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ABT squeezes out more grunt from the Audi A8 TDI

June 29, 2010 at 10:11 am By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Audi, Cars, International News

VW/Audi specialist tuner ABT has revealed their rendition of the new A8, called the AS8. The Kempten based outfit chose to work on the 4.2-litre V8 TDI version of Audi’s limo.

In stock form, the turbodiesel V8 produces 350 hp along with 800 Nm of torque, but through German tuning wizardry ABT have boosted those figures to 385 hp and 880 Nm respectively. Acceleration is improved as a result, and 0-100 km/h is done in 5 seconds flat from 5.5 seconds. Quite an achievement considering that this fully specified limo weighs almost 2 tonnes!

Complementing the power upgrade is the aerodynamic bodykit that gives the car a sportier look; it comprises a front spoiler, side skirts, a discreet boot lid spoiler, new rear apron housing a diffuser and new quad tail pipes. There is the option of either 20 or 21-inch ABT CR wheels which comes with high performance tyres.

Nice, but would you have mistook it for an A4? More pics after the jump.
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SR Auto Group gives us the Valkyrie Audi R8 V10

June 18, 2010 at 3:03 pm By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Audi, Cars, International News

The Audi R8 V10 has had a physical transformation at the hands of SR Auto Group. The main highlight here is the matte black wrap which the company say gives the R8 a “dark, uncanny and evasive” feel. Given the name Valkyrie, which comes from Norse mythology meaning “chooser of the slain”, this R8 is sure to command fearful looks from every other road user.

This is because SR’s “death chooser” has carbon fibre bits littered all over its body, courtesy of PPI. This includes front air dams, side skirts, rear diffusers and air vents. All lights are smoked for an evil appearance.

Inside, you will find the cabin covered with SR’s very own Executive Interior upholstery package, which is a combination of suede and black leather with red threading. The whole setup sits on 20-inch Advance One wheels and H&R lowering springs. Nothing has been done to the drivetrain, but why should they? The V10 FSI engine already packs a powerful 500 hp and 530 Nm of torque from its 5.2-litres.

More pics after the jump.
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Audi R8 e-tron electric sports car goes for a Le Mans spin

June 15, 2010 at 6:41 pm By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Audi, Cars, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, International News

Not only did Audi win Le Mans in convincing fashion, the four rings showed off a prototype of the Audi R8 e-tron electric sports car at the race. Racing legend Frank Biela took the e-tron out for a spin in the Le Mans vers le futur demo event for EVs. The previous time Audi had an e-tron on show was at Detroit, with the tech wrapped in a TT-sized body.

The R8 e-tron is powered by four motors connected to a wheel each for quattro grip. Combined, they provide 313 hp and 4500 Nm of torque (no it’s no a typo), propelling the two-seater from 0-100 km/h in just 4.8 seconds. 70% of power goes to the rear wheels while the rest goes to the fronts. The battery sits behind the passenger cabin for a 42:58 weight distribution.

Torque vectoring from the four motors mean that understeer and oversteer can be corrected by not only targeted activation of the brakes, but also by precise increases in power by few milliseconds. The R8 e-tron is claimed to remain extremely neutral even under great lateral acceleration, “hustling through corners as if on the proverbial rails” according to Audi.

The car’s lithium-ion battery can be charged from a household plug socket (230 volts/16 amperes), taking six to eight hours to be refilled. Kinetic energy from the brakes is recuperated, channelled to the alternator and converted into electrical energy. It all sounds good, but when is Ingolstadt finally putting an e-tron into production?

Gallery after the jump.
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Audi sweeps Le Mans title from Peugeot this year

June 14, 2010 at 10:57 am By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Audi, International News, Motorsports, Peugeot

There must be shouts of joy coming from the Audi factory as the Audi R15 TDI cruised to take first, second and third place at the 2010 Le Mans 24 hours endurance race. This will be Audi’s ninth win at the 8.4 mile circuit, but they still have some way to go before being able to topple Porsche’s record of 16 wins.

Drivers Timo Bernhard, Mike Rockenfeller and Romain Dumas were greeted by a chequered flag at the end of their grueling intensive race, completing 397 laps. They were followed by the other Audi cars of Benoit Treluyer, Marcel Fassler and Andre Lotterer a lap behind, while the Audi of Tom Kristensen, Allan McNish and Dindo Capello were 3 laps behind.

All four Peugeot cars, who by the way were the firm favourite to win this year and secured the top four spots at qualifying, ran into car problems during the course of the race. This gave the Audis the chance to reclaim victory from the Pugs who won the event in 2009.

