car. And one thing is certain: If it is up to Audi’s engineers, the feeling of freedom and the fun of sporty driving will be maintained – because there is a choice. Piloted driving is not a “must”, but rather something you “can” select. Audi will never build robot cars, but instead will always put the driver in the focus of its decisions.

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Accessories & Tech Audi Video

“I like to speak to Chris!”

Audi TT virtual cockpit

First it was Audi UK, now Audi Deutschland is taking us inside the new TT to show us how that whiz bang 12.3 inch display works. Known as the Audi virtual cockpit, it’s pretty nifty tech, really. We also get a good look at the other goodies you’ll find inside most new Audis these days.

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Audi Motorsports

Audi Sport TT Cup to support DTM in 2015

Audi Sport TT Cup

Audi is increasing its motorsport presence by launching the Audi Sport TT Cup, which will form part of the supporting cast for the 2015 DTM season.

Based on the new TT, the race-prepped version weighs 1125kg and has 228kW on offer from its 2.0 litre turbocharged engine. A “push to pass” button provides a limited power boost of an additional 22kW.

A grid of 24 cars is planned for the one-make series, with 18 seats now up for grabs. The remaining six cars will be made available to guest drivers.

Audi driver Markus Winkelhock will be on hand to coach the drivers if need be. He’s been involved in testing for the new TT racer and said: “The Audi TT cup is a genuine race car, ideal for rookies, yet challenging to drive. You immediately feel that you’re sitting in an Audi and recognise the close kinship with the brand’s other race cars.”

Audi says the winner of the TT Cup could progress to the company’s GT3 program and possibly then onto DTM or WEC.

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Audi

Audi S1 Sportback: Australian pricing & specs

Audi S1 Sportback

Got a spare $49,900? If so then you can rush down to your closest Audi dealer and buy yourself an S1 Sportback.

When you get there we’re sure you’ll be disappointed to learn that Audi Australia has once again robbed you of the chance to buy your hot hatch in the more appealing three door layout, but at least you can laugh at all those double-clutch schmucks with your very own 6-speed manual gearbox.

Of course, you’ll also have a smile on your face thanks to the 170kW/370Nm 2.0 TFSI engine and a better than the pub critic will ever admit Haldex-based quattro all-wheel drive system stuffed under that pretty funky bodywork.

As is Audi’s wont these days, they’ve gathered up a whole bunch of goodies into special equipment packages. This is cleverly done to prise more money from your wallet while making it look like you’re getting a screaming bargain.

Then, when you’ve taken Audi up on those bargains, paid the nice government folk all their taxes, your $50K hot hatch, which once seemed reasonably priced, is now all of a sudden pushing $65K and you’re left thinking why didn’t I just buy an S3!

Cheekiness aside, we do think the S1 is a proper feisty little bit of kit and we wouldn’t at all object if you put good reason to one side and said, “Yes please Audi, I’ll have me one of those!”

Full details await after the break.

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Audi

2015 Audi TT Roadster revealed

2015 Audi TT Roadster

Ahead of next week’s Paris Motor Show, Audi has revealed images and details for its new TT and TTS Roadster models. This follows the launch of the third-generation TT at Geneva in March this year.

That means, with the exception of the open air view, we already know what to expect with this latest TT example. So let’s focus on the convertible roof for a moment. Made from magnesium, aluminum, steel and plastic the roof weighs 39kg, which is 3kg less than the previous model.

You need just 10 seconds to open the electronically controlled roof and the same amount to close it. You can do this while the car is motion, too, at speeds up to 50km/h. All you really need to do is decide which colour you’d like your fabric roof to be. You can choose from the obvious black, the less obvious titanium gray and and the positively funky sounding jive.

The TT Roadster goes on sale in Europe later this year and you can expect to see it in Australian showrooms after mid-2015.

There’s more details for you after the break, including images of the TTS Roadster; it’s the yellow one. As you would expect the TTS has a slightly more aggressive body kit to complement its range-topping 228kW/380Nm 2.0 litre TFSI engine.

