All Entries Tagged With: "AUDI"
Audi “The Chase” Super Bowl XLIII 60 Second Spot
Jason Statham.
By Gunnar Heinrich
NOT as righteous as last Super Bowl’s “Godfather” spot with the R8. Still, Audi’s “The Chase” with Jason Statham was fun to watch nonetheless. Click here > to view the full 60-Second ad. Monday night quaterbacking to follow on…Monday.
Thanks To The Chase, I Really, Really Want A Red BMW
Really, really want one 80′s E28 generation 5er in red.
By Gunnar Heinrich | IMG stills from The Chase
THE INTERNET is prone to leaks. And the latest to drip from the web’s ancient pipes is the 30-second version of the minute-long spot that Audi USA has planned to air during Super Bowl XLIII.
In the following short, we’re treated to a fast cut chase sequence that starts in the 1970s, bops its way through the 80s, misses the 90s, and powerslides into today. In the final moments we see Jason Statham’s character, having successfully outmaneuvered a motorcycling villain, drive off happy in an new jet black Audi A6.
Trouble is, the whole commercial leaves me hankering to go out and get me my very own red BMW. Thanks for the inspiration, Audi!
U.S. News & World Report Finds Some Worth In Automobiles De Luxe
Louis Blériot must have felt similarly.
By Gunnar Heinrich
HATS off to Kimberly Castro.
Ms. Castro is deputy business editor of U.S. News & World Report and writes the magazine’s Luxe Life page.
It’s always wonderful having an appreciative light cast on your efforts. But for us web folk it’s especially thrilling when members of the traditional press give us credit.
In this case, it was the new arm of the Fourth Estate’s old guard who acknowledged Automobiles De Luxe as one of five luxury sites, “worth looking into.” The subtle thumbs up is gratifying.
“This website—mainly for aficionados of fine motorcars from the Aston Martin and Alfa Romeo to Audi, BMW, and Benz—offers comprehensive reviews complete with big, bold photos, and retrospectives on road tests and road trips for ‘every crank, piston, and gearhead.’”
Thank you for this bit of recognition, Ms. Castro. May we rise to the occasion.
[Linked: U.S. News & World Report]
Germany’s Luxury Big Three Still Profitable
On the other end this year’s pot may be smaller, but it still has gold.
By Gunnar Heinrich | IMG of Dresden via Der Spiegel
MOTOWN’S losing billion$.
That’s all that we who’ve been watching Detroit’s incredible collapse have been consuming for the past three weeks. The continuously negative news cycle that drums the dark warnings that one or all of the Big Three – GM, Ford, Chrysler – won’t make through 2009 is a real downer, to be mild.
Considering that the domestic and international economies are said to be in rough shape – though you wouldn’t know it for the abundance of mall shoppers, theater goers, dinning-out’ers – the upwardly mobile are reportedly not charging, leasing, or financing with quite the same frequency these days.
C’est dommage, but how’s the Big Three of the luxury car market – Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Audi – doing in these “uncertain times?”
Nicely, thank you.
Though, not as well as they’d like and the reasons for their profit retraction are everything to do with a financial market in flames and nothing to do with their own Teutonic efficiency. Of the three corporate press releases outlying how Q3 went, Audi was the most upbeat, while Mercedes-Benz seemed the most negative.
Still, everybody’s numbers were in the black.
Audi: Audi Group vehicles remained very popular during the period January through September 2008 [...] Despite increasingly difficult market conditions, sales of Audi brand vehicles continues to rise, climbing by 2.9 percent to a new record high of 762,289 units [...] The company achieved a growth rate well into double figures in China (incl. Hong Kong).
BMW: The performance of the BMW Group in the third quarter 2008 was perceptibly influenced by the economic downswing in the wake of the financial crisis. Ongoing consumer reticence in the main sales markets, the weak state of the used car markets as well as increasing refinancing costs had a substantial negative impact on the earnings of the BMW Group. However, they’re still in the black.
The third-quarter profit before financial result fell by 60.2 % to euro 387 million.
