New Q5 sets standards in connectivity, ride comfort, handling dynamics, efficiency and driver assistance

• All-new version of the best-selling Audi SUV worldwide
• Up to 90kg lighter than its predecessor
• Luggage capacity increase of 10 litres
• Increased interior space, headroom and rear kneeroom
• One TFSI and two TDI engines, with up to 27PS more power
• Newly developed five-link suspension and optional adaptive air suspension
• Audi drive select fitted as standard, featuring lift/offroad and allroad modes
• quattro with ultra technology fitted as standard to four-cylinder engine
• UK ordering expected to open towards the end of this year with first deliveries anticipated in spring 2017

Ingolstadt/Paris, September 29, 2016 – Having already set the tone as a paragon of Vorsprung durch Technik and a long-standing best seller, the Audi Q5 is to be replaced by an all-new successor that is set to make its world debut at the Paris Motor Show. Its ground-up rework brings with it an intense focus on connectivity, driver assistance, aeroacoustics and driving dynamics. True to form, it sets new standards in its segment and steps up the game yet again.

“The first Audi Q5 was for many years the world's best-selling SUV in its class. It was no easy task to design its successor, but that is precisely why it is so very exciting,” says Rupert Stadler, Chairman of the Board of Management at AUDI AG. “With the new Q5 we are setting the bar a notch higher. Among the great innovations are the quattro drive system with ultra technology, highly efficient engines, the air suspension with damper control and a comprehensive line-up of infotainment and assistance systems.”

The new SUV from Audi takes a defined and taut stance. A sculpturally flared Singleframe grille with a solid frame dominates its aerodynamically flat front end. It is available with Xenon headlights as standard and either LED or high-resolution Matrix LED with dynamic indicators as options.

Typically Audi: quattro design language

A distinctively curved and strongly undercut shoulder line gives structure to the side view. The strongly emphasised wheel arches are a reference to the quattro permanent all-wheel drive system, and the low greenhouse tapers back down early. Just as at the front, horizontal lines at the rear convey an image of width and presence. The tail lights are also available with optional dynamic indicators. The tailgate wraps around the C-pillars – a typical feature of the Q models from Audi. A diffuser insert integrates the exhaust tailpipes.

Weight saved: up to 90 kg lighter than the previous model

4.66 metres long, 1.89 metres wide and 1.66 metres tall with a 2.82-metre wheelbase – compared to the previous model, the new Q5 has grown in nearly all of its dimensions. Consequently, the unladen weight was reduced – depending on the engine – by up to 90 kg. Steels with maximum tensile strength and aluminium form an intelligent material mix in the body.

The new Q5 also stands at the top of its class in its aerodynamics. The four-cylinder versions attain a cd figure of 0.30 with the aerodynamically optimised roof. Wind noises are exceptionally low, and vibration comfort is high – the new SUV from Audi indulges the driver and passengers with the best interior acoustics in its class.

Spacious and wide: the interior

The interior offers a lot of space for five persons, and it surpasses the previous model and its competitors in key dimensions. Its horizontally oriented lines underscore the impression of width and comfort, and a three-dimensional trim strip runs across the entire width of the instrument panel. The new equipment lines concept offers customers a broad selection of colours and materials.

A three-spoke multifunction steering wheel is standard. When it is dark, the optional ambient lighting creates an attractive atmosphere in 30 different colours. The workmanship quality in the new Q5 is uncompromising.

The rear seat back of the new Audi Q5 is split into three segments. Longitudinal and seat back angle adjustment are optional. Depending on the rear seat position, the basic volume of the luggage compartment ranges from 550 to 610 litres, 10 litres more than in the previous model. When the rear bench is folded down, this volume grows to 1,550 litres. Cargo loading is simplified by a power-operated tailgate fitted as standard, an optional variably folding mat, optional hands-free control of the power tailgate and manual lowering of the body via the optional air suspension.

Simply coherent: controls and displays

Operation of the new Audi SUV is intuitive and is marked by three great new features. The optional Audi virtual cockpit presents brilliant graphics on its high-resolution 12.3-inch screen. The driver can choose from two views – a classic view with large round instruments and a mode in which the navigation map or lists dominate.

