The Audi A4 of the Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline is presenting one of the most powerful and exclusive car from their history: AS400. The new Abt AS400 is equipped with a
The new Abt AS400 keep its suitability for daily use as a sport station wagon and will be launched on the market in a small series of 25.
“With the new AS400 we want to and will set new standards in the field of high performance vehicles'', says Managing Director Hans-Jurgen Abt.''The vehicle is a combination of Audi quality control and the large technical know-how of Abt Sportsline when tuning such a car''.
Incorporated into the design of the AS400 is the experience gained from decades in the tuning business. Under the bonnet the
As for all Abt tuning projects, Christian Abt signs himself responsible for the development. For the technical Manager of Abt Sportsline and Audi works driver in the DTM, the AS400 is the highlight of the year: ''Normally no road vehicle is good enough for a race track. However the AS400 is a special case: With the power, acceleration and the sportive handling you really have the feeling qualifying starts any minute.''
An interesting design with its new front grill, front spoiler and side skirts as well as rear skirt and rear wing the AS400 looks like a sport car. The 4-pipe stainless-steel exhaust system is not only responsible for the right sound, but proves its Kempten origin when admired from the probably most often seen perspective of the Abt AS400. The trend is continued inside with Abt entrance panels, instrument clusters (speedometer up to
The Abt AS400 is available for 94 900 Euro (inclusive Value Added Tax) at Abt Sportsline in Kempten or one of the more than 100 Abt partners in Germany. Also Abt Sportsline offers a power upgrade to 450 HP (331 kW). Additionally an Abt sport brake system and Abt sport wheels SP1 in 19 inch-size are available as optional equipment.
Saturday, July 7, 2007
AUDI ABT AS400
Friday, July 6, 2007
AUDI R10 Le Mans Race Car
PARIS - AUDI AG is once again one step ahead of the opposition: The inventor of ‘TDI’ will become the world’s first automobile manufacturer to fight for overall victory with a diesel engine at the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans. The all-new Audi R10, which was unveiled on Tuesday in Paris, is powered by a totally new 5.5-litre, twelve-cylinder bi-turbo TDI engine, which is extremely quiet and economical.
The Le Mans Prototype, with over 650 hp and more than 1,100 Newton metres torque, significantly exceeds the power produced by the majority of previous Audi racing cars – including that of its victorious R8 predecessor. Audi ventures into previously unexplored diesel-engine terrain with the V12 power plant manufactured completely from aluminium. As with the TFSI technology, which triumphed initially at Le Mans before being adopted for mass-production, Audi customers should benefit once again from the lessons learnt in motorsport.
"With the A8 4.2 TDI quattro, Audi already builds one of the most powerful diesel cars in the world,” explained Prof Dr Martin Winterkorn, Chairman of the Board of Management of AUDI AG, at the R10 presentation in Paris. "The Le Mans project will help our technicians to extract even more from TDI technology. Nowadays, every second Audi is delivered with a TDI engine. We expect that the percentage of diesel engines will be even larger in the future.”
The R10 prototype’s V12 power unit, which is equipped with two diesel particle filters, is hardly recognisable as a diesel thanks to the engine’s smooth running nature. The TDI engine’s specialities presented the Audi Sport engineers with a whole list of challenges. The injection pressure easily exceeds the 1,600 bar achieved in production cars. The usable power band lies between 3,000 and 5,000 revs per minute – an unusually low rev range for a racing engine. The driver must change gear in the R10 far less often than in the R8 because of the TDI engine’s favourable torque curve.
The enormous torque of over 1,100 Newton metres does not only make extreme demands of the R10 transmission system – even the latest generation of engine dynamometers at Audi Sport had to be re-equipped with special gearboxes capable of withstanding the unusual forces.
Additionally, radical changes to the chassis were also necessary. The Audi R10 has a significantly longer wheel base than the R8. The overly wide front tyres are, up until now, unique for a Le Mans Prototype. New technologies were also implemented during the development of the carbon-fibre monocoque. Chassis, engine and gearbox form an extremely rigid, fully stressed unit.
"The R10 project is the biggest challenge ever to have been handed to Audi Sport,” said Head of Audi Motorsport Dr Wolfgang Ullrich. "TDI technology has not been pushed to its limits in motorsport yet. We are the first to confront the challenge. The demands of such a project are accordingly high. Long-term technology partners such as Bosch, Michelin or Shell support us in our quest. Together we have the chance to write new chapters in the history books of motorsport and diesel technology.”
The new Audi R10 successfully completed its first test at the end of November. An extensive test programme, including the 12-hour race at Sebring (USA) on 18 March, is scheduled before the 24 Hours of Le Mans on 17/18 June 2006. The development team from Audi Sport is supported by Reinhold Joest’s squad, which also performed this task during the R8 project.
AUDI Locus Concept
Design by Ugur Sahin review:
The name LOCUS means a condition that defines a continuous figure which is a curve.The main characteristics of the design are the way its surface shapes are formed with a continuous flow from front until the back of the car. Inspiration for that was obviously the Mother Nature we deal with daily but somehow we usually do not realize that everything in the nature has somehow its specific curves and flowing lines it is very rarely to spot perfectly straight lines. The main goal was to implement this design aspect into a car which creates a relaxing, energetic, vibrant and confident feeling.
It is clear to see a curved sharp edged line that starts at the very front, flowing through the middle section, slightly curved down after the A pillar and then going back up again at the rear wheel arches to follow its way back until the diffuser. This same curve language is also applied to the greenhouse and the way windows are shaped. The front is somehow aggressive looking with the traditional AUDI grill and air intakes that are shaped very much like the headlights to create a coherent feeling. The rear section is obviously very organic with defined curves and subtle details, tail lights are designed to have integrated air outtakes underneath them to avoid any unnecessary details. With dual exhaust and fairly empty rear section, it creates a feeling of subtleness. Another feature is the air intake at the end of the roof which is designed to avoid any distracting design elements on the top of the car combining elegance with functionality.
