- Justin Timberlake

Uh, hello? Mr. Timberlake? You might have noticed viewers are thinking, and saying, the same thing? So much for celebrity endorsers. Audi could have picked Tony Stark for the role. He looked cool and relax even while his Rolls-Royce was being sliced into pieces by his foe. Iron Man is cooler than Justin.

Source: Jalopnik

New Iron Man 2 trailer is up! Marvel Universe inhabitants, unite! Gotta’ love the Man’s love for Audi’s. Very un-BMW like. Eat you heart out, bimmerphile!

Source: Jalopnik

This is stepping over the line. It’s just too (how do I put it)… unnecessary.

Sure, six gears are just sweet for high speed cruising. Seven is overkill, even for luxury cars, while eight is just too damn much.

How many gears do you need to get from point A to point B?

Yes, you may get some boost in fuel economy, but what about the ‘oomph’? Having too many gears just gives you too little rpm range for engine braking, something that is completely necessary if you’re planning on crossing the 200mph mark.

Unless you’re a lightning-fast shifter, the time it will take to downshift from 8^th to 2^nd gear just in time to avoid hurtling off a corner will have gotten you in the hospital by then.

Even double clutches can’t shift as fast. Even if they were to become capable in the near future, it’s just a waste of energy.

It also gives more ‘free-wheeling’ time to leave you helpless in high speed cornering, a big NO-NO for hooners.

Well, all of this is from a performance perspective. Still, eight gears will surely do wonders of squeezing more miles out of each gallon.

Keep up the good work, Audi. You’re amazing.

Source: Autoblog

Rumors are always to be taken with a grain of salt, but if it’s something as hyped as this piece of news, it’s just got to be taken with a little depressant to calm down the excitement. British car tabloid Auto Express has just published news of Audi’s planned successor to the infamous R8, and this time, it’s no laughing stock. Even BMW would do well in taking care not to engage in ad wars with Audi if this were true.

Dubbed as the R10, Audi’s up and coming super car would boast a mid-engine 5-liter twin-turbocharged V10 that’s capable of 600 horses. And it’s going to send torque to all four wheels. The aluminum-carbon fiber platform is going to be shared with sister company Lamborghini’s replacement for the Murcielago.

The car tabloid further reports that Audi is already testing prototypes in the Nurburgring. If things work out, the R10 would be entering dealers as early as 2012. It seems parent company Volkswagen is really starting to build an empire, and is treading dangerously into Italian supercars’ turf in terms of performance. Well, we’ll see just how super the planned R10 is going to be. Or whether it’s just all hype.

Source: Autoblog

Looking back, you may be able to recall Audi denouncing rumors of an electric version of the R8. Now, drawings have turned up in the Internet of what seems to be an EV version of the famed super car. Despite Audi of America President Johan de Nysschen saying that the future lies in diesel, not electrons, news came of their electric super car concept to be revealed at the Frankfurt Motor Show. The renderings show a little bit of the concept car’s exterior styling which are distinctly suggestive of an electric drive train – a chrome billet grille, sleek, futuristic headlights and a cutting-edge wheel design.

Dubbed as the e-Tron, it remarkably resembles the R8, without the side air vents. Looking at this car from afar, it you’ll think it’s an R8 from the near future. Fans will have to give up on the idea, though. This is a totally different Audi. Performance wise, there’s still a lot of skepticism as to whether it can out-muscle the R8.

Right now, it just looks like an answer to BMW’s VisionEfficientDynamics Concept which will also debut in the Frankfurt Motor Show on September. We all know of the rivalry between the two German brands. So stay tuned for updates on this new chapter in the Audi-BMW saga.

Source: Autoblog

Want to get rid of your clunker? Then you might want to consider an Audi. The car maker from Ingostad is throwing in another grand as rebate as part of the Cash for Clunkers (C.A.R.S.) program. The Audi models which have been approved for the program are currently the Audi A3, A4, TT and Q5, and all their variants, whose year models are 2008 and 2009. Don’t be asking for 2010 models just yet. The current program has yet to include Audi’s latest models.

You’ll have to decide quickly, though. This promotion will last only till the end of August. So if you’re an Audi fan, and you’ve got a clunker sitting in your garage, now’s the time to get rid of it in exchange for a four-ringed Euro.

The Cash for Clunker program was initiated by the US Congress to allow consumers to upgrade from their old vehicles. The most visible benefits are having a car which is more fuel efficient, less harmful to the environment, and will last for at least another decade with little problems. The vehicles involved in the program were chosen in part because of their EPA-certified MPG ratings. So don’t expect to avail sports cars under the program, folks.

http://www.autoblog.com/2009/08/06/audi-throws-another-1-000-onto-c4c-incentives/

Audi fans and owners, listen up! Today marks Audi’s 100 years in the auto industry. There’s going to be a big celebration over at Audi’s home base in Ingolstadt, Germany. If you want to be part of it, better start packing and prep up your own four-rings.

