Audi 2012 A-7
When automakers begin development of a new model, there are usually three or more competing design proposals, one is then chosen to do it in metal. This Standard Operating Procedure was rejected with the Audi A7 Sportback, says Audi boss Rupert Stadler: Everything was right in the first place. Yes, this large hatchback to be the most beautiful of all Audi's. Long, broad and low, the style with a smooth and supremely clean lines. The front is better proportioned than the latest A8's and seems cool, almost stoic, especially with the optional LED headlights. The side view reminds most handsome (if not the most reliable) of the 1970 combined, the Rover SD-1 and Citroen CX, the rear end has been cut sharply, as an Italian supercar of the same era. This car is free of gimmicks you find at many others in this class, and we have not talked to someone who does not admire not their appearance.
Now that we have established that A7 is beautiful, we noticed that the car really is little more than a dressed up, the next generation A6. It uses Audi's modular longitudinal architecture, a good 20 percent of the A7's body is made of aluminum, which is more heavily rely on the more expensive A8, but most of the A7 is made of less expensive steel. Our experience behind the wheel of the A7 bodes well for the next A6. The chassis slides over uneven roads with far more grace than before, this is a very comfortable car, with none of the harshness and forced sportiness that characterizes many other Audi models. The 114.7-inch wheelbase, up nearly three inches over the previous A6 is definitely helping to keep the body's movements are controlled and quiet cabin. But while the A7 can be considered as a big car, at least in Europe, it does not mind being pushed through the turns. This is especially true for these versions equipped with Quattro all-wheel-drive system, which supplies 60 percent of torque to the rear wheels as standard, as much as 70 percent may be shunted to the front and 85 percent to the rear. All US-bound A7s will have Quattro.
Even without the optional sport differential is A7 agile when pushed. It remains neutral up to ridiculous swing speeds and never discourage you from playing. Audi wheel-selective torque vectoring is so well programmed that stability control is one of the lightest workload of any of the systems in this car. Besides the 3.0 TFSI Quattro US-bound configuration, we ran a front-wheel-drive 3.0-liter TDI. It is also predictable in its handling and very smooth but ultimately tends to understeer and less quick to recover speed when exiting corners.
The 300-hp 3.0 TFSI is the same engine found in the current A6 and S4—it makes 310 hp in the former, 333 in the latter—and it remains great in the A7. Despite its misleading “TFSI” moniker, this V-6 is supercharged with a Roots-type blower. It’s smooth and responsive and delivers excellent performance, or so says Audi. The company claims an A7 thus equipped can achieve 62 mph in 5.6 seconds—we estimate that to be about right—and the top speed is governed at the customary 155 mph. In Europe, the 3.0 mates to a seven-speed wet dual-clutch gearbox, but we’ll get the same ZF-supplied eight-speed automatic found in the A8. The seven-speeder executes quick shifts, but the exhaust sound is subdued; this is clearly a luxury car with sportiness playing second fiddle—although it is, as noted, plenty capable.The most popular engine in Europe likely will be the 245-hp, 3.0-liter V-6 TDI Quattro (it’s the same engine as in the front-wheel-drive version we sampled, but it made a weaker 204 hp there). There also is an entry-level gasoline engine that is a naturally aspirated 204-hp, 2.8-liter V-6. The best engine is yet to come: a 4.0-liter turbocharged V-8 that will be available in the upcoming S7 and mated to the seven-speed dual-clutch S tronic gearbox. The S7 will arrive after the S8 sometime late in 2011, and it just might be worth waiting for. Of course, if you need a sportier look right now, Audi is happy to oblige with an S line package that adds boxier front air intakes, although we found them disrupting to the front-end aesthetics. No thanks.
Opulence and Simplicity
The interior oozes the A7 while the abundance and simplicity. The high center console gives a sporty, cockpit-like feel, the instruments are clear and crisp, and the materials are, as usual for Audi, fantastic. The aluminum and wood trim options can be considered as an industry benchmark, with layered oak is the most luxurious variant. Along the A6-based mechanical are many gadgets which first appeared in the flagship A8, including the touch pad that can detect finger handwriting and a function in which our test car constantly updated its navigation system with Google Maps data (we could be interested in checking out the mobile data network bill by Multi-Wave, two-week press release). A7 head-up system is crisp and clear, and it is a complete set of nanny and assistance systems, including radar sensors to detect slow or stopped vehicles ahead, blind-spot monitoring, active cruise control that can operate to and from a complete stops, and lane-Keeping Assist. The data is fed into the latter helps in case the car starts to slip by increasing or reducing the power steering assist. We like the speed limit-recognition technology, which shows the road signs in the IP as you pass them, handy if you are driving in unfamiliar places, but we are not sure if it will make it to U.S. models.
