Audi A7 Sportback is a new line sedan from Audi which was unveiled at
Paris Motor Show 2010. This new Audi A7 Sportback was conceived based
on 2009 Sportback Concept which was exhibited at 2009 Detroit Motor
Show. The front end of this new sedan is presented in hexagonal single
frame grille completed with shaped headlight that features LED light
that emit during daytime. The arc-formed roofline and “tornado” line
are visually suited by the ascending bottom line which rises up in the
rear and transforms into a spoiler lip.
Official Press Release:
Exterior design
Exterior design
The Audi A7 Sportback is at once an elegant and an innovative Audi – a
car with elegant, sporty proportions, a long hood and wheelbase, short
overhangs and athletically curved outer contours. It marks the next step
in the evolution of the design language of Audi, the leading brand for
automotive design.
The Audi A7 Sportback exudes a powerful presence and attraction; it
is a car whose design cries out to be touched and enjoyed. With its low,
dynamically accentuated roof line and its balanced proportions, it
looks like a coupe. The rear doors are perfectly integrated into the
silhouette. The design is consistent and expresses the aesthetics of
modern technology in every detail – in the precisely drawn lines, in the
athletic curvature of the surfaces, in the engine compartment and even
the wheels.
The large single-frame grille up front has six corners like that of
Audi’s A8 flagship, making it appear even more dynamic. The slats of the
grille are painted high-gloss black and adorned with chrome
applications as an expression of quality. Its horizontal posture and the
design of the wide and low air inlets emphasize the width of the Audi
A7 Sportback.
As always with Audi, the headlights are small, technical works of art
that illustrate the advantage that the brand has gained in lighting
technology. Their flat contour that widens laterally shifts the optical
focus outward. The lower edge is in the form of a wave, with the wing – a
classic Audi feature – structuring the interior.
The Audi A7 Sportback comes standard with xenon headlights with
integrated all-weather lights. Optionally available here is the Audi
adaptive light system, which always offers the appropriate lighting,
whether driving in the city, when turning, on inter-urban roads or on
the highway. It includes continuous headlight range control, which
detects other vehicles and adjusts the car’s own light with smooth
transitions.
Audi offers optional all-LED headlights, a major Audi innovation that
premiered in the R8 and the A8. Their white light resembles daylight
and is extremely energy-efficient. The zero-maintenance LED headlights
generate unmistakable graphics, day or night.
Three modules comprising high-performance light-emitting diodes,
mounted in separate chambers, generate the low beams. Other light
functions include the high beams, the cornering light, the all-weather
light and the highway light. The daytime running lights comprising 18
LEDs appears to be a continuous band at the lower edge of the
headlights, below which are the turn signals comprising eleven LEDs. The
high-beam assistant, which switches between the high and low beams, is a
complementary technology.
Dynamic wave: the side view
Dynamic wave: the side view
The side view of the Audi A7 Sportback is a powerfully drawn line.
The roof arch is a flat dome; the C-pillar stretches endlessly to the
rear and flows into the shoulder of the body. Integrated into the pillar
is a third side window with an upward pointing tip – a small homage to
the Audi 100 Coupé S from 1969. The ratio of painted body surfaces to
the frameless windows is two-thirds to one-third in the side view, which
is also typical for Audi.
The sharp tornado line, the most important design element of the Audi
A7 Sportback, extends over the entire side. It gives the body strong
shoulders, like those of an athletic swimmer. The tornado line starts at
the headlights and extends along the fenders, the doors and the rear
side walls to the tail lights. Located above the side sills is the
dynamic line.
The large wheel wells housing wheels between 18 and 20 inches in
diameter are also typical for Audi. They underscore the powerful
character of the vehicle and offer opportunities for customizing the
car’s outward appearance. Like with a sports car, the dynamically styled
exterior mirrors are mounted on the doors – another sporty detail. The
agile and sinewy impression of the Audi A7 Sportback is the result of
many subtle solutions. The third side window, for example, lightens the
rear section of the flanks visually.
The line of dynamic elegance encircles a rear end that uses a slight
negative indentation to form a distinctive spoiler lip. The luggage
compartment hatch is equipped with a spoiler that automatically extends
at 130 km/h (80.78 mph) and retracts again at 80 km/h (49.71 mph). The
diffuser insert is painted in the body color and frames the two large,
chromed tailpipes of the exhaust system, thus also emphasizing the car’s
width.
All surfaces at the rear of the car are vividly modeled; the tips of
the divided tail lights point inwards. With the exception of the
reversing light, the tail lights are realized entirely with LED
technology standard. They have been machined in three dimensions and
accentuate the sculptural character of the Audi A7. The tail lights
appear to be a homogenous band that forms a broad, U-shaped arc. The
brake lights, which are in the form of a helix, are located inside the
arch, above which the turn signal extends as a straight line.
Audi offers eleven elegant paint finishes for the Audi A7 Sportback.
The two solid colors are called Ibis White and Brilliant Black. The six
metallic colors are Ice Silver, Quartz Gray, Oolong Gray, Moonlight
Blue, Havanna Black and Dakota Gray. Rounding out the palette are the
three pearl-effect finishes Phantom Black, Garnet Red and Impala Beige.
