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Filed under: CES, Safety, Technology, Audi, Luxury
Audi had plenty to announce at
CES, including the debut of its new
Audi Connect system and
Touchpad-integrated MMI knob, modular entertainment platform, NVIDIA Tegra 3 chipset and its planned expansion of both infotainment and active safety systems.
On the safety front, Audi execs announced plans to introduce a new system dubbed Traffic Jam Assistant, which recognizes when a driver is stuck in start-and-stop traffic and can be switched into an autonomous mode that takes complete control of the steering, acceleration and brakes.
The system uses the front-mounted adaptive cruise control sensors combined with wide-angle video cameras to detect lane markings, other vehicles, barriers and pedestrians, and can control the vehicle without any driver intervention up to 37 mph. Eight ultrasonic sensors also keep tabs on what's in front of and at the sides of the vehicle, with the front sensors not only tracking the vehicle ahead, but - like
Nissan's latest Predictive Forward Collision Warning System - several vehicles ahead.
If this all sounds familiar, it should. And so should the name.
Mercedes-Benz has been working on a similar system called
Traffic Jam Assist, which we sampled in an
S-Class last year.
Like Mercedes' system, Audi's implementation should make it to market sometime next year, likely in its refreshed range-topping
A8.
Next Audi flagship will drive autonomously in traffic jams originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 12 Jan 2012 12:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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January 12th, 2012
Filed under: Technology, Audi, Luxury, Infotainment
After
Audi announced
Google Earth integration in the
2011 A8, the next obvious question we had was when Google Street View was coming. The only response we got: "Just wait."
Well, the waiting is over. Audi announced today that Street View - Google's relentless outdoor photographing service - will join the high-resolution aerial and satellite images embedded in Audi's Connect infotainment system.
According to Audi, the system pre-loads data for your selected route and then integrates with your smartphone's UTMS module to provide a 360-degree view for the driver - most helpful when looking for a specific business or residence in a congested urban area.
Audi also announced its "music stream" service, which, like
BMW's Internet Radio functionality, allows drivers to select from over 4,000 internet radio stations from around the world and stream them through the stereo. Details on both systems can be found in the press blast
after the break.
Continue reading Audi Connect now with Google Streetview, Internet radio
Audi Connect now with Google Streetview, Internet radio originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 13 Dec 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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December 13th, 2011
Audi pushed hard for market credibility against Mercedes and BMW during the 1990s. The aluminum-framed A8 was a major step forward in that effort. Product planners in Ingolstadt wanted to find a way to build on their success.
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November 11th, 2011
Filed under: Sedan, Marketing/Advertising, Audi
Company:
Volkswagen
Brand:
Audi
Medium: TV
Ad Agency: Venables Bell & Partners
Product:
Audi A8
Campaign: The Best
What We Like: Audi believes its latest A8 is a truly great automobile, and it's running with this idea because it seems both
Car and Driver and
Road & Track agree. Rather than simply spouting off a list of why it may have earned recognition, Audi is tackling its perceived greatness in a humorous manner. The spots are short, funny and to the point. The message is that you'd have to be clueless not to see the greatness put forth by Audi in its A8.
What We Don't Like: While the greatness is certainly inherent in the brand new A8, it almost seems like Audi is screaming at you to notice it. Still, if that is our one minor quibble, these ads are in pretty good shape.
Strategy: The all-new Audi A8 is a great car, and it recently received Best Large Luxury Sedan accolades from both
Car and Driver and
Road & Track. The automaker's ad agency is taking those awards and running with them. True greatness, as is shown in the new A8, is something that should be instantly recognizable, and it seems those who fail to see it are simply clueless.
Grade: A- (the minus is because of the perceived shouting, but the overall humor wins out).
Watch the videos
after the jump and give it your own grade below.
View Poll
Continue reading AdSpotting: Audi recognizes true greatness in the new A8
AdSpotting: Audi recognizes true greatness in the new A8 originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 22 Sep 2011 16:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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September 22nd, 2011
Tags:
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ad spotting,
adspotting,
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Audi,
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Marketing/Advertising,
Sedan,
true greatness,
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Video
Filed under: Hybrid, Audi
Diesel-lovin' Audi is slowly, slowly coming to grips with this whole hybrid thing. Earlier this year, the "We're not against hybrids" automaker finally gave out some real information about its hybrid Q5 (after years of teases and killing the program once,) and we saw the A6 hybrid at the Detroit Auto Show in January. Today, Audi is making good on the promise it made at the Geneva Motor Show in 2010 when it showed off a thinly disguised hybrid A8 concept.
Due out in 2012 (coincidentally, the 15th anniversary of the Toyota Prius), the A8 hybrid should appeal to customers who crave the German automaker's style and dislike stopping for petrol every third day. The A8 hybrid uses a 2.0 TFSI engine and an electric motor to crank out a peak output of 180 kW (245 horsepower) and 480 Nm (345.03 lb-ft) of torque. Audi says all that power and style will come with 37 mpg (U.S.), which doesn't put the A8 at the top of the hybrid efficiency pack - remember, the A8 is huge - but it beats the pants off of the gas-only A8, which the EPA rates at 18/28/21 (city/highway/combined) mpg.
Even better for late night stealth missions to the golf course, the A8 hybrid can go three kilometers (1.86 miles) and up to 60 km/h (37.28 mph) using nothing but energy stored in its 1.3 kWh lithium-ion battery. Once the luxury sedan is up to speed, it can move down the highway at speeds of up to 100 km/h (62.14 mph) on battery power, too. These are all good numbers (if only estimations from Audi, for now), and we eagerly await the chance to see how the A8 Hybrid operates in the real world. Until that time, check out the gallery below and read more details in the press release available after the jump.
Continue reading Audi spills the beans on production 37 mpg A8 Hybrid
Audi spills the beans on production 37 mpg A8 Hybrid originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 24 Aug 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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August 24th, 2011
Filed under: Spy Photos, Sedan, Performance, Audi, Luxury
It's been several months since
Audi unveiled its latest
A8 flagship sedan, and you know what that means, boys and girls: that's right, a new
S8 is almost upon us.
The performance version of the luxury limousine has been spied undergoing what looks like final testing, given a lack of camouflage or body cladding on the test mule snapped in our high-res image gallery. The face looks more aggressive than the stock A8 but rather subtle and still tastefully elegant, with bigger wheels filling the wells and larger brakes in turn filling the wheels.
But, of course you want to know what's under the hood. Don't we all. Following a similar trajectory to arch-rival
BMW's latest M5,
word on the street is that the
Lamborghini-derived V10 from the previous S8 will be replaced by the new twin-turbo V8 expected to find its way as well into the new
S6,
S7 and
Bentley Continental GT. Output and efficiency are expected to increase, however, with power ratings mooted in the 500 horsepower range.
That's a lot of beef, and if we had to guess, we'd say we'll probably be scoping it out in person come September's
Frankfurt Motor Show.
2012 Audi S8 brings genteel muscle originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Jul 2011 10:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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July 28th, 2011
