No Reserve~full S-line Sport Pkg~impeccable Condition~easy Highway Miles 06 07 on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Audi readies sales of new fuel-efficient A4, A5 and A6 models

As diesels continue to account for a minority of cars sold by Audi in the US, the German automaker and Volkswagen unit continues to expand its diesel models in Europe for the sake of fuel efficiency. Early this year, Audi will debut its new A4, A5 and A6 variants in Europe as part of what it calls its "ultra" strategy of pairing performance with fuel economy. Audi will have 11 new models for 2014, and the updated A4, A5 and A6 will use Audi's 2.0-liter turbodiesel powertrain. Versions of that engine will range from 136 to 190 horsepower, while torque will range from 236 to 295 pound-feet. More importantly, the models will get anywhere from 51 to 60 miles per gallon, when tested on the more lenient European driving cycle. And while manual transmission will be standard (this is Europe, after all), the A6 will have a seven-speed automatic transmission option. Pricing will start at 32,600 euros ($44,000 US) for the base A4 and work its way up to 45,000 euros (about $61,000) for the top of the line A6. Last year, Audi boosted its diesel sales in the US by 40 percent to just over 10,000 units, though that accounted for just a fraction of the approximately 158,000 cars the company sold domestically in 2013. Audi has a press release on the new models below. The new ultra models from Audi A4, A5 and A6 with impressive efficiency • New ultra models from Audi with 136 hp, 163 hp and 190 hp • Greater efficiency with unchanged driving dynamics • Emissions of just 104 to 119 grams of CO2 per kilometer (167.37 to 191.51 g/mile) Audi A6 2.0 TDI ultra, Audi A5 2.0 TDI ultra, Audi A3 1.6 TDI ultra Audi is expanding its ultra strategy with 11 new models: Especially efficient engine versions in the A4, A5 and A6 model lines will be launched in early 2014. A new and powerful two-liter TDI will provide the drive at 100 kW (136 hp), 120 kW (163 hp) or 140 kW (190 hp); the engine emits just 104 to 119 grams of CO2 per kilometer (167.37 to 191.51 g/mile) depending on the model. The "ultra" designation stands for sustainable mobility that is fully available for everyday use. With a combined fuel consumption rate of 3.9 to 4.6 liters per 100 kilometers (60.31 to 51.13 US mpg) and CO2 emissions of 104 to 119 grams per kilometer (167.37 to 191.51 g/mile), the new ultra models from Audi are among the most efficient cars of their segment – without any limitation on the driving dynamics or customary comfort. Audi Board Member for Development, Prof. Dr.

VW could fight Uber Black with Porsche and Audi vehicles

Last week, the Volkswagen group dumped $300 million into Gett, a taxi hailing-cum-ride sharing app that's big outside of the US. Now, the company has revealed that it's pondering a rival to Uber Black by offering private drivers access to its higher-end vehicles. Details are scarce since it's a single line reference in a very long press release, but VW says that it's looking at a "special chauffeur service" that features "premium brands, such as Audi and Porsche." What that looks like in reality is anyone's guess, although the idea of getting ferried around in an Audi RS 7 does have some appeal. The deal with Gett will concentrate on getting Volkswagen cars into the hands of Gett's drivers with the promise of juicy discounts. For instance, the firm will offer a special package that'll bundle car insurance and servicing with the purchase price, which can be paid by a would-be operator in installments. It's a similar deal to the one that Uber offers would-be drivers, letting them buy cars from manufacturers like Volkswagen, Ford and Toyota at a discount. Uber, however, also lets prospective cabbies rent their vehicle on a monthly basis, thanks to a deal with Enterprise. Both of which will likely become more muscular now that Uber has a further $3.5 billion in its back pocket. The troubling fact for the auto industry is that people will still need cars, but it's likely that they won't need as many as they do right now. On-demand services and self-driving vehicles are, after all, intended to shuttle around cities like an ersatz taxi-cum-metro system rather than sitting in parking lots. The concepts of ownership that we currently hold dear (and the profits that car companies get from them) are likely to fade away in the next, say, fifty years time. As such, conglomerates like VW will have to reinvent themselves as both manufacturer and transport company in one. But these changes are never easy, especially when the biggest car firms have tons of baggage that slows down their progress. Many are still devoting time and resources to producing thousands of new cars with combustion engines that will be on the roads for years to come. Looming in the shadow, however, is the emissions scandal, with the financial and reputational penalties likely to be felt for years to come. Younger, more nimble rivals without legacy businesses, like Tesla, are working on mass-producing electric cars for mass-market prices.

Audi readying diesel PHEV models for US and Europe

With the racing pedigree provided by the Audi R18 E-Tron Quattro, you'd be forgiven for thinking that the German king of Le Mans is capitalizing on the connection between its road cars and race cars at every opportunity. Maybe there's an entire range of Le Mans Editions for the automakers diesel-hybrid offerings, with perhaps Tom Kristensen acting as the brand's spokesperson for the technology in Europe. You'd be wrong, though, because despite the R18's overwhelming successes in endurance racing, Audi the road-car manufacturer doesn't offer a single diesel-hybrid production car.
This factoid will hopefully be as short lived as it is disappointing, though, as a diesel-electric is around the corner, according to the brand's tech boss, Ulrich Hackenberg. In fact, it gets better than a mere diesel-hybrid; it will be a plug-in diesel-hybrid, only the second to hit the market, alongside the European-market Volvo V60.
According to Hackenberg, the new tech will be the result of a marriage between the brand's well-received 3.0-liter, TDI V6 with an electric motor. The next-generation Audi Q7 (shown above) will be the initial recipient, confirming previous reports that claimed a PHEV TDI could come to the next-gen CUV. Its MLB architecture, meanwhile, would allow the plug-in-hybrid-diesel powertrain to be fitted easily enough to the A8 luxury sedan. While the new Q7 should hit the market at some point in 2015, it's unclear when the PHEV TDI model could see the light of day.