Audi will finally show off its new A1 minicar this week in Geneva. As usual, it’ll be available in Europe with an array of gas and diesel engines, but a French website reports that the A1 will also form the basis for a third e-tron concept. If Audi sticks with the pattern it started last month in Detroit, this one will be dubbed the e-tron Geneva Concept. The idea isn’t without merit; reports that Audi plans to build a roadgoing electric version of the A1 have circulated for some time.

While Audi plans to build a limited run of the R8-based e-tron that it unveiled in Frankfurt, an electric car based on the new A1 is most likely to be the brand’s first volume plug-in vehicle. Small, limited-range, urban commuters like the A1 will likely dominate the electric car arena for the foreseeable future until battery costs come down. A tip of the hat to Adam!

[Source: Le Buzz Auto]

Report: Audi A1-based e-tron concept headed to Geneva originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 27 Feb 2010 14:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A fight for millilitres: the Audi Efficiency Challenge A to B took its drivers all across Europe.

If you’ve never heard of Hispano Suiza, you’re not alone. The Spanish automaker hasn’t been producing its own vehicles since World War II and later returned to its aerospace roots in the 1950s, merged with another firm in 2005 and had a few prototypes running around a few years back (the oft forgotten Mazels). But that’s the past and this is apparently the automaker’s future: A rebodied Audi R8 V10 packing a supercharger and the possibility of a hybrid system.

According to AutoBild, the Hispano Suiza’s return will take place at next week’s Geneva Motor Show, with the introduction of this €700,000 coupe. As you’d expect from a hastily resurrected marque, the details are as shady as the renderings in the gallery below, with Hispano Suiza claiming that the 750-horsepower R8-based show car is good for a run to 60 mph in 3.4 seconds (grip is obviously an issue) and a top speed of 205 mph. There’s also a talk of an additional 150 hp from a hybrid drive system, with the ability to travel on electricity along for an unspecified range. Skeptical? Of course, but we’re looking forward to seeing it in person in less than a week.

[Source: Autobild via Autoblog Spanish]

Geneva Preview: Hispano Suiza is back and packing Audi R8’s V10 originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 25 Feb 2010 17:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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There was no sign of Sol on the Costa as I nosed the quartz-gray Audi A8 past the guard house and onto the rain-slicked traffic roundabout before heading out on the road.

The long, smooth roadway that connected the estate to the autoroute was the perfect place to get better acquainted with the A8’s 372-horsepower, 4.2-liter V-8 and its 328 pound-feet of torque. Leaving the handsomely designed gear select in Drive allowed the eight-speed Tiptronic transmission to run through the gears at its sole discretion. But with a flick of the steering wheel-mounted paddles (downshift with the left paddle; upshift with the right, just as God intended), I snapped down to third gear to decelerate as I approached the roundabout, the transmission responding instantly with the discipline of a well-trained Doberman, the standard Quattro all-wheel drive easily finding traction despite the rain-slicked tarmac. I merged with traffic, exited the roundabout and accelerated southwest toward Cadiz with the Mediterranean off to my left, popping into view as rain clouds scuttled toward Morocco.

Life in the south of Spain is sweet, and with the 2011 Audi A8 as a guide, it gets sweeter still.

Continue reading First Drive: 2011 Audi A8, the Grand Andalusian

First Drive: 2011 Audi A8, the Grand Andalusian originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 25 Feb 2010 14:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Concept Cars, Geneva Motor Show, Audi

In addition to the world premiers of the RS5, the all-new A1 (complete with Justin Timberlake cameo) and the near-production A8 Hybrid, Audi plans to trot out an additional concept car onto the stage at the Geneva Motor Show, and your guess is as good as ours.

With the two previous e-tron concepts and Audi’s push to get an electric sports car to market within the next two years, it almost seems inevitable that another variant of the e-tron is in the cards, but maybe not this soon. Other possibilities include a new hatch to replace the A3 - something that seems decidedly staid for an otherwise spectacular show - and our personal pick: Something TTish. So… what do you think is coming to Switzerland? Sound off in the comments below and get ready for our live coverage beginning on Tuesday.

[Source: Audi]

Ready, set, speculate! Justin Timberlake joining new Audi concept in Geneva originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 25 Feb 2010 13:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Convertible, Performance, Audi, Rumormill

The Audi R8 Spyder was introduced at Frankfurt with a stonking V10 powertrain nestled snugly in its boot, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that the righteous 525-horsepower mill will be the R8 droptop’s only source of power. Our West Coast friends at Inside LIne insist that the more reasonable 4.2-liter V8 that powers the “base” R8 is going to be offered as well… eventually.

The availability of a V8-powered Spyder could drop the price of entry by $30,000 or more, and it could prove to be an attractive option to potential customers who are more interested in the R8 Spyder as a fashion statement than as a near-supercar with outstanding performance. IL estimates that a V8-powered, topless R8 could arrive in showrooms sometime next year.

Who knows, perhaps Audi will find it in its collective heart to utilize the updated, better-breathing 450-hp 4.2-liter that is scheduled to arrive under the bonnet of the RS5 - not a bad consolation prize for a luxury car buyer looking to become part of the 500 Horsepower Club.

[Source: Inside Line]

V8-powered Audi R8 Spyder in the pipeline? originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 24 Feb 2010 18:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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In this episode we have a double Geneva preview of the Audi RS5 and Jaguar XKR with its new Speed and Black packs. Plus, an exclusive interview with NBA Forward for the Portland Trail Blazers, Jeff Pendergraph (#31), about his custom Nissan GT-R

The official tv commercial for the Audi A8.

His shows represent extreme physical exertion: marathon drummer Martin Grubinger.

Audi’s RS5 is leaked online, Jaguar shows off two new kits for the XKR, Cadillac announces that sales will be coming back to Europe, and some tragedy at a track in Arizona. That’s all today on Fast Lane Daily. Hosted by Derek deangelis.