Skip to main content

Audi Wants RSs to Get Hot and Heavy with 48-Volt Systems

Audi makes cars that are lovely to behold, a joy to drive, stable at speed, futuristic, and much more besides. One word you could never use to describe them, though, is light.

Ever since the ‘80s, the brand has had a weighty (and forward-looking) commitment to adding as much driveline as possible. Since becoming a leading light in the luxury world, it’s also been committed to making its interiors silent. And now its 48-volt systems are making turbos better and luxury cars better performers (and vice versa).

What all of these technologies have in common is that they’re heavy. And although Audi isn’t alone testing the strength of the world’s roads, it’s on the forefront of weight-making technology.

Still, Audi feels that the technology’s advantages outweigh (…) the disadvantages, even for its line of high-performance cars.

“You will see future Audi Sport models with electrification,” Anthony Garbis, RS5 Product Manager, told Car Buzz at the New York Auto Show. “We will be thrilling you in the near future. Pretty soon.”

Although Garbis was careful not get into specifics he told Car Buzz that the technology would proliferate through the model line.

And although the technology has performance advantages—we all now know how it can eliminate turbo lag and make cars more stable through corners, but soft over rough roads—but it could also be a way to keep RS models on the road.

With all cars being required to reduce their impact on the environment, adding a measure of electrification could help keep enthusiast cars like the Audi Sport line around.

Some kind of electrification will be necessary Heinz Hollerwerger, former head of Audi Sport (then Quattro GmbH) said in 2014 and the company looks to be intent on making it happen.

Next week Audi Sport will be revealing an e-Tron Gran Turismo Vision car. Although this car is pure fantasy, it’s still an example of the brand dipping its toes into the world of electrification.

While Audi and Audi Sport continue to stuff more technology into their vehicles, this does prove that their commitment to performance remains. At least we know that our ongoing feature “Big Audis Go Speeds they Have no Business Going” (that’s #BAGSthnBG for the more youth-oriented) will continue to be relevant in years to come.

[source: Car Buzz]

The post Audi Wants RSs to Get Hot and Heavy with 48-Volt Systems appeared first on VWVortex.



from VWVortex https://ift.tt/2GIeTBj
via IFTTT

Labels

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Review: Saying Goodbye to the CC V6

For all its size and its global reach, Volkswagen is still, in many ways, a deeply human company. There was, for instance, the Bugatti Veyron an ego project if ever there was one. Then the purchase of Ducati, a move most called folly. And then there was the Phaeton, the Volkswagen that most folks can’t afford. Not only were these moves all strange, I’m sure that they made VW’s accountants furious. None of them made good business sense, but they were all deeply interesting and they all are evidence of the heart that beats at the center of VW. Among these follies is the CC, a car that everyone agrees is rakishly handsome, but that no one really wanted to buy. The car couldn’t last, but the world is brighter for its having been in it. With the approach debut of the Arteon, it seems like a good time to look back on its sadly departing predecessor. The version I drove, because I live in Canada, is a V6 Wolfsburg Edition, which apparently isn’t available in the States. Nor is the V6, not as...
Post a Comment
Read more

Mitsubishi admits it lied about MPG ratings for all vehicles in Japan

Filed under: Government/Legal , Green , Mitsubishi , Fuel Efficiency , Japan Mitsubishi says its shady fuel-economy test practices may have been used on all vehicles it sells and has sold in Japan. Continue reading Mitsubishi admits it lied about MPG ratings for all vehicles in Japan Mitsubishi admits it lied about MPG ratings for all vehicles in Japan originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 11 May 2016 12:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink  |  Email this  |  Comments from Autoblog Volkswagen http://ift.tt/21X3bHv
Post a Comment
Read more

More 3.0-Liter TDI Settlement Details Expected by January 31

Volkswagen and the TDI Plaintiff’s Steering Committee were in court today for another status conference following the agreement in principal reached earlier this week. Little new information was given at the conference held before Judge Charles Breyer today, but the court ordered the parties to develop a formal settlement agreement, class action notices, and a class notice plan by January 31, 2017. For now, though, owners still don’t know how much to expect in compensation. Elizabeth Cabraser, lead Counsel for the Plaintiff’s Steering Committee reaffirmed in a statement today that the compensation would be “substantial.” The potential cost to Volkswagen is widely reported to exceed $1 billion, though, with an additional $225 million going into an environmental trust to help offset excess emissions. Buy back offers are still only expected for the oldest 20,000 of the roughly 80,000 VW Group vehicles sold in America with the 3.0-liter TDI engine. Those vehicles are mostly SUVs, like ...
Post a Comment
Read more