Mercedes-Benz: The worsening banking crisis, its effects on the real economy, and the resulting global consumer uncertainty had a negative impact on the business development of Daimler AG (stock-exchange abbreviation DAI) in the third quarter of this year. But… Net profit amounted to €213 million (Q3 2007: net loss of €1,533 million), equivalent to earnings per share of €0.21 (Q3 2007: loss per share of €1.47). The net loss of the prior-year quarter included special effects from the Chrysler transaction.
So, to summarize: the Germans are worried and they’ve suffered the fiscal set backs afflicting the rest of the industry. But they’re still managing a profit.
On the other hand, Quarter Three ended in September. The real $#!& didn’t start hitting the fan until October, so Q4′s math should be telling.
Blaupunk’d
By Gunnar Heinrich
NEVER have I heard a stock in-car audio system that can pump up the jam quite as loud as the Pontiac G8 GT’s player.
German engineered Blaupunkt (of 80s BMW and MTV Pimp My Ride fame) has designed a system that, as the firm’s own website brags, puts “the advantage in your car.”
The player brings sheer, ear drum splitting volume with an 11-speaker system that amplifies and subwoofs to the tune of 230 teeth rattttling watts.
It’s loud.
Just how loud is difficult to convey in mere words. Cranking the volume as high it would go, I quickly vacated the car interior; slamming shut the door as if I had set off a bomb. In two seconds, Beethoven’s Ode to Joy started blarring distortion free.
The classic notes played so clear from the outside of the car I decided to seek further refuge. Chuckling deviously to myself, I retreated inside the family Benz (W124) 300E 4-Matic which was parked alongside the raucous G8.
From inside my Teutonic vault, I could still hear every note as the Benz’s floorboards vibrated with the thunderous base. Simply put the Pontiac’s audio system if placed in the wrong hands is sure to disturb the peace.
Q&A‘s on the G8 GT’s Blaupunkt:
Q: Is the G8 GT’s Blaupunkt as sophisticated in balance and nuance as the 300 watt Mark Levinson system optional in the Lexus IS?
A: No. But it does seem to be geared toward louder play – read: cruising slowly while pumping 50 Cent.
Q: Does the Blaupunkt system come standard on all Pontiac G8s?
A: Yes. And it’s a great selling point for the model.
Q: Is it iPod and/or iPhone or iPod Touch compatible?
A: The Pontiac site claims that the system features “MP3 playback” but I’ve yet to find the appropriate USB or even standard AUX port to connect my iPhone to it.
Q: Does the setup include volume and track selection controls on the steering wheel?
A: Yes. Taking a page from the book of Audi design, the G8 GT features accurate and tactilely pleasing thumb wheel gears on the wheel. The best helm mounted function controls made this side of a Rolls-Royce Phantom.
[Linked: Blaupunkt | Pontiac G8 GT Features & Specs Page]
Just How “German” Is Lamborghini?
By Gunnar Heinrich | IMG by BusinessWeek
OR Bentley and Bugatti for that matter?
Catching up with the latest on “German” auto news as I’m prone to do over at the respectable German Car Blog, I continually find myself questioning the site’s self described focus of “delivering news and opinion about Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, VW and Porsche.”
Apparently, BMW and Mercedes-Benz aren’t German enough for inclusion which leads one to suspect the obvious – the blog really just covers the marques associated with the VW-Audi Group.
Fine, but back to the “German” point. Does foreign ownership of a nameplate dictate nationality?
Did anyone claim Aston Martin, Jaguar, Land Rover, or Volvo as American brands just for being members of Ford’s Premier Auto Group? Or might we have really thought Lamborghini as made-in-the-USA when Chrysler owned the raging bull?
I think not. So why insist that the British Bentley, the Franco-Italian Bugatti, or the Italian Lambo as Teutonic? As a concept, it seems oddly foreign.
[Linked: German Car Blog]
Elegance Understated: Auto Union’s A8L
By Christopher P. Davis
ACROSS the highways and byways of this great land, certain cars stand out, some do not.
Some cars dazzle, some induce a yawn. Some are overstated, some understated. Audi’s A8L falls into the latter category.
Whilst far and way, my favorite all-around marquee is Mercedes-Benz, I have to admit that one automobile de luxe that Audi has crafted beautifully is the A8L.