The surprise of this year’s event was the crash of 1992 Formula 1 champion Nigel Mansell in the 17th minute of the race. The 56 year old entered the race with his sons Greg and Leo in a Ginetta Zytek. The car spun and hit the guardrail at the entrance of the Mulsanne Straight. Mansell was taken to hospital but escaped without serious injuries.

The quote ‘it’s never about winning it’s how you play the game’ springs to mind when describing the teams within Le Mans, as even completing such an event is a reward in itself. In the end Audi’s patience and reliability put the team ahead of the faster Peugeot.

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Audi wants you to build the car of tomorrow!

June 11, 2010 at 1:01 am By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Audi, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel, International News

If you’ve ever looked at an electric car and thought “I can do better”, well now you can. The big boys at Audi have issued a challenge to budding scientists and students to create the car of tomorrow.

Prospective entrants are encouraged to send their creative concepts to Audi and must contain “the current situation, the proposed solution and a path to that solution” of the production of the aforementioned car. Out of this, eight finalists will be invited for a two day workshop at Ingolstadt. Their concept will then be presented to a jury followed by a further session in the workshop with Audi production staff.

The candidates will have another two weeks to revise their concept before Audi announces the winners in early November. The deadline for entry is on the 31st of July. It would be good to see what designs and solutions the general public can produce.

Do you have automotive designs that you think will benefit Malaysians?

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Audi and Peugeot both gunning for the top spot at this year’s Le Mans – who will come out on top?

June 9, 2010 at 12:01 am By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Audi, Motorsports, Peugeot

The Le Mans 24 Hours race is a testament of skill and endurance of both the drivers and their cars as a total of 55 cars will be running the world renowned race on an 8.47-mile circuit comprising of closed public roads for the duration of 24 hours. Alan McNish, one of the drivers of the Audi R15 TDI is restless and wants to stake his claim on the podium at this years event. The 40 year old Scotsman, who drives alongside Dindo Capello and Tom Kristensen, is gunning for his ninth Le Mans triumph.

As we know, the 2009 Le Mans title went to the Peugeot Team with their 908 HDi FAP which was diesel powered. They too have not rested since they won the title in 2009 as they have admitted that in races such as Spa, they have felt their competitors getting faster and breathing down their necks slightly.

Thus they have worked meticulously on the engine and car to produce the best result from the TDI engine. This was also to get the 908 HDi FAP in line with 2010 regulations which was to do with aerodynamics that also affects engine power output, according to Peugeot Sports Technical Director, Bruno Famin.

“The only aerodynamic change is the result of having to adjust to this year’s new engine power levels. We have endeavoured to recover some of the power lost because of the rule changes, which involved working with Bosch on combustion, combating energy losses through friction with Total and enhancing the flow efficiency of the intake and exhaust systems in association with Dow. All the things that gave us trouble in 2009 have been looked at, too, while we haven’t eased up in our ongoing efforts to improve reliability. This is the 908 HDi FAP’s fourth and final year of competition. It is an outstanding car and I think we can look forward to an incredibly thrilling Le Mans 24 Hours; I believe it will be very close from flag to flag,” added Famin.

Since its last race in Le Mans the Peugeot team have been preparing in the form of three races and 11 test sessions. This includes simulation runs, set-up work and the development of a complete range of tyres in association with Michelin.

Unfortunately when you’re on top everyone’s gunning for you, and that is Audi’s agenda at this years race. Audi has further tweaked it’s R15 TDI body and engine as well. Smaller air restrictors and lower manifold pressure were part of the new regulations. This means lower engine output. Thus Audi, like most other teams, are fettling with the aerodynamics to make it more efficient. This has resulted in the R15 sporting a two-nose design along with a modified cooling and tank system.

Even if the air restrictors have been modified, the R15′s 5.5 litre V10 twin turbo engine still produces around 590 HP and an incredible 1050 Nm of torque, which is mated to a pneumatically operated five speed gearbox. Suggestions directly from the drivers have been addressed too, which include better illumination of the racetracks with a new head lamp concept.

Both teams will be under a lot of pressure this year as there are up and coming teams such as Aston Martin Racing looking to topple the leaders off the podium. A very interesting race seems to be brewing and you can catch it from the 12th to the 13th of this June.

Click below for a picture gallery.
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Audi travolution enables car-traffic light communication

June 4, 2010 at 12:42 pm By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Audi, Cars, International News

We accelerate away from traffic lights, only to brake hard for the next one 500 metres down the road. Or how traffic lights that insist you wait a long time even when the roads are empty in the middle of the night? These scenarios are common in the Klang Valley, and burn away a lot of fuel and time. Audi’s travolution project counters this and aims for a smooth drive by making cars communicate with traffic lights!

