2008 Audi A4 on 2040-cars

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Audi A7 Sportback H-Tron Quattro packs plug-in hydrogen powertrain

If you think a plug-in diesel hybrid is an expensive proposition, just wait until you hear details about the just-revealed Audi A7 Sportback H-Tron Quattro. The "H" in H-Tron, as you might guess, stands for hydrogen, so say hello to a new concept that combines a plug-in battery system with a hydrogen fuel cell. Yeah, exactly. Let's start with the numbers. On the plug-in side, the new H-Tron has an 8.8-kWh lithium-ion battery that can power the car for up to 31 miles on battery power. With electric motors on both axles – it's a Quattro, after all, but a through-the-road hybrid with electronic torque distribution management – the A7 H-Tron uses a hydrogen fuel cell and four (!) H2 tanks to offer about 62 miles per gallon equivalent. Audi says the overall fuel cell stack efficiency is "as high as 60 percent" while the electric motors operate at 95 percent efficiency. Efficiently turning all of that electricity into movement means the A7 Sportback H-Tron Quattro has a total power output of 398.3 pound-feet of torque. The 4,299-pound concept can allegedly go from 0-62 miles per hour in 7.9 seconds and has a top speed of 112 mph. The car's total range is 311 miles. The A7 H-Tron is not the first plug-in hydrogen vehicle concept. That title goes to the Ford HySeries Edge. Mazda also considered putting a hydrogen range extender in the Mazda5 plug-in van. The Audi A7 Sportback h-tron quattro It sprints from 0 to 100 km/h (62.1 mi) in 7.9 seconds and on to a top speed of 180 km/h (111.8 mph). It covers over 500 kilometers (310.7 mi) on one tank of fuel – and its exhaust emits nothing more than a few drops of water: The A7 Sportback h-tron quattro, which Audi is unveiling at the Los Angeles Auto Show 2014, uses a powerful, sporty electric drive with a fuel cell as its energy source that operates in combination with a hybrid battery and an additional electric motor in the rear. The overall electrical system power of 170 kW is transferred to both the front and the rear wheels. This drive configuration makes the emission-free Audi A7 Sportback* a quattro through and through – a new departure in fuel cell cars. "The A7 Sportback h-tron quattro is a genuine Audi – at once sporty and efficient. Conceived as an e-quattro, its two electric motors drive all four wheels," explained Prof. Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg, Member of the Board of Management for Technical Development at Audi. "The h-tron concept car shows that we have mastered fuel cell technology.

Audi R8 LMX has frickin' lasers for headlights

It might look like just another Audi R8, but Ingolstadt tells us this one is different: it is the limited edition Audi R8 LMX (click image above to enlarge) with laser-enhanced LED high-beam headlights. Audi introduced the laserlight technology on its R18 E-tron Quattro LMP1 race car and then promised a production version of it at this year's Consumer Electronics Show. The eyes on the R8 LMX employ the same method when traveling above 37.3 miles per hour, utilizing a tiny laser module in each headlight that, after conversion to white light, can throw a beam about 1,640 feet down the road.
Because no one should ever stop at lasers, buyers of the limited-to-99 examples of the R8 LMX will also get a more powerful engine, with 570 horsepower erupting from the mid-mounted V10; that's ten more horses than came with the R8 V10 GT introduced last year, but the 0-62 mile-per-hour time hasn't budged from 3.4 seconds. It comes in coupe form only, dressed in Ara Blue paint with carbon accents all around, exclusive wheels, red brake calipers, and a black Nappa leather interior with contrasting blue bits.
The order book is open now, and deliveries will begin this summer for those willing to lay down 210,000 euros for the privilege of using one of Superman's powers for good, as standard (the BMW i8 has laser-equipped high beams, but as an option). We won't see them here, though, for as with Matrix Beam lighting and Audi's sequential turn signals, US laws forbid such shenanigans. The press release below has more info.

Audi 3D-printed this tiny Type C racer, we want to drive it

See this little guy? No, not the one driving – that's Professor Hubert Waltl, Audi's head of production and Volkswagen's chief toolmaker. The thing he's driving, though, is a 1:2 scale replica of the 1936 Auto Union Type C. And it was 3D-printed entirely in house. Not in one piece, mind you. It's too big for that. But the Audi Toolmaking division employed metal printing technology to fabricate all the parts that went into this replica of one of the most dominant of the Silver Arrow grand prix racers of the pre-war era. It's essentially like the pedal car Audi rolled out nine years ago, or the E-Tron concept it showed us nearly five years ago. Only this one uses more advanced manufacturing techniques. Aside from making us want to drive it like nobody's business, the half-sized vehicle serves to showcase the advancements which Audi and the VW Group are making in manufacturing – particularly in the area of 3D printing. The German automaker presently has the technology to print laser-melted layers of metallic powder – either steel or aluminum – with grains measuring half the diameter of a human hair. The equipment can handle objects as large as 7.9 inches high by 9.5 inches wide – which, as small as this little car looks, is still a bit too large to simply print out in one piece. Audi Toolmaking prints "Auto Union Typ C" - Exact model of the "Silver Arrow" from a 3D printer - Audi Board of Management Member for Production Prof. Dr. Hubert Waltl: "This underscores our pioneering role in toolmaking." From powder to a component: With a 3D printer, Audi Toolmaking has produced a model of the historical Grand Prix sports car "Auto Union Typ C" from the year 1936. The company is now examining further possible applications of metal printers for the production of complex components. At the same time, Audi is creating important synergies with toolmaking in other parts of the Volkswagen Group. "We are pushing forward with new manufacturing technologies at Audi Toolmaking and at the Volkswagen Group," stated Prof. Dr. Hubert Waltl, Audi's Board of Management Member for Production and Head of Toolmaking at the Volkswagen Group. "Together with partners in the area of research, we are constantly exploring the boundaries of new processes. One of our goals is to apply metal printers in series production." The Volkswagen Group has a total of 14 toolmaking units in nine countries. Under the leadership of Prof. Dr.