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Silvercar, Audi's car rental service, is closing its airport locations, with the service shifting its attention to dealer-based pickup instead. Acquired in full by the automaker in 2017, Silvercar distinguishes itself by only offering Audi vehicles and pushing an app-first experience, in an attempt to differentiate from other airport rental operators.
Receiving a recommended rating for any product or vehicle from Consumer Reports is a big deal. It's also a big deal if a product receives a recommended rating from the publication and then has that rating pulled. Consumer Reports recently announced that the publication no longer recommends electric vehicles from Audi and Kia.
German tuning firm Mansory is expanding its lineup of modified Audis with its latest RSQ8. As expected from Mansory, the RSQ8 is given a full cosmetic upgrade with deep black paint, red racing stripes, and a bevy of carbon-fiber kit.
Audi has unveiled it’s Euro-spec 2021 SQ5 TDI SUV. The new model has less power than before, but it remains a speedy alternative to a boring, humdrum sedan. The new Audi SQ5 TDI remains powered by a 3.0-liter turbodiesel V6 engine with 337 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque. And while the outgoing SQ5 TDI has 342 horsepower from the same diesel V6, the new version still rushes to 60 mph in 5.1-seconds and has the same 155 mph top speed.
German carmaker Audi recently held a virtual tech talk event to unveil the 2022 RS e-tron GT. It’s the brand’s newest Gran Turismo and is essentially a higher performance version of a standard e-tron GT electric car. Moreover, the 2022 Audi RS e-tron GT is the future of the RS brand. “The RS e-tron GT will be the first fully-electric RS model and is the most powerful car we ever built,” said Linda Kurz, Head of Product Marketing, Audi Sport GmbH. “It’s a high-performance GT and reflects all the passion we have.”
Audi's strategy with electrification has been "don't rock a smooth-sailing boat," and it's sticking with that recipe for the 2020 Q5 55 TFSI e. If the e-tron SUV and e-tron Sportback feel much like regular Audi models that just so happen to be all-electric, the Q5 plug-in hybrid sticks even closer to that recipe.
Audi has unveiled a new entry-level version of the A6 sedan. The vehicle is the 2021 Audi A6 Sport 45 TFSI, and it brings improved styling and more power to the entry for the model line. Audi offers a black optic exterior package standard on the 2.0-liter TFSI version, and it comes with Quattro all-wheel drive, as do all A6 models.
Back in 2018, Audi debuted a rear-wheel-drive (RWD) version of the R8 called the RWS. As good as it was, the R8 RWS was limited to only 320 units. For those mourning the return of an R8 RWD, we have good news. The Audi R8 RWD is making a comeback for the 2021 model year, and you can have it as a Coupe or Spyder.
Less than two years ago, I was fortunate to get behind the wheel of a pre-production Audi e-tron GT concept on the streets of California. The car I drove is a one-off and is the only model in existence back then. Coupled with drizzling rains (welcome to sunny California!) and real-time traffic, ‘careful’ would be an understatement. Despite all these, everything went well, and the first thing that struck me about Audi’s electric GT car – besides the sports car-like low seating position – is the inherent silence of it all, which is typical of an electric car.
Audi seems determined not to startle the brand-faithful with its EVs. Just as the original e-tron SUV surreptitiously injected electrification into what otherwise felt like any other recent SUV with a four-ring grille, so too the new 2021 Audi e-tron Sportback makes familiarity as important as zero-emissions. Rather than outlandish exterior sheet metal or stark departures in cabin design, this newest e-tron presents all-electric drive as about as close to mainstream as we've seen.
The 2021 Audi RS5 Coupe and Sportback are updated with new styling, fresh technology, and two new launch edition models. Both the two-door RS5 Coupe and four-door Sportback are powered by a 2.9-liter V6 bi-turbo engine generating 444 horsepower and a healthy 442 pound-feet of torque, and both have Quattro all-wheel-drive and an 8-speed automatic gearbox.
Audi has revealed its latest SUV, with the 2021 Q5 Sportback taking the automaker's best-selling model and giving it a design makeover. While the front may look like the regular 2021 Audi Q5, from there B-pillar back the Sportback is all-new, with elongated C/D-pillars and a more stylized rear.