Audi A3 named 'green' car of the year

Audi A3



Audi A3



Audi A3



Audi A3

Audi's latest environmentally-friendly sedan, launched in the United States just last month, took top honors ahead of the Toyota Prius, Honda Insight, VW Golf TDI and Ford's Mercury Milan hybrid.

The A3 TDI gets 42 miles (67 kilometers) to the gallon (3.75 liters) on the highway, following in the footsteps, or should we say tire tracks of the Volkswagen Jetta, which won last year.

Ron Cogan, editor of Green Car Journal, said jurors were impressed with Audi's direct injection turbo diesel technology which "achieved 50 percent better fuel efficiency than the gasoline engine A3 model without sacrificing anything."

Consumers warming to climate-friendly cars

Audi sold just over 500 A3 diesels in the US in November, its first month on the market, a figure that pales in comparison to the runner-up Toyota Prius, which sold 128,000 units this year.

But Consumer Reports magazine's senior automotive engineer, Jake Fisher, said he was confident that the car would sell. "There is demand for this type of vehicle, and I think it will do well", he said, despite the traditional aversion to diesel-powered automobiles in the US.

Green car winners are chosen by a panel of Green Car magazine editors, and invited jurors, who this year included car collector and comic Jay Leno, environmental activist, Jean-Michel Cousteau, legendary muscle car designer Carroll Shelby and the head of the Sierra Club environment group, Carl Pope.

Pricing Announced for 2010 Audi A3, A6, A8, and TT

Audi's 2010 lineup has been priced and is headed to dealerships ahead of schedule. Audi, bucking economic trends, said that sales of the A5 and S5 were more than 57 percent higher in the first seven months of the year than in the same period of 2008, causing the company to push 2010 sales ahead by "several weeks" for many models.


Changes on all models are evolutionary, with upgrades to several option packages. For the first time in 2010 — and, Audi says, the first time in the U.S. for any car manufacturer — all gasoline engines get FSI direct-injection technology.

The R8 supercar gets an all-new engine, a 5.2-liter FSI V10 that makes 525 horsepower and pushes the car from zero to 60 mph in less than 3.9 seconds. Other changes for the 2010 R8 include an iPod interface, carbon-fiber-trimmed door sills and a body kit. Parking assist is now available as well, and seats get Napa leather surfaces. Prices range from $115,400 for the R8 with 4.2 FSI V8 and six-speed manual transmission to $156,300 for the R8 with the new 5.2 FSI V10 and R tronic transmission. The R8's prices include a $1,200 destination charge.

The 2010 A3 gets upgraded wheels, and xenon headlights and LED daytime running lights are now standard on Premium Plus versions. The sportier S line exterior look is now standard on all A3s. A wood-accented interior is now available on all models, and leather/Alcantara seats are optional on Titanium Sport models. Audi has done away with the 3.2 FSI engine option, and all models will have the 2.0-liter turbo engine.

The A3 starts at $28,095 for the Premium 2.0T model with manual transmission and front-wheel drive. The top-end 2.0T Quattro with S tronic and the Premium Plus package is priced at $33,675. All prices for this and other models except the R8 include an $825 destination charge. A 2.0 TDI "clean diesel" engine will be available in December, with pricing to be released later.

The 2010 A4 gets the third-generation MMI and Sirius on navigation-equipped models. Among the other option changes, Bluetooth and HomeLink are now packaged as a unit on Premium A4s, and Bang & Olufsen audio is an option now on Premium Plus models. The A4 2.0T Quattro with manual transmission and the Premium package starts at $33,175, while the top Prestige A4 2.0T Quattro Avant with Tiptronic and the Prestige package starts at $45,375.

For 2010, the A5 gets a new 2.0 TFSI version that makes 211 hp and 258 pound-feet of torque. The A5 TFSI cabriolet and S5 3.0 supercharged TFSI cabriolet will be out in the fall, with pricing to be announced later.

Audi notes that the A5 Quattro with manual transmission now costs $4,700 less than the previous equivalent, the manual A5 3.2 Quattro. The A5 coupe with manual transmission and Premium package costs $36,825, with the top A5 3.2 Quattro coupe with Tiptronic and Prestige package costing $49,625. The S5 with 4.2-liter V8, manual transmission and Premium Plus package costs $53,225, while the top Prestige version of the S5 4.2 V8 with Tiptronic is $58,275.

The most notable addition to the Audi A6 is a new 3.2-liter FSI V6 engine that makes 265 hp. There are also new Sport packages with 18- or 19-inch tires, lowered sport suspension and sport steering wheel. Daytime running lights are also standard on models with halogen lights. A heated steering wheel with shift paddles is now standard on A6s with the optional Cold Weather package. A6 pricing ranges from the 3.2 FSI front-wheel-drive model with Multitronic and the Premium package, which starts at $46,025, to the 3.0 TFSI Avant Quattro with Tiptronic and the Premium package, priced at $54,135.

The 2010 Q5 gets standard daytime running lights, navigation upgrades and new 18- and 19-inch sport wheel and tire choices. The Q5 will also get the new 3.2-liter FSI V6. The Q5 Quattro with Tiptronic and Premium package starts at $38,175, with the top Prestige model at $49,675.