The MMI terminal in the centre console acts as the main control element. In the top infotainment system, the optional MMI navigation plus with MMI touch and an 8.3-inch display, a touchpad is integrated into the rotary pushbutton. It recognises handwritten entries as well as gestures familiar from consumer electronics such as zooming gestures. If the new Q5 has an automatic transmission, it also has the larger MMI all-in-touch including haptic feedback.

The MMI operating logic is based on the flat hierarchies used in today’s smartphones, and it offers such features as intelligent free-text search. The new natural-language voice control function also recognizes inputs from everyday speech.

Serving as an additional third operating level in the new Audi Q5 is the multifunction steering wheel plus. Audi can deliver a newly developed head-up display as an option. It projects relevant information onto the windshield – including from driver assistance systems – as symbols and numbers that can be perceived quickly.

Audi navigation: “Personal route assist”

The new Audi Q5, like the Q7 and the A4, has a self-learning “personal route assist” function. After activating this function, the navigation system learns the routes and destinations that the customer regularly selects, and it associates this information to the parked position and time of day.

For as long as it is active, the system therefore learns from the customer’s behaviour and uses this information to suggest optimised route planning for the next trip – even while navigation is inactive. The navigation system incorporates the three most likely destinations into the calculation, taking into consideration both the arrival time and current traffic levels. For instance, the system can suggest that the customer activate navigation to find out about potential alternative routes. The driver decides whether or not to activate the function. He also has the option of deleting saved destinations. If the function is deactivated, the system does not store the destinations and does not consider deleted destinations or the routes driven.

Online via LTE: MMI navigation plus

MMI navigation plus utilises the Audi connect module to integrate a LTE module and a Wi-Fi hotspot – this lets passengers go online with up to eight mobile devices. Audi connect enables convenient roaming in Europe for many Audi connect services with its permanently installed SIM card – the Audi connect SIM with a flat data rate.

The free Audi MMI connect app produces a close interconnection between the car and smartphone or a smartwatch and offers other services. They include remote checking of important vehicle states, online media streaming and transmission of a calendar from a smartphone to the MMI.

High-end option: the infotainment modules

The Audi phone box connects smartphones to the vehicle’s antenna for optimal reception quality; it also charges smartphones inductively according to the Qi standard. The Bang & Olufsen Sound System with innovative 3D sound introduces the spatial dimension of height. The Audi tablet, which is also new, serves as a flexible Rear Seat Entertainment device. The Audi smartphone interface also brings Apple CarPlay and Android Auto into the new Q5.

Driver assistance and safety systems

In its driver assistance systems, the new Audi Q5 also tops its segment with a broad range of high-tech options. In their intelligent interplay, the systems represent a next step towards piloted driving. They are bundled into three driver assistance packages – Tour, Parking and Parking Advanced.

The predictive efficiency assistant helps the driver save fuel by specific information on the car’s surroundings. Adaptive cruise control (ACC) including traffic jam assist can handle some of the steering work in slow-moving traffic.

Audi active lane assist makes it easier to stay in lane. Distance warning alerts the driver when the distance to a vehicle drops below a safe distance. Cross traffic assist rear, the exit warning system, collision avoidance assist and turn assist are other new features that perform excellently in pursuit of safety. The same applies to the pre sense systems – Audi pre sense city is a standard feature which warns of pedestrians and vehicles and may initiate automatic emergency braking within system limits. Park assist, the camera-based recognition of traffic signs and hill descent assist round out the features.

Powerful and efficient: TDI and TFSI engines

The new Audi Q5 is launching in the UK with a powerful 2.0 TDI engine producing 190PS. Fuel consumption for this model has been significantly reduced. Soon after the launch a 2.0 TFSI engine will also be available. The further developed 2.0 TFSI has an output of 252PS, yet it returns up to 41.5mpg combined, which equates to 154 grams CO2 per km. The also intensively revised 3.0 TDI, coming at a later date, increases output to 286PS with 620Nm (457.3 lb ft) of torque.

Versatile and efficient: drivetrain

The drivetrain of the mid-size SUV has been redeveloped from the ground up – this also applies to the six-speed manual transmission and seven-speed S tronic. The automatic transmissions integrate a fuel-saving freewheel function. The driver controls it by a selection lever or by shift paddles on the steering wheel; in both cases, the control signals are transmitted electronically.

