Fourth win in a row for the recently reworked supercar in the annual BusinessCar Awards

• Audi R8 is named BusinessCar’s Sporting Car of the Year 2013
• Accolade is awarded to premium supercar for fourth year running
• New generation R8 range includes all-LED lighting for every model, all-new S tronic twin-clutch transmission and new 550PS V10 plus model
• Latest range priced from £91,575 OTR to £127,575 OTR

The Audi R8 remains the executive’s sports car of choice according to the readers of BusinessCar Magazine, who have voted it Sporting Car of the Year for the fourth successive year in the 2013 BusinessCar Awards.

Readers of the fleet-focused magazine and its website (www.businesscar.co.uk) have yet again singled out the R8 as a favourite on the strength of its everyday usability and firmly established desirability amongst top level company car drivers.

Paul Barker, Editor at BusinessCar Magazine, explained why the R8 is a regular leader in this category: “Though most business cars are chosen with the head, brand image is becoming increasingly influential in the large population of company drivers able to choose their own car, and that’s where the Audi R8 has a crucial role to play in showing Audi’s sporting prowess and emotional appeal.

“This award shows the desire Audi has created for its products, and this kind of desirability sweeps across the range when business car drivers are selecting their next company car – even if they can’t afford something as fabulous as an R8!”

The all-new Audi A3 Sportback was also recognised in the awards for the significant advances in efficiency, quality and driver appeal it now brings to company car drivers – its transformation was enough to secure it third place overall in the Business Car of the Year category.

A3 Sportback also shines through

Barker added: “An impressive weight loss programme has helped make the A3 more nimble and fun to drive than its predecessor, and has also helped lower emissions, while the cabin quality, always an Audi strength, is even better than ever.”

James Douglas, Head of Fleet Sales at Audi UK, said: “The R8 has proven itself to be a fantastic all-rounder many times and, as this highly-valued award shows, its breadth of talent extends well beyond the realms of the supercar that is only suitable for weekend use. For the R8 to receive this coveted award not once, but four times in as many years is a great achievement."

The V8 and V10-powered R8 Coupé and soft-top Spyder ranges have just undergone significant revisions, including new design detailing, equipment upgrades, all-LED lighting for every version and the addition of an all-new 7-speed S tronic twin-clutch transmission delivering split-second shifts for even more exhilarating performance. A new 550PS, 197mph V10 plus model has also joined the Coupé range at its head.

Prices for the Audi R8 Coupé start at £91,575 OTR for the 4.2-litre V8 quattro with 430PS, rising to £115,575 OTR for the 5.2 V10 quattro. The new R8 V10 plus is priced at £124,675 OTR for 6-speed manual transmission models, or £127,575 OTR with the new S tronic gearbox. OTR prices for the R8 V8 Spyder start at £100,225 and rise to £124,225 for the 5.2 V10 Spyder with S tronic.

New online fuel calculator offers users the opportunity to compare and contrast models to find the Audi best suited to their budget

• New online fuel calculator at audi.co.uk allows comparison between current Audi models in terms of purchase price, fuel economy and estimated fuel costs
• Allows users to input detail such as average annual mileage, expected ownership duration and local fuel costs for the most relevant predictions
• Customers can submit a test drive request directly from the calculator once their preferred Audi is selected

Comparing how far the latest Audi models will stretch each pound spent at the fuel pumps has just become considerably easier thanks to a new online fuel cost calculator which is available free on audi.co.uk.

The useful tool enables new customers in search of their ideal Audi, or existing owners looking to upsize or downsize, to easily establish which model will best suit their budget by mixing and matching different body styles, model classes, trim levels and fuel types. Each time a pair of models is selected, the system provides a virtually instantaneous calculation of the potential financial benefit of choosing one model over the other.

To make the figures that are generated as precise and relevant as possible, the calculator enables users to input their projected annual mileage right down to the last mile, the duration in years they would like the calculation to cover, the specific MPG figure they want to use for comparison (urban/extra urban/combined) and the anticipated price per litre of fuel. The latter is automatically added based on the national average according to the AA Fuel Price Report, which is updated monthly, but prevailing prices at the user’s local filling station can also be entered manually. 

The calculator displays the official government fuel economy figure for each model chosen (based on the urban, extra urban or combined option selected), and uses this, along with the other preset parameters, to predict totals for fuel expenditure over the chosen period (between one  year and seven years) based on the current fuel price. From these it then calculates the monthly, and annual, sum that would be saved by choosing the more economical of the two models selected. Differences in purchase price are also clearly displayed.

