The family of business class cars Audi A6, produced by a well-known German manufacturer since 1994, has a rich and glorious history. Thanks to several generations and timely restyling, the developers managed to significantly improve the model.
Its modern reading is characterized by an impressive exterior design, effective anti-corrosion protection of the body, a spacious and ergonomically organized interior, high-tech solutions in the field of dynamics and safety. The history of the Audi A6 is the embodiment of the traditions and experience of the legendary brand.
Audi A6 (C7) FaceliftCurrent
from 2014 to N.V.The world debut of the Audi A6, which took place in 2011 in Detroit, was officially announced by the company back in 2010. If you compare the exterior of the fourth-generation novelty with other new models, you can find a lot in common in their design. The car is made in the body of the C7 and has similar features not only with the flagship A8 sedan, but also with the recently presented A7 Sportback.
Audi A6 (C7) Out of production
from 2010 to 2014Audi A6 (C7) - The fourth generation of the Audi A6 (internal designation Typ 4G). It was launched in early 2011 in the European and other markets. The car is in many ways similar in appearance to the A8 (D4), only some elements of its exterior details have changed.
Audi A6 C6 Facelift Not produced
from 2008 to 2011The model was restyled in 2009. At the same time, the design of the bumper group, body sidewalls, mirrors, lighting elements, and a radiator grill were changed. Thanks to the modernization of power units, including the introduction of the Common Rail system, fuel savings (15%) were achieved and emissions of waste products were reduced. In 2011, the Audi A6 C6 cars gave way to the fourth generation of this model - the Audi A6 C7 vehicles.
Audi A6 C6 Out of production
from 2004 to 2008In the second half of 2004, representatives of the third generation of the model were introduced to the market - Audi A6 C6 vehicles. These cars had bodywork in the form of a 4-door sedan and a 5-door station wagon. In 2005, the line was supplemented by a sports coupe. Thanks to a well-thought-out design solution for the exterior and excellent dynamic characteristics, representatives of the third generation quickly gained popularity in the market.
Audi A6 C5 Facelift Not produced
Years of production from 2001-2004The first restyling of C5 vehicles was carried out in 1999. It provided for strengthening the body structure, changing the shape of the head optics and mirrors, and providing a more ergonomic dashboard. In 2001, the company carried out a second restyling, which ensured the modernization of lighting elements, direction indicators, and trim parts.
Audi A6 C5 Out of production
Years of production c 1997-2004The debut of the second generation Audi A6 took place in 1997. The Audi A6 C5 platform was used as its basis. This generation had two body options: the Avant station wagon and the sedan. Both versions showed a very low drag coefficient of 0.28. Full galvanizing of the body, an extended set of safety elements, an extensive range of engines brought this model to a completely new competitive level: in 2000-2001 it entered the top ten best cars in the world.
Audi 100 C4/4ANout of production
years of production c 1991 - 1997In 1991, a significantly revised version of the C4 was introduced. Among its key changes, the introduction of power units with a capacity of 2.8 liters and 2.6 liters should be highlighted. In 1995, the number "100" was excluded from the model name, and it was called the Audi A6 C4. Cars in the design of the Audi 100 model were produced until 1997, then they were completely superseded by the design solutions of the Audi A6.
Audi 100 and 200 C3Not produced
years of production c 1982 - 1991In 1982, as part of the Frankfurt Motor Show, the C3 model was presented to the automotive community, the body of which had an extremely low aerodynamic coefficient Cx = 0.30 for that time. This decision, in the end, provided significant fuel savings. Another innovation was the use of flush windows (recessed windows), which also had an impact on the aerodynamic drag parameters. In 1990, this model received an innovative direct injection diesel powertrain. With a performance of 120 hp. this engine showed reduced fuel consumption.
Since 1984, the model has been equipped with a Quattro all-wheel drive system. In September 1985, the first modifications of the C3 appeared with a fully galvanized body. In the late 1980s, the Audi V8 version was introduced to the market. The basis for it was the modification of the Audi 200 Quattro (with an automatic 4-band gearbox, rear and center differential Torsen).