The new quattro drivetrain with ultra technology is standard equipment for the 2.0 TDI with190PS, and for the 2.0 TFSI with 252PS. The quattro with ultra technology always disengages the rear-axle drive whenever it is not needed, and if necessary it can proactively re-engage it. The new concept boosts efficiency without reducing traction or driving dynamics.

For the V6 diesel, Audi can deliver an optional sport differential at the rear axle which distributes torque between the wheels as necessary and thereby provides a maximum of driving dynamics – this is another new feature in this model series and in the competitive field.

Torque vectoring gives handling a refined touch. The intelligent software solution always delivers a dynamic, precise and controllable driving experience.

Resolving contradictions: the chassis

The new Audi Q5 enables handling that combines very different strengths – it is sporty while being extremely comfortable. Creating the basis for this are the newly developed five-link suspensions and also the new electromechanical power steering system. Dynamic steering is available as an option; it varies its gear ratio according to the driving speed and steering angle.

Customers can choose from two extension stages of springs and damping. The chassis with damper control offers a very wide spread between comfort and dynamics, which the driver can select via Audi drive select. In addition to adjusting damper control, the new adaptive air suspension can be used to vary the ride height of the car body over five stages.

In the standard system, Audi drive select, which accesses various technical modules, the driver can select one of as many as seven driving modes. The two new modes, lift/offroad and allroad, emphasise the offroad character of the Audi Q5 optimally. The new Audi SUV comes from the factory with 18-inch alloy wheels. The Sport equipment line comes with 18-inch wheels, and the S line package with 19-inch wheels. Wheels up to 21 inches in diameter are available as options.

The new Audi Q5 is manufactured at a newly constructed plant in Mexico. It will arrive at Audi Centres in the UK in the spring of 2017.

Article source: www.audi.co.uk

Much loved five-cylinder configuration is retained in the latest Audi Sport flagship delivering supercar-style pace with quattro adhesion

• Most powerful TT ever to enter series production set to open for UK order in late September – Coupé priced at £51,800 OTR, Roadster at £53,550 OTR
• Five-cylinder 2.5 TFSI linked to a seven-speed S tronic transmission produces 400PS and 480Nm between 1,700 and 5,850rpm
• Power-to-weight 277PS per ton, 0-62mph in 3.7 seconds (Roadster 3.9 seconds), potential top speed of 174mph (with optional package), up to 34.4mpg, CO2 from 187g/km
• TT RS is the first series production Audi available with OLED rear lights

Character-building five-cylinder power continues to be the lifeblood of the Audi TT RS, which can be ordered in the UK from late September in all-new, 400PS form priced from £51,800 OTR and will touch down here in November. Available as before in Coupé and Roadster form, the most powerful series production TT to date merits comparison with the supercar elite with its sub-four-second acceleration capability and potential 174mph top speed, and offers a similarly exclusive specification that fittingly also brings the option of new Audi Matrix OLED lighting technology on stream for the first time.

Lighter than its predecessor by 26kg, thanks in large part to the integration of an aluminium crankcase, the newly developed five-cylinder, 2.5-litre TFSI engine with dual injection and Audi Valvelift technology brings to bear a 17 per cent increase in performance in the latest TT RS.

The considerable uplift in power and torque - from 340PS in the outgoing ‘standard’ car to 400PS and from 450Nm to 480Nm - facilitates a searing 0-62mph sprint time of 3.7 seconds (Roadster 3.9 seconds) on the way to a governed top speed of 155mph.

This peak can be raised to 174mph if the optional Dynamic Package Plus is specified. The cost-effective package also includes a sports exhaust system which helps to further distil the very essence of this car, namely its addictively offbeat five-cylinder engine note.

In the interest of performance the weight of the seven-speed S tronic transmission which deftly manages the engine’s formidable output has also been reduced by around 2kg thanks to a new angle drive to the prop shaft. Its shift characteristics can be tailored to the driver’s requirements via the Audi Drive Select adaptive dynamics system, which offers Comfort, Auto, Dynamic and Individual modes. These also have a bearing on the operating parameters of the RS-specific progressive steering, the throttle, the exhaust flaps and the quattro all-wheel drive system.

