Archive for Audi

Porsche is allegedly slowly increasing its stake in Volkswagen from the current 31% to a supposed figure of more than 50%, and the two companies have released a joint special edition version of the Volkswagen Caddy called the Volkswagen Caddy Carrera Cup Edition 2.0 TDI R, but the relationship between the two groups isn’t exactly a bed of roses, if German magazine Der Spiegel is right about what they just reported.

According to Der Spiegel, Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn has threatened to resign if Porsche interferes with Volkswagen Group operations, something which might happen as Audi and Audi-owned Lamborghini’s products are seen as direct competitors to Porsche products.

A photo of the Caddy Carrera Cup is available after the jump.

Click here to read the rest of Winterkorn threatens to quit if Porsche interferes

The Audi A3 TDI clubsport quattro is currently only a showcar, but it previews what could be possible with the 2.0 liter TDI-engined version of the A3. Under the hood is a 224 PS and 450Nm of torque version of Audi’s 2.0 liter common rail fuel injected TDI engine, which takes the car up to 100km/h in 6.6 seconds, on to a top speed of 240km/h. The car uses a 6-speed manual and sends power to all four wheels via quattro.

The concept gets a flashy exterior with 20 inch wheels, bolt on wheel arches and a tailgate spoiler. The inside the interior gets racing bucket seats and an aluminium open gate gear lever. The 20 inch wheels do not make the brake discs look lost in a void as they have been suitably uprated to large ceramic discs with 6-piston calipers.

The car also gets the Audi drive select system with magnetic ride dampers. The driver is able to select the driving mode he wants, and this will vary the car’s throttle response, exhaust sound, electric power steering assistance, ESP cut-in thresholds, and magnetic damper operating mode.

Four more photos after the jump.

Click here to read the rest of Audi A3 TDI clubsport quattro Concept

Reader Nozzydrive sent in these shots of the latest B8 model Audi A4 snapped here in Malaysia. The baseline model will feature the recently announced 1.8 liter TFSI engine, which replaces the old 1.8 liter turbo engine in the B7 A4 1.8T.

The new 1.8 liter TFSI engine (click for page with torque curve) features gasoline direct injection and a water-cooled Borg Warner K03 turbocharger. Peak power is 160 PS from 5,000rpm to 6,200rpm, and peak torque is rated at 250Nm at a very low 1,500rpm, with 165Nm available at 1,000rpm.

Models that use a Multitronic transmission gain an extra “virtual gear” - 8 speeds for you to choose from now, though for best acceleration you should just leave it in the normal CVT behavious mode so it can stay at the optimum RPM.

More shots after the jump.

Click here to read the rest of B8 Audi A4 spotted in Malaysia!

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Compared to the normal Audi Q5 which was recently featured, the Audi Q5 S-Line kit features larger wheels with low profile tyres (we’re talking about 19 inch with optional 20 inch sizes), and a new front grille with more prominent vertical slats. And of course, there is the S-Line badging on the exterior and on the interior as well.

More images after the jump.

Related Posts:
2009 Audi Q5 SUV unveiled!

Click here to read the rest of Audi Q5 S-Line Bodykit

Rieger Tuning, a 20 year old tuning and bodykit company based in Germany has released this tuned version of the Audi A4 3.0 TDI. The standard 3.0 TDI engine’s 240 PS at 4,000rpm and 500Nm of torque at 2,000rpm has been boosted up via ECU tuning to now produce a 335d-beating 293 horsepower and 610Nm of torque. Of course, the car is shod with Rieger Tuning’s bodykit and 20 inch wheels.

However with most ECU-based turbocharged engine tuning you can expect the standard engine’s impressive flat torque curve to be destroyed, with peak torque probably kicking in later in the revs and not sustained as long, as with most 335d and 335i tuning kits.

More images of the white beauty after the jump.