Audi 100 and 200 C2Not produced
years of production c 1977 - 1983
The release of the C2 model was launched in 1976. It is characterized by the presence of an increased wheelbase, more refined than the C1 model, interior design and a 5-cylinder engine. As part of this generation, a wagon version of the Avant was released in 1977. During the restyling of 1980, the exterior of the car was updated (the shape of the rear lights was changed), the capacity of the luggage compartment was increased to 470 liters, the interior was improved, 4-cylinder engines of various sizes and performances were introduced into the engine range. In 1981, the line was supplemented by the CS version, which has a front spoiler and alloy wheels.
Audi 100 and 200 C1Not produced
years of production c 1968 - 1976
The production of the Audi 100 C1 sedan, which the company launched on November 1, 1968, became the basis of the modern success of the model. The Audi 200 variant was the same modification of the Audi 100, but in a more expensive version (it had an improved finish and richer basic equipment).
Since 1970, C1 cars have also been produced in the coupe body. This version has been the largest vehicle of the automotive company Audi since its inception. In 1973, the car was restyled: the radiator grille became more compact, steel springs appeared instead of the rear torsion bar, and the shape of the rear optics changed. As a result, the car began to look more relevant and stylish. This model was equipped with a 4-cylinder power unit, working in conjunction with rear-wheel drive and a manual transmission.
1899
Timeline of an 1899 Audi
August Herch founded the automobile company "Horch & Cie. Motorwagen Werk" in Cologne.
1904
1904 Audi timeline
The company "Horch & Cie. Motorwagen Werke" is transformed into a joint-stock company.
1909
1909 Audi timeline
After leaving "Horch & Cie. Motorwagen Werke" A. Horch founded a new company "Audi Automobilwerke GmbH".
1931
1931 Audi timeline
The debut of the world's first front-wheel drive car - the "DKW F1" model.
1932
1932 Audi timeline
Audi, DKW, Horch and Wanderer merged to form Auto Union GmbH.
1950
1950 Audi timeline
The first post-war passenger car of the concern appeared - "DKW F89 P Master Class".
1964
1964 Audi timeline
The company "Auto Union AG" became part of the concern "Volkswagen AG".
1965
1965 Audi timeline
A decision was made to release all new models of the concern that had lost its independence under the brand name "Audi".
1968
1968 Audi timeline
In conditions of secrecy from "Volksvagen" developed a car of the middle class - "Audi 100".
1969
1969 Audi timeline
Merger of Auto Union GmbH with NSU Motorenwerke AG.
1972
1972 Audi timeline
Designed and produced the first generation of the production car "Audi 80" (series B1).
1976
1976 Audi timeline
Audi develops its first five-cylinder engine.
1977
1977 Audi timeline
Exit from the assembly line of the latest NSU products, and the beginning of production under the Audi brand
1979
1979 Audi timeline
Turbocharging technology for engines has been developed.
1980
1980 Audi timeline
"Audi" for the first time introduces a system of permanent all-wheel drive - the trademark "Quattro".
1985
1985 Audi timeline
Audi NSU Auto Union AG changed its name to AUDI AG.
1990
1990 Audi timeline
The new "Audi 100" (C4) is introduced - for the first time also offered with a compact 2.8L V6 engine with 174 hp.
1994
1994 Audi timeline
The flagship of the company's lineup, the Audi A8, is presented for the first time.
1994
1994 Audi timeline
On the basis of "Audi 100" there was a business class car - a sedan "Audi A6"
1996
1996 Audi timeline
The model range "Audi" was replenished with a golf-class model - the compact "Audi A3".
1996
1996 Audi timeline
The "Audi 80" (B4) of 1991 was replaced by the middle "C"-class model "Audi A4".
1998
1998 Audi timeline
The appearance of a serial sports coupe with an attractive appearance - "Audi TT".