In the TT RS quattro takes the form of a multi-plate clutch-based system capable of freely distributing power between the axles for incisive, high-grip handling. It works with wheel-selective torque control which also favours agility, and with an elaborate suspension configuration that firmly affixes the car to the road without compromising its innate adjustability.

Optional Audi magnetic ride

The body of the TT RS sits ten millimetres lower than the entry level TT, and this also applies when the Dynamic Package incorporating RS sport suspension plus with Audi magnetic ride is specified. Employing special dampers filled with synthetic oil in which magnetic particles that can be influenced by a magnetic field are suspended, Audi magnetic ride is able to adapt the damper’s operating characteristic to the profile of the road and style of the driver at millisecond intervals. It is another feature that can be modulated using the onboard Audi Drive Select system.

The lowered body ensures that the standard 19-inch cast wheels with their five-arm polygon design fill their arches even more amply. They are available in either silver, matt titanium look or gloss anthracite black finishes, as are the 20-inch 7-spoke rotor design alternatives which are exclusively available on the TT RS as an option.

Within the impactful wheels are fittingly forceful brakes, the front internally ventilated, perforated steel discs with eight-piston calipers measuring 370 millimetres in diameter and the monobloc discs at the rear 310mm. Stainless steel pins join the friction ring to the aluminium brake disc chambers to dissipate the heat quickly. Carbon ceramic front discs which are particularly abrasion-resistant and light are available as an option for especially committed drivers.

Assertively aerodynamic

The intense concentration of power that all these features help to harness warrants a raft of special exterior applications which clearly define the TT RS as the front-runner in the TT line-up, and also help the car to cleanly pierce the air with an impressive 0.32 or 0.33 cd value depending on version. Standout features include the large air inlets, a Singleframe grille with a newly designed honeycomb lattice and quattro logo, aerodynamically-shaped side sills and of course a fixed rear wing sitting on two thin double struts. Owners keen to play down the performance potential at their disposal can swap this for the automatically extending spoiler familiar from the ‘mainstream’ TT models if required. Beneath this is a striking bumper with a strongly profiled diffuser insert with four vertical fins flanked by the large bore elliptical tailpipes of the RS exhaust system.

The stocky body can be specified in a choice of nine ‘standard’ colours, including the RS-specific tones Nardo grey and Catalunya red, metallic. In addition to this, numerous customised paint finishes are available through the Audi exclusive programme. All can be combined with optional matt aluminium and gloss black styling packages which soften or darken the look of the Singleframe grille surround, RS rear spoiler blade and diffuser insert.

Inside, the super sports seats upholstered in Fine Nappa leather and the TT RS sport leather and Alcantara steering wheel with its new integral ‘satellite’ buttons for engine start/stop and Audi Drive Select functions are the first to grab attention. From the comfort of the driving seat the fully digital Audi virtual cockpit with its 12.3-inch high definition also quickly makes its presence felt – it provides a choice of three views, including a special RS screen that highlights the rev counter and provides additional performance data plus a shift light which informs the driver when the rev limit has been reached. Upon request, the RS screen can also display individual tyre pressures.

The virtual cockpit displays mapping from the MMI navigation plus system which is standard for UK TT RS models in full ‘wide screen’ format. It also serves as the interface for the Audi Connect online services which are included as standard on a three-year subscription basis and can be extended at the end of the term. Highlights of Audi Connect include Google Earth mapping and Google Street View, online weather updates, travel information and news, access to Twitter and integration of a Wi-Fi hotspot for in-car web browsing on personal devices.

Key technology options include the Audi phone box, which enables compatible mobile phones to be charged inductively and paired with the onboard antennae for optimal reception, and the new Audi smartphone interface displaying selected apps from a user’s handset directly in the Audi virtual cockpit. The Bang & Olufsen sound system is another highlight for fans of excellent acoustics.

New feature: Matrix OLED lights

Another milestone technological development is also available to enhance the exterior of the TT RS. It can be specified with Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) rear lights which make their Audi series production debut here. These advanced new lamps in 3D design comprise four wafer-thin units, the largest of which bears the TT logo and the four Audi rings. They emit an extremely homogeneous, high-contrast light which can be continuously dimmed, does not cast any shadows and does not require any reflectors, making them both efficient and visually impressive.