As part of the event, Audi is unveiling the A5 Sportback with both FWD and AWD configurations, plus a 4.2L FSI V8-powered RS5 variant. Audi is also showcasing a gallery to provide guests with all things Audi, including its history and plans for the future. Audi’s outlook is getting a share of its fellow German car marques’ (Mercedes Benz and nemesis BMW) markets.

The celebrations will kick off today, July 16. An evening gala will be hosted at the Audi Forum in Ingolstadt with Audi’s chair, Rupert Stadler, on the podium. Even German Chancellor Angel Merkel will be there herself. If you’re in the mood to meet some royalties, be sure to be there.

Also on the list of invited VIP’s are Bavarian Prime Minister Horst Seehofer, German Automotive Industry Association President Matthias Wissmann, NBA player Dirk Nowitzki, and racing personalities such as eight-time Le Mans champion Torn Kristensen.

Now, a small glimpse at Audi’s past. The German company was founded on July 16, 1909 by August Horch and was formerly named August Horch Automobilwerke GmbH back then. It was then based in Zwichau, Germany. Horch later gave his company a new name – Audi Automobilwerke – based on his surname’s Latin translation. Since then, Audi has been committed to bringing its customers automobiles built with the latest in German engineering.

If you can’t attend this momentous event, you can witness the evening gala live over at www.audi.tv beginning at exactly 6:30pm. It’s better than not witnessing the occasion at all.

http://www.autoblog.com/2009/07/16/audi-observes-centennial-with-massive-historical-gallery-and-vid/

Beauty lies in the details

If you’ve ever wondered what that famous line you always hear on car commercials mean, then Audi has got a definition for you. Simply put, it means Value, Precision and Fascination. Put all three together and you end up with Quality.

Once every year, Audi takes you for a short ride on its TechDay, which features the car company’s obsessive-compulsive manufacturing processes which would make any parent company proud.

Processes such as redesigning the fuel cap to solve parallax errors (whatever that means), doing surface analysis using a scanning electron microscope to make sure each is up to design specs, an even putting together an olfactory team (nope, they aren’t blood hounds) to check if each material has the right smell. Now, that would surely win a prize for ultra obsession.

Well, if you’re an Audi customer, such attention to detail and dedication to quality will surely add worth to your investment. So sit and back and watch the video after the jump and amaze yourself in the world of Audi production.

http://www.autoblog.com/2009/07/05/what-goes-into-german-engineering-audis-techday-quality/

Just like playing on your Portable Sony Playstation

Is this Knight Rider stuff or what? Audi has just come up with the latest version of its Multi-Media Interface. Word has it that this is one of the best user interface systems out in the automotive market today. And now its latest installment promises to be even better than the previous version.

With a 6.5-inch lcd with 800 x 400 resolution, the system now calculates possible routes with its 600 MHz processing unit. You can also explore the route in any direction and get the speed limits of each and every highway. And as an added bonus, the unit will be able to charge any MP3 players plugged into it as well as display the title of the song being played.

This kind of technology will only be available in the all-new A3, TT and R* models. So if you want to get hold of this and you’re living in the United States, you have to wait until autumn. Meanwhile, you can check out more information in the official press release from Audi.

http://www.autoblog.com/2009/06/30/audi-updates-mmi-system-for-2010-a3-tt-and-r8/

Audi may be taking pointers from Formula One's Brawn team

Looks like up to this level of professional motor sports, Audi can’t help ticking off other car makers.

If you look closely at this picture of the Audi R15 race car, you’ll see two flap-like elements on the front wing bearing the stickers of Michelin. Now, it may all look common place, but according to Peugeot, another Le Mans contender, those flaps are as illegal as they can get.

Citing Article 3.6.2 of the ACO’s technical regulations, two aerodynamic components at a car’s front are allowed. Any more than that constitutes a violation of the rules, as quoted “Any bodywork element the function of which is only to generate down force” is illegal.

This issue has hounded Audi since the start of the season, and Peugeot has no plans of backing down. They say that if Le Mans officials rule in favor of Audi, they’ll take the case all the way up to the FIA, and then all hell will break loose. If Peugeot decides to take that course, all results from Sunday won’t stand until FIA makes a decision on the issue.

So what’s your take on this mess? Personally, I find it totally coincidental with Brawn’s situation over in Formula One. If you can recall, Brawn ran into a similar problem with their race car’s unorthodox rear diffusers. Perhaps Peugeot is just sourgraping? Or maybe Audi is taking pointers from Formula One’s pack leader. You decide.

Source: http://www.autoblog.com/2009/06/10/report-peugeot-lodges-protest-against-the-audi-r15-tdi-at-le-ma/