This pre-emptive traffic light knowledge allows the driver to save fuel by not having to stop and start at traffic lights. Test runs in 2006 saw fuel consumption reduced by 17%. Then, Audi’s hometown of Ingolstadt saw its traffic lights controlled by a new, adaptive computing algorithm that Audi developed in cooperation with colleges of advanced engineering.

Today, travolution allows for integrated communication between car and the traffic light system, using wireless LAN and UMTS links. 15 test vehicles and 25 sets of traffic lights are being tested in actual traffic conditions. Data transmitted in the form of graphics tell the driver what speed to adopt so that the next traffic light changes to green before the car reaches it, for instance. This speed, which keeps traffic flowing as smoothly as possible, can also be locked in using adaptive cruise control (ACC).

If the car stops at red, drivers would be told the length of time they would be waiting. Or if the lights are about to turn yellow or red, an approaching driver will be warned by a visual or acoustic signal and even a brief interruption to the power flow of the engine.

The implications of such technology is incredible, as according to the the test, drivers can cut fuel consumption of 0.02 litres for every traffic light they stop at. If used throughout Germany, it could lower CO2 emissions by about two million tonnes annually! Besides “chatting” with traffic lights, travolution can even help you to pay online when refueling or parking the car, before you reach the station or car park. Selection and confirmation is done via MMI.

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Limited edition Audi foosball table, yours for 12,900 euros!

June 2, 2010 at 4:13 pm By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Audi, International News

If you love everything Audi and everything foosball, then this is the perfect product for you, if you have deep enough pockets to go with your passion that is. Previously a concept from Audi Concept Design Munich, this small limited edition batch of Audi Design soccer tables will go into production for well to do foosball aficionados.

Thomas Przesdzink, German table soccer champion and Chairman of the Bavarian Table Soccer Association has given the seal of approval. “It looks just great. From a sporting point of view, it could certainly be used for an official tournament series,” the champ said.

The price for this Vorsprung durch Technik design? 12,900 euros, so this is the kind of stuff you’ll probably only see in Tony Stark’s mansion. But because this is an Audi, expect characteristically great build quality with equal amounts of refinement. Things that are thrown in to the mix are aluminium and high strength plastic fittings assembled to a handcrafted wooden core. You will also be paying for exclusivity as only 20 of these tables will be made.

More pictures after the jump.
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New Audi A8 is a moving WiFi hotspot!

May 24, 2010 at 12:07 pm By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Audi, Cars, International News

Audi is future proofing its new A8 limo by factory installing a WLAN hotspot for wireless internet connection as an option. Which means that passengers not only have business class comfort, but can conduct business in the car too, as they can access internet wirelessly via the WLAN module and UMTS with up to eight devices.

Wireless surfing, accessing information, data and e-mails from company networks, and downloading the latest apps for the iPad can be done securely, as the connection contains WPA2 encryption for transfer of data. Connection speeds can go up to 7.2 Mbps.

The first car in the world to offer such a function, using the WLAN hotspot will involve inserting a data capable SIM card into the Bluetooth online car phone. There is also the option of using Bluetooth from a mobile phone to establish a connection. Internet connectivity is channelled through the rooftop antenna of the Audi A8 using its own UMTS module, which is said to have outstanding connection stability and reception quality.

A huge gallery of the A8 is available here.

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VW: Audi S1 on the way but no Polo R to avoid clash

May 24, 2010 at 9:58 am By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Audi, Cars, International News, Volkswagen

Technical chief of the Volkswagen Polo GTI, Dr. Ernst Linder has confirmed that Audi will roll out the S1 next year, and because of that there won’t be a Polo R to avoid clashing. The good doctor however revealed that a Jetta R is in the works.

Linder said that the range topping A1 will get a 178 bhp 1.4-litre Twincharger engine and a seven-speed DSG, as per the Polo GTI. No quattro though, the S1 will be front driven. On the Polo R, he said: “From the technical point-of-view, of course we can do something, but from the financial point-of-view it makes not so much sense. It would be too expensive and we have the S1. The S1 will have 178 bhp and it’s a very sporty car. If we put much more horsepower in the (Polo), we need something like four-wheel-drive. This is a technical feature that is very expensive.”

He did not let slip any technical information for the Jetta R. But since the standard “Golf sedan” isn’t even out yet, the performance version should be quite some time away from surfacing.

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