The new Matrix OLED units are available as an alternative to the ‘standard’ LED rear lamps with their dynamic rear indicators, and in a similar vein the standard LED headlights can also be replaced on request by Matrix LED lamps containing 12 separate controllable LEDs which form the high beam and can be individually shut off when sensors detect traffic ahead or approaching, to ‘divert’ their beam around other road users.

Article source: www.audi.co.uk

Legendary Audi racer Frank Biela will be reunited with game-changing A4 SuperTourer at Knockhill’s SuperTouring Festival this weekend

• Audi race ace Frank Biela to be guest of honour at Scotland’s Knockhill Circuit for celebration of touring car racing on September 11
• Biela will reacquaint himself with all-conquering A4 quattro SuperTourer on the circuit where he won and set the fastest race lap for Audi in the BTCC twenty years ago

• Dominance of A4 quattro SuperTourer in 1996 season led to further weight penalties in 1997 and an eventual ban on all-wheel-drive from 1998
• Thoroughbred touring cars from the Seventies, Eighties and Nineties will go toe-to-toe in STCC finale during the weekend

Twenty years after he drove the governing body of the British Touring Car Championship to distraction with his all-conquering Audi A4 quattro SuperTourer, racing legend Frank Biela is to be reunited with the outlawed all-wheel-drive sidekick at this weekend‘s David Leslie SuperTouring Festival.

The 52-year-old, who can reflect on five Le Mans 24-hour wins and a host of Touring Car race victories in international championships, will be the guest of honour at the evocative festival, which will bring legendary Touring Cars from across the decades to Scotland’s famous Knockhill Circuit.

At the Knockhill round of the 1996 BTCC, Biela recorded the fastest lap in his A4 quattro SuperTourer, and went on to win one of the two races staged that weekend. That year he contributed six further fastest lap times to the total of eight achieved by the A4 in the 26-race series, and took pole on no less than six occasions. Eight race wins secured the Drivers’ Championship title for his heroic efforts and, ably assisted by his team-mate John Bintcliffe, the Manufacturers’ Championship title for Audi.

Versus a field of front-wheel-driven competitors, the A4 SuperTouring with its game-changing Audi quattro all-wheel-drive technology undoubtedly held the trump card. In all, the A4 quattro SuperTouring entered seven national championships on three continents in 1996 – and won them all.

As a result, the configuration that was believed to have facilitated the virtual whitewash by Biela and Bintcliffe in the BTCC was taken to task by the championship organisers. They imposed various weight penalties on the car for the 1997 season, and this encumbrance meant that Biela initially struggled to make headway in the series that year. Midway through the race calendar, however, the weight penalty was halved, and Biela was again given his head, fighting back to take second place overall in the Drivers’ Championship, and helping Audi to achieve second place overall. In 1998, all-wheel drive was largely banished from European touring car competition.

Audi UK is proud to number an A4 quattro SuperTourer among the many cherished gems in its Heritage Fleet, and this car will be on static display at Knockhill, as will an Audi 80 GLE replica car in Stirling Moss colours which campaigned in the 1980 British Saloon Car Championship. Mr Biela will, however, have ample opportunity to take a blast down memory lane in the 296PS, 2.0-litre A4 thanks to a private owner who has kindly entrusted his ex-Audi Sport car to the German race ace for parade laps of the circuit.

Biela’s evocative sortie will be one highlight of what promises to be an exceptional spectacle for fans of Touring Car racing. The Historic Sports Car Club will also be staging the thrilling finale of its Super Touring Car Championship as part of the event, bringing thoroughbred Touring Cars from the Seventies, Eighties and Nineties back to the grid for classic bumper-to-bumper racing in the best traditions of this much-loved competition format.

The legacy and dominance of quattro in the SuperTouring championship and a multitude of other motorsport disciplines from the 1980s to the present day continues to drive unwavering demand for the legendary all-wheel drive system.

Today, a quattro variant is available to order in every single one of the 13 Audi model silhouettes and a third of all Audi road cars sold in the UK are equipped with quattro all-wheel drive, comfortably ahead of the German premium competition.

Article source: www.audi.co.uk