When you see an S550 go by, you know that it’s a Mercedes-Benz, and along with the nearly $100,000 price tag comes undisputed power. However to the average motorist, when the A8L goes by they do not blink, and they don’t think “damn rich.”
There’s no reaction. It blends in.
And that is the essence of the A8 and the long wheelbase A8L. It is not to be noticed, not to be admonished as an overt display of wealth, but simply to be truly enjoyed by its own driver and occupants.
Ingolstadt describes the 2008 A8 as a “Metallurgical Marvel” and the sedan’s W12 as a “12 Cylinder Symphony”.
Audi’s grosser for America is powered by a W12 . And this particular W12 produces 450 Horsepower. The cavalry charge this auto from 0-60 in 5 seconds flat. Impressive even if you don’t remember that this car’s curb weight is 4729 lbs.
Exterior styling on the A8L is bare bones – and that is a good thing.
Unlike many automakers that seem to make their cars sterns progressively more bulbous, Audi handily avoids this. From the profile the sedan’s stern tapers smoothly from the C-pillar into subtle skyward arc. The beautiful LED taillight clusters echo the trajectory.
It’s design cues like these that echo throughout the car and that its design simplicity speaks volumes.
Again from the side you can clearly tell the A8L from it’s smaller sibling, with a glance at the rear door – it’s longer than the front seat door. Just like the difference between Benz’s SE’s and the SEL’s of yester.
The grill of the A8L is the only bold bone (a Bugatti-esque horseshoe that extends below the front bumper) in the metallurgical marvel’s framework – and it’s still pretty subdued – unmistakably Audi.
The interior is as is to be expected in a car of this caliber (but often is delivered) it’s superb. It is expansive and tasteful. Plenty of wood grain and supple leather are present. And the backseat, well I honestly think it could be NBA approved.
There is much to like about the A8L. It is one of those cars that is truly hard to dislike. It does everything right. That is as long as a stable full of horses, a luxurious cabin, and under the radar styling are what you crave.
[Linked: Audi USA]
This Week @ Coys: Bentley’s Rolls Fighter
By Gunnar Heinrich
YOU are looking at what was in 1931 Bentley’s eight gun -er – liter shot across the bow of HMS Rolls-Royce. British auctioneer Coys of Kensington states that this Eight is mostly original – a good thing considering the model’s extraordinary place in Bentley history.
BusinessWeek nicely summarizes the importance of Bentley’s final pre-Rolls foray:
“Introduced at the London Motor Show in 1930, the Bentley 8-liter made an immediate impact. While the engine was an extension of the successful 6.5-liter engine that powered Bentleys to numerous race victories, the 8-liter was intended to knock Rolls-Royce from its pedestal,” the article read.
The hugely powerful Eight would run marathons at speeds exceeding 100 mph (Murcielago-level speed in its day). By sorry contrast, Rolls’ best could only struggle to reach 90 mph. This effectively meant that the Royce people up in Derby could sit on their hats for Team Bentley had managed what Rolls couldn’t.
Sad to say, the superior Eight faltered as Bentley’s main rival proved in reality to be the marque’s own bad timing.
The Great Depression had just silenced the Roaring Twenties and like some awful plague it proceeded to systemically dispatch the great and good marques of the early 20th Century.
W.O.’s company fell into insolvency shortly after the 100th Eight.
Rolls bought Bentley via hostile takeover. A checkered relationship ensued. The Eight lost its reason to be.
This particular Bentley, one of only 100 Eights left in the world, has seen the large part of the 20th Century and the collaboration and dissolution of the Rolls partnership. Now that its marque is now free from the double Rs and once again at odds, perhaps fate has handed this road-going battleship a new mission.
Coys is mum on the price (as usual), but according to BusinessWeek another Eight was sold last year at auction on Amelia Island for $962,500. The financial rag gave the Eight model it’s blessing with an “A” grade investment rating.
Right, hoist the rebel flag and ready the guns! We’re off to overtake Phantoms!
[Linked: BusinessWeek | Coys of Kensington]
Explaining The “Shooting Brake”
By Gunnar Heinrich
LOOKING back to June 12th, I published a post covering what I thought was the oddest Ferrari I’d ever seen; the 330GT Shooting Brake.