Speaking of American models, expect them here next year, priced somewhere between $ 50,000 and $ 60,000. A7 most direct competitors are the Mercedes-Benz CLS, the second generation which debuts at the Paris Auto Show, and Porsche Panamera V-6. Second is the coupe-ish Jaguar XF, and funky BMW 5-Series GT. While some are better to drive, and all have more or less similar levels of practical, carries no sheet metal that is as effortlessly sensual as the A7's. And in a segment where the styling is pretty much everything, giving Audi a leg up.
Now that we have established that A7 is beautiful, we noticed that the car really is little more than a dressed up, the next generation A6. It uses Audi's modular longitudinal architecture, a good 20 percent of the A7's body is made of aluminum, which is more heavily rely on the more expensive A8, but most of the A7 is made of less expensive steel. Our experience behind the wheel of the A7 bodes well for the next A6. The chassis slides over uneven roads with far more grace than before, this is a very comfortable car, with none of the harshness and forced sportiness that characterizes many other Audi models. The 114.7-inch wheelbase, up nearly three inches over the previous A6 is definitely helping to keep the body's movements are controlled and quiet cabin. But while the A7 can be considered as a big car, at least in Europe, it does not mind being pushed through the turns. This is especially true for these versions equipped with Quattro all-wheel-drive system, which supplies 60 percent of torque to the rear wheels as standard, as much as 70 percent may be shunted to the front and 85 percent to the rear. All US-bound A7s will have Quattro.
Even without the optional sport differential is A7 agile when pushed. It remains neutral up to ridiculous swing speeds and never discourage you from playing. Audi wheel-selective torque vectoring is so well programmed that stability control is one of the lightest workload of any of the systems in this car. Besides the 3.0 TFSI Quattro US-bound configuration, we ran a front-wheel-drive 3.0-liter TDI. It is also predictable in its handling and very smooth but ultimately tends to understeer and less quick to recover speed when exiting corners.
The 300-hp 3.0 TFSI is the same engine found in the current A6 and S4—it makes 310 hp in the former, 333 in the latter—and it remains great in the A7. Despite its misleading “TFSI” moniker, this V-6 is supercharged with a Roots-type blower. It’s smooth and responsive and delivers excellent performance, or so says Audi. The company claims an A7 thus equipped can achieve 62 mph in 5.6 seconds—we estimate that to be about right—and the top speed is governed at the customary 155 mph. In Europe, the 3.0 mates to a seven-speed wet dual-clutch gearbox, but we’ll get the same ZF-supplied eight-speed automatic found in the A8. The seven-speeder executes quick shifts, but the exhaust sound is subdued; this is clearly a luxury car with sportiness playing second fiddle—although it is, as noted, plenty capable.The most popular engine in Europe likely will be the 245-hp, 3.0-liter V-6 TDI Quattro (it’s the same engine as in the front-wheel-drive version we sampled, but it made a weaker 204 hp there). There also is an entry-level gasoline engine that is a naturally aspirated 204-hp, 2.8-liter V-6. The best engine is yet to come: a 4.0-liter turbocharged V-8 that will be available in the upcoming S7 and mated to the seven-speed dual-clutch S tronic gearbox. The S7 will arrive after the S8 sometime late in 2011, and it just might be worth waiting for. Of course, if you need a sportier look right now, Audi is happy to oblige with an S line package that adds boxier front air intakes, although we found them disrupting to the front-end aesthetics. No thanks.
Opulence and Simplicity
The interior oozes the A7 while the abundance and simplicity. The high center console gives a sporty, cockpit-like feel, the instruments are clear and crisp, and the materials are, as usual for Audi, fantastic. The aluminum and wood trim options can be considered as an industry benchmark, with layered oak is the most luxurious variant. Along the A6-based mechanical are many gadgets which first appeared in the flagship A8, including the touch pad that can detect finger handwriting and a function in which our test car constantly updated its navigation system with Google Maps data (we could be interested in checking out the mobile data network bill by Multi-Wave, two-week press release). A7 head-up system is crisp and clear, and it is a complete set of nanny and assistance systems, including radar sensors to detect slow or stopped vehicles ahead, blind-spot monitoring, active cruise control that can operate to and from a complete stops, and lane-Keeping Assist. The data is fed into the latter helps in case the car starts to slip by increasing or reducing the power steering assist. We like the speed limit-recognition technology, which shows the road signs in the IP as you pass them, handy if you are driving in unfamiliar places, but we are not sure if it will make it to U.S. models.
Speaking of American models, expect them here next year, priced somewhere between $ 50,000 and $ 60,000. A7 most direct competitors are the Mercedes-Benz CLS, the second generation which debuts at the Paris Auto Show, and Porsche Panamera V-6. Second is the coupe-ish Jaguar XF, and funky BMW 5-Series GT. While some are better to drive, and all have more or less similar levels of practical, carries no sheet metal that is as effortlessly sensual as the A7's. And in a segment where the styling is pretty much everything, giving Audi a leg up.
Audi 2012 A-7
Audi 2012 A-7
Audi 2012 A-7
Audi 2012 A-7
Audi 2012 A-7
Audi 2012 A-7
Audi 2012 A-7
