Audi is the automobile industry’s worldwide pioneer in lightweight construction. Created nearly three decades ago, the Audi Sport quattro had a body in which aramid fiber-reinforced plastic replaced many sheet metal components.
The first Audi A8 featuring the Audi Space Frame (ASF) rolled off the assembly line in 1994. Since then, the brand has continuously produced lightweight cars with aluminum bodies, periodically setting new highlights along the way.
Today Audi is reversing the weight spiral with its production models.
Depending on the engine, the TT weighs as much as 90 kilograms (144.84 lb) less than its predecessor; the new A6 up to 80 kilograms (128.75 lb) less. The Audi R8 GT high-performance sports car tips the scales at just 1,525 kilograms (2,454.25 lb), and that includes its quattro permanent all-wheel drive system.
The test cars that Audi is making available for Tech Day allow these strengths to be experienced first hand in direct comparisons between models with different weights.
One particularly intriguing vehicle is the weight-optimized Audi A5 with its fascinating five-cylinder engine. It is a technology platform for the showcar, the Audi quattro concept.
Source: Audi USA (Audi News)