Since then, I really hadn’t given it much further thought. I figured it was one of those flights of whimsy ordered by the same people who want to see a Bentley pick-up truck in their 50 car garage somewhere in the Near East.
Not entirely so, apparently.
Yesterday, I received an email from a gentleman named Vassilis Daramouskas who writes for a Greek automotive publication called Car & Truck. Mr. Daramouskas took the time to explain the relative importance of the shooting brake and how it fits in the automotive marketplace.
“If my memory is correct, Audi presented (Tokyo Motor Show 2005) the “Shooting Brake Concept” whose styling will be present [in] the future A1.
Shooting Brake cars were used by British aristocracy for hunting weekends: ample space for guns+game without having to use… “volk” cars. I believe Aston Martins, Ferraris, and other noble automobiles were the favourites for the niche.” He wrote.
Our kind informant went on to say that today the principal customers of these super niche models typically hail from Arabic states.
Efharisto poli, Mr. Daramouskas.
[Linked: Car & Truck]
Money’s No Object As Audi Leads Us Down Diesel Super-Highway
By Steane Klose
De Luxe – “Particularly elegant and luxurious; sumptuous; a de luxe automobile”.
I made a decision this weekend and it was to leave the De Luxe to the master and look to write a weekly article that may not otherwise feature on ADL. Once a week I am going to sneak in an article on something disturbingly fast or disturbingly interesting but not necessarily sumptuous or elegant. If you are reading this then Gunnar has expressed his agreement with this approach and pushed the ‘publish’ button!
With fuel prices rising rapidly and the inconvenient truth of CO2 emissions on all our minds, I read with interest a review of the prototype Audi R8 V12 TDi Le Mans by the good folks over at Winding Road. Audi were good enough to hand over the keys to their multi-million dollar prototype and a quick tour of Miami ensued. Reading the resulting article, it was one point in particular that grabbed my attention; the fact that the prototype has virtually no emissions thanks to something called AdBlue.
“…plus the emissions are almost zero, thanks to the intricate latest-generation clean diesel treatment relying on a six-gallon tank of AdBlue.”
Needless to say my next Google search was for AdBlue which it turns out is the registered trademark for AUS32 or Aqueous Urea Solution 32.5%. Yes, you read that correctly – Urea. This AdBlue concoction is injected into diesel engines through their fuel system to reduce emissions. In North America AdBlue is being called Diesel Emission Fluid (DEF).
So, here we have a 6.0-litre V12 powered supercar with 493hp and 737 pound-feet of torque capable of belting from 0 – 62mph in 4.2 seconds all with virtually no emissions. With technology already being developed to produce high grade bio-diesel from algae and even have the production plant produce electricity as a by-product, the clean diesel engine has to be the (almost) perfect solution for cars of the future – a truly renewable and unlimited fuel source?
According to Winding Road, Audi has every intention of producing the R8 V12 TDi, in fact it is a pet project of the good Dr Ferdinand Piech. Previous Piech pet projects of note have included the VW Phaeton and Bugatti Veyron, so Ferdinand is not the sort of chap who lets a little thing like money get in the way of a good project.
With massive reserves of torque, the one major issue that Audi have with the R8 oiler is building a gearbox that will cope. The Veyron’s gearbox would be up to the task but simply won’t fit so it is back to the drawing board for Audi’s engineers who are now working on a sophisticated dual-clutch transmission exclusively for the R8 V12 TDi – money not being an object remember.
The prototype R8 V12 TDi is currently running a six-speed gearbox from the A4 range and torque is artificially limited to 440 pound-foot in an effort to help it survive. The Winding Road crew were also limited to a top speed of 40mph on their drive for much the same reason.
Aside from the gearbox, another area of the prototype hi-po diesel that needs work is the exhaust note but Audi have promised that the production car will sound how a supercar should.
I’ve never fully understood the current obsession with petrol-electric hybrids or even fully electric cars like the upcoming Volt, to me they are appliances not cars and certainly bereft of even a hint of De Luxe. I much prefer to think that Dr Ferdinand Piech has seen the light and I for one will be happy to follow him into it.
[Sources: Winding Road and Wikipedia]