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Audi Porsche Toyota WEC

Audi wins 2014 6hrs of COTA

2014 6 Hours of COTA

In dreadful conditions across the weekend Audi won a rain soaked 6 Hours of the Circuit of the Americas. It was a race where all three major LMP1 teams enjoyed time in the spotlight, but the experience of Audi was shining when it mattered most.

The #8 Toyota TS040 started the race on pole, with the two Porsche 919s behind. Sebastien Buemi was in the lead Toyota and built up a strong lead early. Then, about 100 minutes into the race, chaos ensued after a massive downpour saw cars sliding everywhere except on the racing line.

Race organisers had little choice but to bring a halt to proceedings and the race was red flagged for around 45 minutes. Heavy rain had been experienced during practice and qualifying sessions prior to race day as well. So the teams at least had some idea of how the track would react in the wet.

Although, the rain during the race was torrential and both Toyotas ended up off track losing a lap to the field while they recovered. The #20 Porsche 919 also lost time after an unwanted excursion.

After the restart it became a race between the two Audis and the #14 Porsche, which was leading during the latter stages of the race until a loss of power saw the car drop to fourth. From there a one-two victory was Audi’s for the taking and they didn’t falter.

2014 6 hours of COTA (top six)

  1. #2 Audi R18 e-tron quattro (Fässler/Lotterer/Tréluyer) – 157 laps
  2. #1 Audi R18 e-tron quattro (Di Grassi/Duval/Kristensen) – +53,016s
  3. #8 Toyota TS040 Hybrid (Davidson/Lapierre/Buemi) – +1:03,945m
  4. #14 Porsche 919 Hybrid (Dumas/Jani/Lieb) – +1 lap
  5. #20 Porsche 919 Hybrid (Bernhard/Hartley/Webber) – +2 laps
  6. #7 Toyota TS040 Hybrid (Wurz/Sarrazin/Conway) – +2 laps
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Audi

Audi RS3 tipped for Paris show debut

Audi Rs3 prototype

An Audi RS3 prototype has been growling its way around the Nürburgring in recent days confirming what we already knew, that we can expect it to remain powered by a 2.5 litre turbocharged inline five cylinder engine.

Peak power should give 300kW a nudge, or perhaps even more, while in-gear progress will be a blast with at least 500Nm of torque. Let’s just hope Audi sorts out the handling and makes it better than its first RS attempt on the A3 platform.

The best news, though, is a tip from carsales.com.au suggesting we’ll be seeing the RS3 under the bright lights of the Paris Motor Show (4–19 October). We’re not totally convinced that will be the case but hope that it does prove true. If it does we should see something from official Audi by late September.

[Thanks to John for the tip]

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Audi Video

Is the Audi S1 a hyperhatch?

Audi S1

The Audi S1 is a hot hatch that we would very much like to try for ourselves. It was released back in February and at the time Audi Australia told us it would go on sale locally in the third quarter of 2014. Guess what quarter we’re in now? That’s right, it’s the third, so the S1 should be here very soon.

XCAR has chimed in with a timely video to give us an idea of what to expect when the S1 is ready and waiting for the AUSmotive treatment. As noted we’re keen to learn more, but will it really be a hyperhatch?

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Audi Seat Volkswagen

Turbo dramas for Volkswagen Group EA888 engine?

Volkswagen Mk7 Golf R

The current trend from Euro car makers to create big power out of 2.0 litre turbocharged four cylinder engines could be showing the first real signs of stress. Last week we brought you news of a Mercedes-Benz A45 AMG on fire in Sydney and now there’s reports of turbo dramas affecting the latest range of Volkswagen Group hot hatches.

While the cause of the fire in that A45 AMG is yet to be established, getting 265kW from a 2.0 litre with such high boost has raised many eyebrows for those considering long-term reliability. That’s not to say it can’t be done, but a quick look at relevant forums will show there’s plenty of A45 owners with issues of varying types.