1998
On the basis of the "Audi A6 Avant" wagon, an all-wheel drive crossover "Audi Allroad Quattro" was created.
Audi (Audi) is a German company specializing in the production of AW cars. Part of the Volkswagen Group. The headquarters is in Ingoldstadt.At the beginning of 1909, after a difficult legal dispute with the new owners of the Horch-Werke plant in Zwickau, founded by August Horch, the owner of the name - August Horch - was forced to found a new company - August Horch Automobilwerke GmbH. Horch was faced with the task of coming up with a new name for the company ...
One legend says. In the house of one of Horch's companions, there was a heated debate about the name. At this time, in the next room, the owner's son was studying Latin. And when one of the shareholders exclaimed: "Listen to the other side!", the boy, either in jest or quite seriously, loudly translated this phrase into Latin: "Audiatur et altera pars!" The surprised debaters realized that "horch" (in German - "listen, listen") is translated into Latin as "audi".
Horch's new enterprise began with fairly solid and powerful machines. Since 1910, the Audi-A10 / 22 has been produced. The cylinders, as was customary in those days, were interlocked in pairs. The four-cylinder engine with a working volume of 2612 cm3 developed 22 hp. The firm advertised itself with large posters with the word "Audi" and a picture of a huge ear. This is how one of the most famous brands of AW cars appeared to this day.
1920 - Audi Automobil-Werke AG introduced the new Audi trademark. In keeping with the fashionable business style of the time, the flourish of Lucian Bernhard replaced the vignetted Audi emblem. Now a new emblem (gold letters on a blue background in an oval) adorned the radiators of AW Audi cars (when the first post-war Audi entered the market in 1965, it had this particular trademark).
At this point in the history of Audi, it is necessary to make a small digression: the fact is that in the 30s, Audi entered the Auto-Union concern, uniting four companies (from where 4 interlaced rings appeared in the emblem). What are these companies? Actually Audi, Horch, DKW and Wanderer. Each of these companies is worthy of its own digression into history, but ... Let's talk about only one - DKW. His AW torus, father and chief designer was Jogen Skaft Rasmussen.
Jørgen Skaft Rasmussen was born in 1878 in Nakskov, Denmark. He received his engineering education at the technical schools of Mittweid and Chemnitz in Germany. In fact, the whole life path of this outstanding personality is connected with it. In 1903, in Chemnitz, he founded his first enterprise - a fittings company, where only ten workers worked. But things were going well, and already in 1906, Rasmussen bought a small textile factory in Zschopau for 55 thousand marks.
Rasmussen was well aware that such orders would decline with the end of the war - and in 1916 he built an experimental steam car. To create just such a vehicle, he was prompted by the acute shortage of gasoline in the country and the experience in the production of steam equipment accumulated at the plant. For the construction of the steam car, he attracted the engineer Matissen, who had previously developed the famous "White" steam cars in the USA. Rasmussen was preparing to release cars and trucks, but his plans were not destined to come true. However, something still remains of them - the registered trademark "DKW" - "steam AW car" (Dampf Kraft Wagen).
At the very end of the war, the case brought Rasmussen together with the then-famous German designer Hugo Ruppe. He has been involved in small gasoline engines since 1908, when he designed a four-stroke engine for his father's Piccolo and Appolo AW cars.
Ruppe was one of the first to create air-cooled engines, and also developed and patented his own ignition design. Using this patent, he and G. Riesner, who came with him to Rasmussen, designed in 1919 a two-stroke air-cooled engine with a working volume of 25 cm3. A thousand of these motors, designed for children's AW cars, were produced in Zschopau and the abbreviation "DKW" began to decipher as "a boy's dream" (Des Knaben Wunsch).
Rasmussen entrusted the project of the first full-fledged AW car to designer Emil Fischer. The body of the prototype was wooden, in front it rested on two semi-elliptical springs, on the back - on one transverse one. The two-cylinder two-stroke boxer air-cooled engine had a working volume of 500 cm3. At first, the engine, gearbox and differential were supposed to be combined into one unit, which would increase the cost of the car - so this decision was soon abandoned.