Audi notes that the 2010 Q7 3.6, 4.2 and TDI will be out in October, with pricing and other details to be announced later.

The TT gets a "simplified" lineup for 2010 and no major changes. The prices range from $38,625 for the TT Coupe with S Tronic and the Premium package to $55,775 for the Prestige level TTS Roadster.

The New Audi A3 1.6 TDI

The Audi A3 Sportback 1.6 TDI S Line

Success will smell even sweeter in the Audi A3 from this month as the consistent class best seller slashes emissions even further with the help of an all new 1.6-litre common rail TDI engine combining an outstandingly low CO2 output of 109g/km with the potential to cover close to 69mpg. Aided by the latest auxiliary fuel conservation technology, including an automatic start-stop function, the new unit effects an eight per cent economy improvement over the engine powering the Audi A3 1.9 TDIe, which it replaces. It is available in three-door, five-door Sportback and Audi A3 Cabriolet models priced from £17,485 OTR.

The three-door version's 68.9mpg combined economy figure demands no sacrifices in power or performance - with the same 105PS and 250Nm peak power and torque outputs as the larger displacement 1.9-litre TDI unit, the new arrival powers the Audi A3 1.6 TDI with five-speed manual transmission to 62mph in 11.4 seconds and on to a top speed of 121mph. This uncompromising breadth of ability is made possible with the help of automatic start-stop and energy recuperation systems, both of which made their debuts recently in the Audi A3 1.4 TFSI.

The start-stop system cuts engine power at idle when the clutch pedal is released and the gear lever is in its neutral position, and then restarts in just two-tenths of a second - more rapidly than any other comparable system - when the clutch is depressed. With the system's help, economy is boosted and CO2 is reduced by approximately 5g/km, but if required it can be deactivated at the touch of a button.

Braking Energy 'Recycled'

Recuperation technology provides further fuel and CO2 savings by recycling a proportion of the wasted kinetic energy which is generated under normal braking and normally dissipated as heat, and storing this temporarily in the vehicle battery to reduce the engine load when the car subsequently accelerates again. With its help, fuel usage is reduced by as much as three per cent in the A3.

These virtually imperceptible economy-maximising measures in no way detract from the responsiveness and agility which has always characterised the Audi A3 range. For keen drivers this can be maximised by specifying the Audi A3 1.6 TDI in Sport form with sports suspension lowered by 15mm over 17-inch five-spoke Star design alloy wheels, or as an S line which rides 10mm lower still on 18-inch seven twin-spoke wheels. The 1.6 TDI is also available in more comfort oriented SE and Standard trim levels, all four options featuring alloy wheels and comforts such as air conditioning or climate control, a single CD audio system, electric windows and mirrors and split/folding rear seats.

The frugal new engine and accompanying efficiency measures bear testament to the concerted efforts being made to honour Board of Management Chairman Rupert Stadler's pledge to reduce average Audi fleet CO2 output by at least 20 per cent by 2012.

A5 Sportback breaks cover

No niche is sacred...or impossible to create when it comes to German carmakers – Audi has unveiled more images and information on its coupé/station wagon hybrid, the A5 Sportback.

Audi’s bid for market domination, culminating in projected vehicle sales of 1,5 million units annually by 2015, means the Ingolstadt firm has been on something of a new model offensive of late. The company is in the process of unveiling a supermini in the A1 hatchback, a high-end coupé in the A7, and has now released information and images of a Sportback version of its A5 coupé.

The A5 Sportback’s elongated five-door body is described by Audi as a design that combines the elegant styling of a coupé with the practicality of an Avant (station wagon) with 980 dm³ of load space freed up when the rear seats are folded flat, or generous accommodation for four adults with them in place. The aforementioned coupé-esque profile results from a long, tapering roofline that sits 36 mm lower than that of the A4 saloon, a longer wheelbase (2 810 mm), and short overhangs at the front and rear.

The engine line up will initially comprise a two petrol units and a trio of diesels. The entry-level petrol-engined model will feature the VW Group’s 2,0-litre TSFI unit with 155 kW and 350 N.m of torque being channelled through Audi’s Quattro all-wheel drive system. There will also be a 3,2-litre V6 developing 195 kW. Both of these units will feature Audi’s valvelift power/fuel economy optimising technology.

The diesel line kicks off with a 2,0-litre TDI with 125 kW and 350 N.m of torque mated with a six-speed manual gearbox and start/stop system. Next up is a 2,7-litre TDI pushing out 140 kW and 400 N.m. At the top of the diesel pile sits a 3,0-litre V6 TDI developing 170 kW and 500 N.m of torque – this unit will most likely feature Quattro all-wheel drive.

The A5 Sportback will also feature a newly developed electronic stability program with an electronic differential lock on the front axle, a 3-preset Audi drive select dynamic driving system that influences throttle response characteristics/shift points for the seven-speed S tronic or multitronic transmissions, and supports the servotronic steering. MMI-equipped models will sport a fourth, freely programmable setting.

European sales will commence shortly after the car’s official debut at Frankfurt Motor Show with a pricing for the base 2,0-litre TDI model set at around €33 650 (roughly R390 000). Audi has however, confirmed that an even cheaper model will arrive towards the middle of next year. More details will emerge closer to the car’s September launch.