Audi’s trio of “sphere” concepts is set to be revealed soon, starting with the skysphere concept that will be shown at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance on Wednesday, August 11. Ahead of the reveal, Ingolstadt has released a few new teaser images and video that show a bit more about the open-top show car.
The front fascia seen above features a revamp of the company’s signature “singleframe” grille, with an illuminated flat panel made up of tiny rhombuses spanning the entire width of the car. The trademark hexagonal grille shape is preserved by the silver U-shaped frames at the top and bottom, flanked by slim trapezoidal headlights and underlined by a deep chin spoiler.
The rhombus graphic is repeated in the full-width taillights, which sit underneath twin buttresses. There’s plenty of transparent surfaces used throughout, including on the rear deck to showcase some of the underlying structure. We also get a glimpse of the intricate – and presumably immensely difficult to clean – wheels, as well as the striking turquoise cabin.
We’ve already seen a bit of the side profile, including the very long bonnet, cab-rearward proportions and low-cut front windscreen. Audi says the skysphere previews a future for the brand where both autonomous capabilities and driving enjoyment are prioritised in equal measure, although the car itself is likely a flight of fancy and probably won’t end up in production.
Not all of the “sphere” concepts are so far-fetched, however. The skysphere will be followed by the grandsphere, which will be shown at the Munich Motor Show next month and preview a replacement for Audi’s flagship A8, due to go on sale in 2024.
That car will reportedly be the first to ride on the Volkswagen’s Scalable Systems Platform (SSP), utilising the the group’s unified-cell battery to provide a range of up to 600 km. An 800-volt electric architecture is also expected to enable up to 350 kW of DC fast charging. The last of the concepts, the urbansphere, looks to take the form of an MPV/SUV and is set to debut next year.
Looking to sell your car? Sell it with Carro.
it’s crazy cool that the car can transform from GT into a sports car and vice versa with 250mm variance. will this concept turns into production? we’ll see