Archive for the ‘Audi’ Category

DANA POINT, Calif. — On the PCH — California’s Pacific Coast Highway — sunshine rules the sky and invites motoring al fresco with the pop-top stowed and bright light plus cool sea breezes swirling through a convertible cabin.

And it’s a push-button snap to drop the top of a luxurious new convertible edition of a compact-class A4 car from the German automaker Audi.

Rising from a rigid open-roof body style, the A4 Cabriolet provides a power-motivated retractable cloth top set with a heated rear window on a sleek and smooth body shell coated in one of four sparkling colors.

An electro-hydraulic mechanism motivates the fully automatic top to fold up or down in less than 25 seconds.

Styling for the A4 Cabriolet differs from A4 sedans and A4 avant estate wagons because all exterior lines are unique to the convertibles.

Read the rest of this entry »

Is it possible for an automobile manufacturer to create the perfect car? Well, I guess that would be a matter of opinion as to what constitutes perfection. For me it would require seating for five adults, a large trunk and all-wheel drive. My dream machine would also need to possess incredible power and performance, while having an outwardly aggressive but somewhat ?sleeper? stance. Topping off my personal wish-list would be an excellent sound system, wrapped up in an interior environment second to none. Now, if someone could pull that off, I would be impressed. One second thought, Audi already has and they call it the 2002 Audi S6 Avant. A week in the seat of this incredible vehicle had me salivating at how good this wagon is. For his own perspective, read Bob?s full review below.

AUDI DELIVERS PERHAPS THE MOST CAPABLE STATION WAGON ON THE MARKET

With a marketplace full of crossover vehicles playing multiple roles Audi was ahead of the field – The A6 combines sport, luxury, versatility and safety in an elegant package

Read the rest of this entry »

2002 Audi S4 Sedan

Rhythm and Blues

?Well it?s one for the money, two for the show, three to get ready, now go cat go and don?t you step on my blue suede shoes, you can do anything but lay off of my blue suede shoes.?

It?s not often I would start the review of a world class sports sedan with Carl Perkins penned and Elvis voiced lyrics, but sitting behind the wheel of the 2002 Audi S4 it seems strangely appropriate.

In fact if I didn?t know better, I would think the blue suede, (Alcantara) inserts on the seats and door panels, matching the ?Oh so bright!? Nogaro Blue Pearl exterior, were chosen as an inside joke by the Audi designers of the S4. If this is the case, I?m laughing with joy all the way to the next curve in the road.

You see, a little more than a decade ago Audi was considering saying goodbye to the North American market. In other words, Elvis was about to leave the building.

Read the rest of this entry »

2002 Audi S4 Sedan
Rhythm and Blues

?Well it?s one for the money, two for the show, three to get ready, now go cat go and don?t you step on my blue suede shoes, you can do anything but lay off of my blue suede shoes.?

It?s not often I would start the review of a world class sports sedan with Carl Perkins penned and Elvis voiced lyrics, but sitting behind the wheel of the 2002 Audi S4 it seems strangely appropriate. In fact if I didn?t know better, I would think the blue suede, (Alcantara) inserts on the seats and door panels, matching the ?Oh so bright!? Nogaro Blue Pearl exterior, were chosen as an inside joke by the Audi designers of the S4. If this is the case, I?m laughing with joy all the way to the next curve in the road.

You see, a little more than a decade ago Audi was considering saying goodbye to the North American market. In other words, Elvis was about to leave the building. The late 80?s were dark years, and to this day I still hear comments to the fact Audi vehicles are expensive to maintain and generally unreliable. A concern which in this millennium rings less true with every new vehicle they introduce. These days there is sustainable comfort in having an Audi underfoot.
Read the rest of this entry »

2002 Audi A4-3.0

The all-new Audi A4-3.0 litre Quattro sedan is a marvellous shot fired directly across the bow of the good ship BMW. In everyway, this sedan extends the reign of the Germans as the Chancellors of the fast lane, being elegant to ride in and a blast to drive. Watch out 3-series, the ante has just been upped.