Taking the all-new A3 three-door compact hatchback as an example, the calculator quickly shows that the 1.4 TFSI 122PS SE petrol model is £950 cheaper as an outright purchase than the 1.6 TDI  105PS SE diesel, but that a driver covering 10,000 miles in a year on average could save very nearly this sum at the pumps by choosing the 1.6 TDI, though only after three years. This makes it easier for drivers to tailor their choice of model to suit how, and for how long, they tend to use a car.

Once the user has arrived at a decision, a test drive in the chosen car can then be simply arranged by clicking on a button at the foot of the page.

The audi.co.uk online fuel calculator can be accessed by clicking on the “Explore Models” tab at the top of the home page and then clicking the “calculate fuel costs” option.

Article source: www.audi.co.uk

Lightweight construction technology is embraced in the future of furniture

• Pioneering Audi R18 Ultra Chair unveiled at Design Miami/, developed using the same technology employed in Audi racing cars
• Made from carbon fibre, carbon and high-strength sheet aluminium, it weighs just 2.2kgs
• Digital designers Clemens Weisshaar and Reed Kram worked in collaboration with Audi engineers to develop the prototype

The seemingly humble household chair has just undergone a Vorsprung durch Technik makeover inspired by the Audi sports prototype that competed in the Le Mans 24-hour race this year, resulting in a tremendous 1-2-3 finish. The visually stunning R18 Ultra Chair was revealed earlier this month at the prestigious Design Miami/ show to a global audience.

Masterminded by designers Clemens Weisshaar and Reed Kram, and developed using the most efficient and sustainable processes, the R18 Ultra Chair is made from a mix of carbon fibre, carbon and high-strength sheet aluminium. This combination guarantees maximum stability and comfort with minimum consumption of materials, and also ensures that the chair is almost feather-light to lift.

The striking chair appeared first in prototype form at the Milan Furniture Fair in April this year, where it was fitted with an array of sensors capable of collecting data on the forces at play whenever the chair was used. Some 1,500 testers took the opportunity to try it out, and in the process informed the evolution of its design. In conjunction with engineers at the Audi Lightweight Construction Centre, the designers used the data to optimise their prototype, resulting in a finished product which embodies the principles of Audi ultra lightweight construction – through the intelligent deployment of advanced materials, high strength and exceptionally low weight have been achieved – in this case a total weight of just 2.2 kilograms.

Dr. Karl Durst, an engineer in fibre-reinforced composites at the Audi Lightweight Construction Centre, explains the finished product: “We combine the strengths of the materials in such a way that their weaknesses are no longer important. This efficiency is the focus of our ultra lightweight construction principle.”

The R18 Ultra Chair is the design duo’s second project for Audi after the widely acclaimed, award-winning installation OUTRACE on London’s Trafalgar Square in 2010. Described as ‘the vanguard of the next generation of digital designers’, permanent collections display the work of Weisshaar and Kram at the Museum of Modern Art, New York and the Centre Pompidou, Paris.

Audi has been the exclusive automotive partner of Design Miami/, the most influential international design forum, since 2006 and has a sense of obligation to design and technology in equal measure. In recent years, the brand with the four rings has commissioned installations by international designers and architects such as Tom Dixon, Moritz Waldemeyer, Mirko Borsche and Bjarke Ingels, and is committed to promoting design culture and research.

Article source: www.audi.co.uk

Premium subcompact five-door model wins first accolade to join host of honours awarded to A1 family

• A1 Sportback wins Most Cost-Efficient Car for an SME Company Car Driver
• Praised for its “low cost, low CO2 and good brand appeal” by judges
• 1.6 TDI SE version with 105PS and CO2 of 99g/km is available now, priced at £14,700 OTR

The Audi A1 Sportback has won a key award in the annual Business Car Manager SME Company Car of the Year Awards 2012, proving it has pride of place alongside its hugely successful three-door sister model.

Judges in the awards, run in association with MAGMA Automotive Services, singled out the A1 Sportback as Most Cost-Efficient Car for an SME Company Car Driver.

Editor of Business Car Manager, Ralph Morton explained: "The Audi A1 Sportback encapsulates everything that's welcome about company car downsizing: a premium badge for car park credibility, low CO2 emissions for reduced company car tax exposure, and running costs that put a stranglehold on any business motoring expenditure."

James Douglas, Head of Fleet Sales at Audi UK, added: “It is fantastic to see the A1 Sportback regarded so highly for its efficiency credentials. The 1.6 TDI engine is capable of achieving 74.3mpg whilst only emitting 99g/km. Practical and with a premium feel inside and out, it is a genuinely exciting company car choice.”

Article source: www.audi.co.uk