RSS Official: Audi Prologue concept goes for A9, we give it a ten

[Ringo64]

Filed under: Concept Cars, LA Auto Show, Coupe, Audi, Luxury

If you've been waiting for Audi to roll out a new design language, you need wait no longer as Ingolstadt is displaying just that at the Los Angeles Auto Show this year with the Prologue concept you see here.

Penned by Audi's new design chief Marc Lichte, the Prologue is earmarked to introduce a shift (if not quite a complete change) in design direction for the German automaker. The trapezoidal grille sits wider and lower than on existing models, with the wedge-shaped laser headlights positioned higher above new air intakes with blade elements. The profile rests balanced across its wheelbase to visually emphasize the all-wheel drive that is part of Audi's DNA, with flared arches inspired by the legendary Ur-Quattro. The rear section is inspired by yachts, angled forward to suggest motion, with a narrow strip of LED taillights, full-width diffuser element and twin trapezoidal exhaust tips.

Inside it's all light and surgically clean, with a horizontal dashboard integrating four touchscreen displays running its full width. The system even allows the passenger to select the route for the navigation system and swipe it on over to the driver's display. The headrests on the rear seats and the "sound spoiler" on the rear shelf deploy only when needed, unobstructing the rear view when not.

All of that advanced design is powered by an evolution of the 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 powering a range of Audis and Bentleys, but tuned to produce 605 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque - the latter figure mirroring the twist in the Audi RS7 Sportback and Bentley Continental GT3-R, but the former overpowering any version of the engine to date. Driving through an eight-speed automatic transmission and Quattro all-wheel drive, it's said to hustle the 4,365-pound coupe to 62 in a scant 3.7 seconds, kept in check by 20-inch carbon-ceramic brake discs with six piston calipers, a new five-link air suspension and four-wheel steering.

All of that is well and fine, and but the bigger question is whether Audi will put it into production. Elements of the design will of course trickle down across the entire Audi range over the course of the coming years, but the show car itself hints at the possible arrival of a new A9 coupe to give the A5 a bigger brother and join the A8 sedan and A7 Sportback at the top of the Audi range. If it did, the segment currently populated almost exclusively by the Mercedes-Benz S-Class Coupe and sister company Bentley's Continental GT would have a new challenger to contend with.

Continue reading Audi Prologue concept goes for A9, we give it a ten

Audi Prologue concept goes for A9, we give it a ten originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 19 Nov 2014 04:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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http://www.autoblog.com/2014/11/19/audi-prologue-concept-a9-la-official/

[Ghost]

interesting look.