Fast track: from concept car to production
Fast track: from concept car to production
Audi announced the Audi A7 Sportback at the 2009 North American
International Automobile Show in Detroit with the Audi Sportback concept
show car. The differences between it and the production model were
slight, lying primarily in the area of the headlights, the single-frame
grille, the air inlets, the exterior mirrors and the rear end. Almost
all of the new ideas in the interior also made it into the production
model.
Audi frequently has show cars go into production nearly unchanged.
This process expresses one of the brand’s particular strengths,
demonstrating how deeply the Board of Management and all areas of the
company support the visions of the designers. Design is much more than
styling at Audi; it is a reflection of the highly developed technology.
Back in 1993, a luxury sedan in shining silver called the ASF
enthralled the public at the Frankfurt Motor Show. The show car with its
unpainted body of polished aluminum was the precursor to the A8. Two
years later Audi provided the first glimpse of the TT, likewise at the
Frankfurt Motor Show. And in 1997, the Al2 show car stood at the same
location as a preview of the A2.
In 2003, two spectacular show cars heralded the move into new vehicle
classes. In January Audi presented the Pikes Peak quattro in Detroit.
The big, sporty SUV was the precursor to the Q7. In September, the Audi
Le Mans quattro became the star of the Frankfurt Motor Show. It was the
spitting image of the R8 which came later.
At the Shanghai Motor Show in April 2007, the brand presented the
Audi Cross Coupé quattro, which went into production as the Q5 a short
time later. There was even a forerunner of the compact Audi A1, which is
just now coming to market: The Audi A1 project quattro, a hybrid-drive
city car, debuted at the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show.
Body
Body
The Audi A7 Sportback is 4.97 meters (16.31 ft) long and has a
wheelbase of 2.91 meters (9.55 ft). 1.91 meters (6.27 ft) wide, it is
only 1.42 meters (4.66 ft) tall – these proportions allude to the
dynamic lines. The cD value is 0.28; the front surface area measures
2.29 m² (24.65 sq ft). The clean flow of the slipstream – including
along the underbody and as it flows through the engine compartment – was
an important objective in the requirement specification.
The noise level on board the five-door coupe is extremely low thanks
to the painstaking fine-tuning of the aeroacoustics, which also includes
the glazings. Even the standard version does a very good job of
attenuating outside noise. Audi offers optional glazings that integrate a
special film with acoustic properties for an added degree of comfort,
particularly on long highway journeys.
Long-distance comfort and a sporty character are not contradictory at
Audi, and this also applies to the acoustics of the Audi A7 Sportback.
Longer drives really let the five-door coupe show off its luxury-class
ride: low noise, low vibrations and perfect vibrational comfort. The
powerful engines round out the experience with a cultivated sound.
The excellent acoustics are the combined result of high-end materials
and new construction methods. Modern microfiber non-wovens, an
underbody liner and wheel well linings all play a part here.
The high level of vibrational comfort is another strength of the Audi
A7 Sportback. Hydraulic damping elements are used consistently for the
axles and the subframes, and hydraulically damped bearings are used for
the engines. The engineers tuned these elements using advanced
simulation methods and Audi’s comfort test bench – a development tool
not found anywhere else in the world.
The body of the Audi A7 Sportback also sets standards with its low
weight. The steel/aluminum mixed-construction body is roughly 15 percent
lighter than a comparable all-steel body, placing it at the head of its
class. Take for example the 3.0 TDI with 150 kW (204 hp) and the
multitronic transmission. Minus the driver, the entire car in the base
version weighs just 1,695 kilograms (3,737 lb). The low weight is the
result of the brand’s pioneering lightweight construction technology
that intelligently combines a variety of materials.
More than 20 percent of the body is made of lightweight aluminum, a
material with which Audi has experience that no other manufacturer can
match. The strut mounts in the front of the car are aluminum castings;
the strut brace and cross-members behind the front and rear bumpers are
aluminum sections. All add-on parts, such as the front side walls, the
hood, the rear hatch and the doors, but also the bulkhead and the
cross-member in the luggage compartment, are made of aluminum panels.
High-end steels of various strength classes make up a large portion
of the body. Most commonly used are the hot-shaped steels, which are
used in some zones of the passenger cell and at its transition to the
front end of the car. They are heated in a pass-through furnace to
nearly 1,000 degrees Celsius (1,832 degrees Fahrenheit) and shaped
immediately thereafter in water-cooled pressing dies. Audi also uses
tailored blanks in many areas. These are panels of various thicknesses
that are thicker and stronger in areas subjected to higher loads.
The body of the Audi A7 Sportback combines low weight with high
rigidity and supreme strength. It thus provides the basis for the
sportily precise handling, the high crash safety and the supreme
vibrational comfort on board – for the typical Audi ride, in other
words.
Interior design
Interior design
Air and light, sleek shapes and bright colors: The interior of the
Audi A7 Sportback is an emotional space full of lightness and expanse.
Its lines take up the powerful, sinewy sportiness of the exterior to
demonstrate Audi’s status as the leading brand for vehicle design.