The start of production of the AW car was delayed, and Fisher moved to another company, S.B. Avtomobil, where electric cars were made in 1921. But experiments with AW cars "DKW" were continued. At the Berlin AW tosalon, a prototype with a rear-mounted motor and a V-belt drive was shown, and in 1926 a light car with an electric motor "DEW" was presented, developed by Professor Kligenberg - the fruit of a joint activity of "DKW", "AEG" and "AFA" . Its body was made of plywood, transverse springs were used. A total of 500 such electric vehicles were sold.
Rasmussen's activities have already gone beyond the boundaries of one, albeit expanded, firm. In 1928, he acquired a controlling interest in the AUDI plant, which at that time was in a difficult position, and at the same time bought a license and processing equipment in Detroit for the production of six- and eight-cylinder Rickenbacker engines. At first it was supposed to sell these engines to third-party manufacturers, but there were no buyers and they began to be put on Audi. At the same time, the eight-cylinder "AUDi SS Zvikkau" turned out to be as much as 5000 marks cheaper than its predecessor - the six-cylinder "P Imperator".
In KB "AUDI" in October 1930, work began on a front-wheel drive AW car with a motorcycle engine "DKW" (350 cm3) and the use of "Tracta" hinges, transverse springs, and a narrow frame. Three prototypes were built in half a year - one with a 350 cm3 engine, and the other two with 500 cm3 engines. But in order to bring "AUDI" out of the crisis, Rasmussen found a faster way - he bought a license for the Peugeot-5 / 25CV engine. This motor was put on the newly appeared front-wheel drive "DKW", called it "AUDI-P 5/30" and in 1931 was released to the market.
The cheapest AW car of the 1931 Berlin AW tosalon was the new front-wheel drive "DKW Front". A two-stroke two-cylinder engine (600 cm3) developed 18 hp. With. It was combined into one unit with a gearbox and differential. True, the frame, which is very simple in design, turned out to be the weak point of the AW car and was repeatedly strengthened in the future. Since 1932, a modernized "DKW-F2" was built with a reinforced frame and increased brakes. From the very beginning, cars were assembled not only in Zshopau, but also at the AUDI plant. In 1932, Rasmussen was in active negotiations with the director of the Saxon State Bank, Dr. Bruhn.
Their result was the birth on January 1, 1933 of the famous concern "Auto Union", which included the factories "Horch", "Wanderer", "AUDI" and "DKW". Two years later, at the initiative of Rasmussen, the production of AUDI AW cars was transferred to the Horch plant, and only front-wheel drive DKWs were made at the AUDI plant itself. Beginning in 1934, with the introduction of the AW distribution system in Germany, the factories of the Third Reich began to feel an acute shortage of metal, rubber, and other materials. The DKW plant could easily produce 5,500 AW vehicles per month and, in principle, was able to bring this figure to 10,000, but made only 5,200 vehicles.
The shortage of metal led the management of "Auto Union" to the idea of a plastic body. Concerns "IG Farbengrupe" and "Dynamite AG" joined the work. The first plastic parts were the trunk lid and doors. The success of the front-wheel drive "DKW" was huge. Simple, inexpensive, but sufficiently hardy and durable machines in 1938 were paid by buyers for six months in advance. These AW cars - among other captured ones - were well known in our country in the post-war period. The merciless humor of the winners deciphered "DKW" in its own way: "fool who invented it." The design of the machines was indeed too unusual for us.
The Auto Union empire was destroyed by the war and the post-war division of Germany. It remains to say a few words about her legacy. In Germany, in Ingolstadt, in 1949, the company "Auto Union" was re-founded, where AW cars were built under the brands "DKW" and "Auto Union" of the pre-war model "F9" with two- and four-door bodies.