Sitting behind the wheel, I am surrounded by leather, real wood, logical gauges and a killer Bose? stereo system. The feeling is instantly Audi, with red lettered night time accents and enough buttons and dials to keep an off-duty air traffic controller happy.

Read the rest of this entry »

2002 Audi A4-3.0 litre, 6-spd Quattro

The all-new Audi A4-3.0 litre Quattro sedan is a marvellous shot fired directly across the bow of the good ship BMW. In everyway, this sedan extends the reign of the Germans as the Chancellors of the fast lane, being elegant to ride in and a blast to drive. Watch out 3-series, the ante has just been upped.

Sitting behind the wheel, I am surrounded by leather, real wood, logical gauges and a killer Bose? stereo system. The feeling is instantly Audi, with red lettered night time accents and enough buttons and dials to keep an off-duty air traffic controller happy. As if the customary power adjustments to the driver?s seat weren?t sufficient, the 2002 A4-3.0 litre Quattro provides enough plausible configurations and back support to accommodate drivers of all shapes and sizes.

The ingenious lumbar adjustment not only increases the amount of support available to the lower back, it allows for a second increase in pressure throughout the whole range of the spine, by moving the applied force in an up and down motion.

Read the rest of this entry »

When the TT first hit the show car circuit, a lot of folks predicted massive changes to bring it to the market. Not so, and initial sales have shown that the public likes the sleek, futuristic shape, that still retains ties to the past. Kind of a modern treatment of thirties deco.

The TT Roadster combines a no-compromise design with outstanding high performance and can generate enthusiasm in anyone with a passion for driving. It is available with either a 180- or a 225-horsepower 1.8-liter, 4-cylinder turbocharged five-valve engine. The 225-horsepower engine is now also available in the hot-selling TT Coupe In black, the Audi TT Coupe looks a bit evil; not reptilian, but rather “beetle like” (pun intended.) After all, it shares its basic underpinnings with the VW Golf which is also used in the New Beetle).

From its short wheelbase to its low overall height the proportions and curves of this car conspire to generate more stares per gallon than almost anything on the road. Folks in other vehicles perform whiplash inducing maneuvers to get a better view as it passes by or runs alongside, creating all kinds of work for chiropractors.

Read the rest of this entry »

What happens when you cross a curve-craving sports sedan with a mud-loving sport-utility vehicle? Designers working for the German automaker Audi tried to mix these two seemingly disparate concepts, one a sleek pavement speeder that slinks snug against asphalt, the other a boxy off-road machine hiked high in the suspension in order to clear rough stuff on the trail.

What they produced in this hybrid cross is the Allroad, although in Audi’s lingo, capitalizing a product’s name is often shunned so it becomes simply the allroad.

It’s a slick design based on Audi’s mid-size A6 avant (an Audi term that signifies station wagon styling), but rigged with a wider track and variable-height pneumatic suspension, different body panels with protective armor cladding and a luxurious passenger compartment draped in supple leathers, glossy hardwoods and touches of satin-finished aluminum.

Read the rest of this entry »

Over the century Audi has become known for world conquering performance, safe and stable all wheel drive systems, industry leading aerodynamic styling,superior engineering,and unintended acceleration.

Only the latter was not deserved, but for media trained Americans, that bogus charge completely overcame all the good qualities. It has been a hard fight to come back, but with such a lineup, Audi deserves a second chance.

Now the addition of the A8 gives Audi a broad lineup. Not since 1994 has the German automaker offered a V-8 engine, in the under appreciated V8 Quattro.

For starters, the A8 comes not with two, but four airbags for the front and two side-mounted for rear passengers. Audi promotes “elegance without arrogance, excellence without excess, class without mass.” High-toned words, but the car does manage to exhibit those qualities.  Read the rest of this entry »

It was expected that after the upgrade model A3 for the test machine will come with a distinctive brand feature – LED «Brovki» head optics. But this did not happen. Yet changes in the A3 Sportback is. Just need to know where to look. Read the rest of this entry »