Similarly, the latest EA888 engine from the Volkswagen Group which is tuned to produce up to 221kW and used in the Audi S3, Seat Lean Cupra 280 and Volkswagen Golf R is attracting a number of complaints, mostly to do with turbo failure.

According to an article published by Motor Authority the part number of the faulty turbo is 06K 145 702 N which they report is made by IHI Turbo. The relevant engine codes are CJXB and CJXC.

Motor Authority’s investigations point to a production fault for turbos made between April and May 2014, where there is a fault with the manifold sealing surface. Outside of this date range some owners of 2013 S3s are also reporting similar problems.

It’s been suggested Audi will be fitting a new turbo design for future S3s and has in turn delayed the launch of the TTS until the problem has been satisfactorily resolved.

Which begs the question, is the Mercedes v Volkswagen four-cylinder war one that is really worth winning?

[Source: Motor Authority | Thanks to Wayne for the tip]

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Accessories & Tech Audi Video

VIDEO: Audi TT virtual cockpit

Audi TT virtual cockpit

Audi UK brings us inside the new TT with a brief video giving us a working look at its new virtual cockpit. You and I would call it a fancy dash display. More specifically it’s a 12.3 inch high-resolution TFT display which can be reconfigured in more ways than we can probably count.

One of the concerns for systems like this is that the movement of the graphics is fluid and there’s no annoying lag. On this evidence the virtual cockpit seems quite good. We’ll be keen to see this for ourselves once the new TT lands in Australia.

[Source: Audi UK]

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Audi Renault Video

Audi R8 V10 plus v Renault Clio Cup racecar

Audi R8 V10 plus v Renault Clio Cup racecar

The latest track battle from Evo is totally pointless, but that’s precisely what makes it compulsory viewing! Dicke Meaden, no stranger to a racetrack, pairs up the awesome Audi R8 V10 plus with the fesity little Renault Clio Cup racecar.

Taking a quick view at the basic specs of each the ingredients of the script are pretty self-explanatory. We’ve got a 540hp+ mid-engined supercar weighing in at around 1500kg, plus driver, against a 220hp race-prepped hot hatch tipping the scales at 1200kg, including driver, with the added benefit of competition-spec slick tyres.

Whatever happens, even if it goes to the script you’ve formulated already, this is just a cool video. What a great day at work it would have been for Meaden. Jealous much!

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Audi Bentley Bugatti Lamborghini News Porsche Seat Skoda Suzuki Volkswagen

Volkswagen Group tipped to rebrand as Auto Union

Auto Union badge

Here’s a rumour from GoAuto that has grabbed our interest, according to its report Volkswagen Group is considering a name change to Auto Union.

A possible theory for the change would be to establish a greater sense of independence for each of the brands under Volkswagen’s control, by removing the Volkswagen name from the umbrella company.

Volkswagen Group controls or owns outright the following marques: Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Ducati, Lamborghini, MAN, Porsche, Scania, Seat, Skoda, Volkswagen and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles. In addition, the group is also the largest shareholder in Suzuki, with a 20% share.

Auto Union is not a new name in the motoring world and was the precursor to what we now know as Audi. Originally formed in 1932 and consisting of four companies—Audi, DKW, Horch and Wanderer—Auto Union was essentially dissolved by the Soviets after WWII.

However, soon after, in 1949, Auto Union came back to life building two-stroke DKWs. Daimler-Benz took a majority shareholding in 1958 and saw a return of the Auto Union brand and investment in the company’s Ingolstadt factory.

In 1964 Daimler-Benz began to offload its shares and later that year Volkswagen assumed control after it bought the rights to the Auto Union name and the Ingolstadt site. The Audi brand was revived in 1965 and remains as the sole survivor from those Auto Union days.

[Source: GoAuto | Pic: CarType/John Lloyd]