Click here to read the rest of Audi A4 3.0 TDI tuned by Rieger

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The Audi Q7’s smaller sibling has been unveiled by Audi, and the production version of the Audi Q5 has lost the very coupe-like rear end of the Audi Cross Coupe and Audi Cross Cabriolet concepts, carrying a more conventional SUV shape now.

The new Audi Q5 measures 4630mm long, 1880mm wide, and 1650mm high, compared to the Volkswagen Tiguan’s 4427mm length, 1809mm width and 1686mm width. The Tiguan’s wheelbase is 2604mm, while the Q5’s is much longer at 2810mm. It is based on the B8 MLP platform with a longitudinal engine layout rather than the Tiguan’s Golf Plus-based platform with a transverse engine layout.

Two exterior looks are available - a rugged off-roading look and another more sporty look thanks to the S-line kit. Three different paintjobs are available for the trim elements on the exterior - the standard one is apparently just black all over, but a contrasting two-tone paintjob is also available, or a full body-coloured paint finish.

Three engine variants are available at launch time, with more to be added later. In line with the Volkswagen Group’s downsizing engine roadmap, all three engines are turbocharged, with two turbodiesel variants and one petrol variant. The venerable 2.0 liter TFSI model comes with Audi’s valvelift system with two different valve lift profiles on the intake. Peak torque of 350Nm is available from 1,500rpm up to 4,200rpm, and puts out a total of 211 PS, taking the Q5 2.0 TFSI from 0 to 100km/h in 7.2 seconds.

The two turbodiesel variants are the 2.0 liter TDI and the 3.0 liter TDI engines. Like its petrol sibling, the 2.0 liter unit also puts out 350Nm of torque, from 1,750rpm to 2,500rpm. Peak power is rated at 170 PS, and the Q5 2.0 TDI goes from 0 to 100km/h in 9.5 seconds. This engine is mated to a 6-speed manual, and the instrumentation cluster displays ideal shift times to help the driver get the most mileage out of his Q5 2.0 TDI.

The most powerful engine is the 3.0 TDI, delivering 240 PS and 500Nm of torque between 1,500rpm and 3,000rpm. 0 to 100km/h with the 3.0 TDI model takes 6.5 seconds, yet fuel economy is better than the 2.0 TFSI model at 36.6mpg on a combined cycle compared to 33.2mpg on a combined cycle.

Both the 2.0 TFSI and the 3.0 TDI models are mated to a 7-speed S-Tronic DSG twin dry clutch gearbox. This is something new as previously the 2.0 TFSI engine was only available with the wet clutch 6-speed DSG. A standard feature is quattro permanent all-wheel drive which varies power delivery from 40:60 front-rear up to a maximum of 65 percent to the front axle or 85 percent to the rear axle depending on driving conditions.

More photos of the Audi Q5 available after the jump.

Related Posts:
Audi Q5 S-Line Bodykit

Click here to read the rest of 2009 Audi Q5 SUV unveiled

German car magazine Auto Motor und Sport reports that Audi will be replacing it’s 344 horsepower 4.2 liter V8 found in the Audi S4 and other cars with a forced inducted V6 instead, in line with the global trend of engine displacement downsizing and making up for it with highly efficient forced induction. The RS4 will retain a large V8 engine.

The blower of choice for the replacement engine is a supercharger, which will bring the rumoured 3.0 liter FSI V6 to about 350 horsepower. A 290 horsepower, 420Nm of torque version of the engine is also in the works for less high-powered cars like the Audi A6, giving a fuel economy of 9.6 liters per 100km on average.

Shown above is the B7 Audi S4, which the B8 Audi S4 will replace.

Source

Audi has unveiled a facelifted version of the Audi A3 for the 2009 model year. It receives an updated front end, with the headlamps getting the new LED running lights for the S line trim. The back end has also been updated with a new bumper and new tail lights. The tail lamps use fibre optic rods arranged in a flat, continuous strip for lighting.

