Audi has done a great job of staying in the news lately, and the one product that’s gotten the most face time is the brand-new A5. From the minute pictures of Audi’s newest coupe were released to the media dogs, the A5 has been everywhere. We’ve posted several times on the A5 and S5, and about possible convertible and RS models. You’ve all seen the pics, but most of us hasn’t heard the roar of the engine, or the sound of the… turn signal? Continue reading Listening to the A5’s heartbeat and horn
Categories:Audi
This weekend the American LeMans Series is making it’s first visit to the Monaco of America, more commonly known as Long Beach, California. Since the Formula One cars stopped running at Long Beach in the early 1980s, Champ Cars have always been the headliners on Shoreline Drive. This year they will be joined by the ALMS gang led by the storming Audi R10 diesels. The Audi’s will be trying to repeat their one-two finish from the St. Petersburg street race two weeks ago and continue their undefeated streak. The Audi press release is after the jump. 
We are very depressed after hearing this, in an interview with Dutch auto magazine AutoVisie, Ulrich Hackenberg, Audi’s concept car director, said that Audi will not be building the beautiful TT Shooting Brake since it will only negatively impact the sales of the coupe and would not add many new customers. The car was originally shown at the Tokyo Auto Show in 2005 to hint at the next design of the TT. 
During an interview with AutoVisie magazine, Ulrick Hackenberg, a high ranking product exec at Audi, said that the TT-based Shooting Brake concept that debuted at the Tokyo Auto Show in 2005 will not make it to production. 
Audi will introduce its new A5 coupe the Geneva Motor Show according to the UK’s Autocar. Quoting an unnamed “senior company source,” We’ve been following the progress of the A5 for some time now, and we’re ready to see the finished product, which is likely to bear a more-than-passing resemblance to the automaker’s 2003 Nuvolari concept (shown above). 
Audi’s return on capital this year will exceed 10 percent for the first time, company sources have told Automobilwoche. Last year the figure was 9.7 percent. That will approach the returns of rival BMW. Given Audi’s heavy spending for new models and the expansion of its dealer network, says Albrecht Denninghoff, an analyst at Commerzbank, “10 percent is a good figure.” 
Consider the position of Audi’s new S6 and the predicament in which the Audi brand finds itself in the American marketplace. A case can be made that the situations are surprisingly parallel. Like the entire Audi brand, the S6 has matured, yet is lagging somewhat in visibility compared to its German rivals. Also like the brand itself, the S6 must stand on its own, continuing to appeal to the traditional Audiphile, yet still catch the eye of those who’ve never owned or even considered a car with those four chrome rings affixed to the grille.