1950 - Production of the first post-war AW passenger car Auto Union began. It was about the DKW model: the master class F 89 P in the form of a sedan and a four-seater convertible Karmann. Since there was not enough production space for the production of AW cars in Ingolstadt, Auto Union took the former territory of Rheinmetall-B or sing AG in Düsseldorf, where DKW cars were produced until the end of 1961.
1970 - Wide-ranging export of Audi to the United States began. At first, exports to the USA were limited to the Audi Super 90 (sedan and station wagon), as well as the new Audi 100. Since 1973, they were joined by the Audi 80, which, unlike the European version, also existed as an Audi 80 station wagon (actually a VW Passat Variant with more high level of equipment). Later, Audi models received their own designations in the US market: Audi 4000 for the Audi 80, Audi 5000 for the Audi 100. However, repeated cases of violations of manufacturer's responsibility for their products from the mid-80s led to a decline in Audi deliveries to the USA.
1977 - with the completion of the NSU production line, the Audi font in a red-brown oval was additionally introduced as a corporate logo (since 1982, the corporate oval also adorned the side surfaces of the wings of AW cars).
1980 - A four-wheel drive sports coupe attracted huge attention at the Audi booth at the Geneva AW Automobile Show. For the first time, a light, all-wheel drive, high-performance AW vehicle was offered as the Audi quattro, with a drive concept previously only used in AW trucks and SUVs. The idea for such an AW passenger car arose in the winter of 1976/77 during test runs on the VW Iltis SUV being developed for the Bundeswehr. The excellent behavior of this AW car when driving on ice and snow led to the idea of integrating the VW Iltis all-wheel drive into the production Audi 80. A higher power option was also developed - introduced in the fall of 1979, a five-cylinder 2.2-liter turbo engine with a power of 147 kW / 200 hp. With.
1981 - The motorsport debut of the Audi quattro took place at the January rally in Austria. Since then, the all-wheel drive power package from Ingolstadt has revolutionized the international rally and racing scene.
1982 - The Audi 80 quattro launches large-scale production of permanent all-wheel drive. Gradually, the quattro concept was also offered for other Audi model series.
1990 - Audi AG entered the German AW Touring Car Championship (DTM) for the first time. This season's winner was Hans-Joachim Stuck, driving an Audi V8. The following year, Audi with Frank Beale at the wheel of the same model was able to successfully defend this title. In December 1990, the new Audi 100 (internal designation C 4) was introduced, which for the first time in the history of the company was also offered with a six-cylinder V-engine. The compact (128 kW, 174 hp) powerful unit with a displacement of 2.8 liters was the shortest and lightest in its class.
At the Geneva AW Motor Show in March 1990, Audi AG presented the Audi duo, the production Audi 100 Avant quattro, in which, in addition to the conventional gasoline engine, an electric motor was also installed with a rear axle drive. If necessary, the drive could be switched from a gasoline engine to an electric one. This hybrid AW car has been designed, among other things, for use in public utilities.
Today's brand image rests on four principles: the use of high technology, emotionality, sportiness and global claims. Each performs a specific task, and all together pursue the main goal: in the next five to six years, at least double sales, catch up in global sales and perception with the main competitors - BMW and Mercedes-Benz.
However, at the headquarters of Audi AG, these principles are also called tools with the help of which quite specific tasks of capturing markets are solved. So, the company was the first to make a four-wheel drive in a sedan, and this attracted new customers: if in 1995 about 50 thousand such models were sold, then in 2002 - four times more. For almost seven years, Audi was the only one to use direct fuel injection on diesel engines. This made it possible to reduce the noise of the motor, increased the environmental friendliness and speed of AW vehicles. As a result, the sales of such machines grew from 100,000 to 300,000 a year in the same seven years. And the manufacture of large series of AW cars with aluminum bodies generally influenced the development of the entire global AW industry.
They relied on the emotionality of the brand when they were moving away from the image of a mass machine. “In the premium segment, the very atmosphere surrounding the customer is very important,” says Grame Lisle, head of global communication strategies at Audi AG. “When buying an expensive model, a person first of all buys emotions. Everything must be done to the highest standard."