The new more prominent front end with the large single frame grille and LED running lights make the new A3 seem even more front-heavy than before, looking like it could possibly do a stoppie during heavy beaking. These bumper modifications result in the 3-door A3 being 25mm longer than before, but keeps the same wheelbase. The 5-door A3 keeps the same length as before.

The new Audi A3 facelift will be unveiled in the UK market with 7 different engines - a 102 horsepower 1.6 liter, a 125 horsepower 1.4 TSI, a 160 horsepower 1.8 TFSI, a 200 horsepower 2.0 liter TFSI, a 105 horsepower 1.9 liter TDI, turbodiesel, and a 140 horsepower 2.0 liter TDI turbodiesel. A third TDI turbodiesel variant putting out 170 horsepower from 2.0 liters of displacement will come later.

All engines are mated to a 7-speed dry clutch S-tronic DSG except for the 2.0 TFSI and 2.0 TDI versions, which use the 6-speed wet clutch S-Tronic. The models are mainly front wheel drive, but Audi’s legendary quattro all-wheel drive is available for the 2.0 liter TFSI and the upcoming 170 horsepower 2.0 liter TDI models.

The top of the range models are the 3-door Audi S3 and a new 5-door Audi S3 Sportback, equipped with a 265 horsepower version of the 2.0 liter TFSI engine, with 350Nm of torque between 2,500 and 5,000rpm. 0 to 100km/h takes 5.7 seconds in the 3-door, with an additional 0.1 seconds for the 5-door. Shifting is via a 6-speed manual.

More photos of the facelifted A3/S3 after the jump.

Click here to read the rest of Audi unveils facelifted Audi A3

Remember the Audi R8 prototype that burned to the ground? It was all part of the painful (for us to watch the R8 test cars burn down) engineering process that has let Audi finally announce this - the upcoming Audi RS8 will come with the RS6’s twin turbocharged V10.

Cooling for the twin turbocharged engine will be via design modifications that will provide extra cooling to the engine bay, including NACA roof air ducts for the turbos. NACA ducts get their name from its developer, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (which eventually ended up as NASA). This is not the first time Audi will be stuffing a turbocharged engine into the R8’s engine bay, as it has done it before with the Audi R8 V12 TDI, so there has been constant cooling know-how gained over time.

The 5.2 liter twin turbocharged FSI direct injection V10 in the RS6 puts out a constant 580 horses between 6,250rpm and 6,700rpm, and a collosal 650Nm of torque from a very low 1,500rpm all the way up to 6,250rpm. This is a very very scary engine indeed.

Autocar UK confirms that the RS8 has been signed off and approved for production, and we will be able to see some form of glimpse of it by Q2 2009.

Source

Related Links:
Audi RS6 Avant with twin turbo V10
Burned down Audi R8 prototype
NACA ducts

Audi has released a turbodiesel version of the Audi TT, powered by a 2.0 liter TDI turbodiesel putting out 170 horsepower at 4,200rpm and 350Nm of torque between 1,750rpm and 2,500rpm, taking the Audi TT Coupe up to 100 km/h in 7.5 seconds, and up to a top speed of 226 km/h, while consuming an average of 5.3 liters per 100 km for the Coupe model, and 5.5 liters for the Roadster model.

The turbodiesel features common rail direct injection with eight-hole nozzle piezo injectors which can inject up to 5 distinct injection sequences per cycle at a 1,800 bar pressure. The turbocharger has Variable Turbine Geometry to reduce turbo lag.

In this particular installation, the piston geometry has been modified and the acoustics of the camshaft drive belt has been overhauled. Two balance shafts reduce crank vibrations. These are all measures to raise the maximum engine speed of the turbodiesel to 5,000rpm, relatively high for an oil burner. This engine is mated to a 6-speed short throw manual with long final drives to suit the diesel torque curve.

Of course being a performance Audi, it is equipped with quattro all-wheel drive, which can divert 100% of power to either the front or rear axle, but runs most of the time in a front axle-biased 85:15 ratio.