The salient element is the “wrap-around” – a horizontal line
encircling the entire cabin. It extends in a curve from the driver-side
door sill across the instrument panel to the passenger-side door sill.
The wrap-around embeds the driver and front-seat passenger into the
interior. The exterior and interior form a harmonious design element.
The frame of the door opener invokes the shape of the rear side window
from the exterior.
The large arch integrates a low and slender instrument panel that
slopes slightly downward toward the passengers. The application strip
with its integrative dynamics is the salient element of the dashboard.
Its face forms a wave oriented toward the driver, and even the dividing
line between the upper and the lower segments is in the shape of an S.
The center air vents follow this line and are shaped like a wing.
Audi’s legendary attention to detail characterizes the entire
interior of the Audi A7 Sportback, just as it does in the A8 luxury
sedan. Materials are chosen with the utmost care; the uncompromising
workmanship is on a craftsman’s level.
The strongly driver-oriented cockpit comprises the instrument
cluster, the air vents and the control elements. The aluminum finish
highlights the rotary knobs. Both the shift gate and the start-stop
button feature subtle red backlighting.
Audi will immediately be offering a wide range of upholsteries and
decorative elements, including Milano and Valcona fine leathers, a
leather/Alcantara combination and a leather package for the center
console, the armrests in the doors and the door pull handles.
Audi offers inlays in a choice of two aluminum applications and two
types of wood: natural brown fine grain ash and dark brown walnut. A
veneer of layered oak will be available later. Audi has made significant
advances in the technique of cutting veneers from a single block and
uses painstakingly prepared and treated oak.
Controls and interior
Controls and interior
The Audi A7 Sportback offers a full range of functions, yet its
controls are simple and intuitive. The large, clearly marked dial
instruments with their red needles and the display of the driver
information system (DIS) are located under a flat cowl. They appear
three-dimensional and extremely precise.
The optional driver information display – either 5 or 7 inches and
white or in color depending on the version – bundles a lot of important
information and settings in a logical menu structure and is controlled
using the leather multifunction steering wheel. Another standard feature
is the on-board computer with efficiency program. It provides tips for
efficient shifting, includes a gear-change indicator and shows how
individual systems affect fuel consumption.
The central on-board monitor, the standard version of which measures
6.5 inches and has a high-gloss black frame, is recessed into the center
of the dashboard. It extends electrically upward in an elegant motion
when the ignition is switched on. The instrument panel, which is
inclined toward the driver, contains the control unit for the highly
efficient deluxe air conditioning system and secondary switches for
direct access to the most important functions. All other functions are
offloaded to the MMI (Multimedia Interface) operating system located on
the wide, asymmetrical tunnel, which forms a separate component with no
connection to the center console.
The operating logic of the MMI is exemplary. The hard keys are used
to jump directly to the main menus; the soft keys and the central rotary
pushbutton are used to navigate within them.
The driver can jump to the menu overview at any time using a central
menu button. The central rotary pushbutton is used to select the desired
menus and functions. The main functions of the audio system make up one
logical unit and are consolidated in the main control element. The
electromechanical parking brake leaves a lot of room on the center
tunnel for a comfortable, steplessly height-adjustable center armrest, a
telephone and a large storage compartment.
New: the head-up display
New: the head-up display
Audi offers a new high-end feature as an option in the Audi A7
Sportback – a head-up display. It projects the most important data onto
the windshield as symbols and digits that appear to float at a distance
of roughly 2.5 meters (8.2 ft). The driver assimilates this information
extremely quickly because his or her eyes, accustomed to distance vision
while driving, do not have to adjust. The driver can use the MMI to
determine which information the head-up display should show, such as
speed, the navigation arrows or the indications from the assistance
systems.
The Audi A7 Sportback is designed as a four-seater. Its front seats
are mounted sportily low. Ten-way seats are standard. Options include
power adjustment, a memory function and seat heating.
The deluxe seats offer 20-way power and pneumatic adjustments. These
are available with ventilation using a novel and particular effective
suction technology and a function in which ten air chambers massage the
back according to one of five programs. Customers with sporty tastes can
choose the sport seats with their prominent side bolsters and 14-way
adjustment.
In the back of the Audi A7 Sportback are two comfortable individual
seats. The long wheelbase provides for generous amounts of space. Even
large persons enjoy ample headroom and easy entry. Spacious and
practical storage is available at all of the seats.
The Audi A7 Sportback is a versatile car for active people. Its long
rear hatch that extends far up into the roof covers a large luggage
compartment lined with fine carpeting. Its low loading lip helps make it
convenient to use. Standard capacity is 535 liters (18.89 cubic ft),
which increases to 1,390 liters (49.09 cubic ft) by folding down the
split rear seat backs, which is a matter of a few easy steps.
The rear hatch comes standard with an electric drive unit. It opens
high, and the opening angle can be programmed using the buttons on the
inside of the hatch. The split cover is never in the way while loading
the luggage compartment. Its short segment is connected to the body, the
long segment to the hatch. Audi offers an optional load-through hatch
with a ski sack and a reversible mat. With the trailer hitch, the Audi
A7 Sportback can tow up to 2,100 kilograms (4,630 lb).