First of all, the product itself must correspond to this level: its quality, technical characteristics, design. How seriously the company takes this can be judged by today's development of the lineup. Since 1995, one or two new models began to appear annually. Starting with the A4, the Germans produced the A3 and A4 Avant, the A6 business model, the A6 Avant station wagon and the TT Coupe within three years. In the next four years, the TT Roadster and the all-terrain Audi allroad quattro, the compact A2 and the new A4, the A8 limousine and the new A4 Avant, the A4 convertible and the second generation of the A8 appeared on the market. Finally, in 2003, a new version of the A3 model appeared and three completely innovative concepts - Pikes Peak, Nuvolari and Le Mans, presented between January and September. Such a "rate of fire" is especially impressive, given that the creation of each model takes about five years and up to two billion euros.
Following the general concept of the brand, the company endows all new items with a sporty character. This is expressed in excellent dynamic performance, powerful engines, suspensions, in the appearance of cars and interior design. Moreover, in addition to the basic models, sports modifications with the S index and supersport RS are produced. The RS6, for example, is impressive: its 450 horsepower literally provokes rapid throws and lane changes, and on the AW toban only an electronic speed limiter did not allow it to jump beyond the 250 km / h mark. But the marketing policy requires an even more aggressive sporting spirit, and Audi actively sponsors competitions in alpine skiing, golf, sailing, and supports two famous football clubs in Europe.
All this works for the fourth postulate of the company, which sounds like this: Audi is one of the largest players in the global market. To do this, dealer networks are expanding in various regions of the world, joint ventures are being created to work in the promising Chinese market, and the share in Europe is expanding, where the German brand now owns 3.6% of the market. Jurgen De Grave, a business and finance specialist, tried to explain the general level of the company's claims with a specific example: “In the USA we sell eighty-five thousand AW vehicles a year, and BMW a quarter of a million. competitors."
In order to implement such ambitious plans, the company's business must be debugged like clockwork. Audi AG believes that this is the case, and boldly introduces the various divisions and industries. First of all, this is the plant itself, more precisely, one of the plants, since the company produces AW cars at three European enterprises. One is located in Hungary, where the TT model is partly manufactured. The company's engine plant also operates in Hungary, where 1.3 million engines are produced annually, of which one half goes to Audi, and the other to other brands, including Skoda and Seat. In the German city of Neckarsulm, solid models with aluminum bodies are produced - A8, A6, Allroad, as well as the "baby" A2. The Audi Security division is also based there, which assembles A6 armored business sedans and A8 limousines. But the company's largest plant is located in the town of Ingolstadt, an hour's drive from Munich. Working in three shifts, he produces daily up to 780 A3s, almost as many A4s and about two hundred more TT models.
However, Audi's ownership in Ingolstadt is not limited to one production: they occupy almost 2 million hectares here, and this is more than the territory of the Principality of Monaco. It is here that the headquarters of Audi AG is based, designers and constructors work, the main marketing department, a large tool production and the company's technical center are located. By the way, the latter is considered one of the most advanced in the world: its aerodynamic complex allows you to "develop" speed up to 320 km / h, and lower the temperature to -60C. Other members of the parent concern, the Volkswagen and Seat brands, use this free of charge, German bobsledders receive the complex in the form of sponsorship for training, but it is rented to other customers for 2,700 euros per hour.
The plant is also crammed with all sorts of electronics. For example, the AW coefficient of tomatization of the workshop for the production of the A4 model was brought to 83% back in 2000. To do this, we had to solve a lot of problems, including the control of robots. Different modifications of AW vehicles move along the conveyor one after another, and each requires its own set of technological operations. Therefore, a sensor with a task is attached to the body, and the electronics reads the data and controls the equipment without human intervention.
On the other hand, the final assembly area is crowded: human eyes and hands are indispensable here. Moreover, each employee also becomes a kind of controller, checking the quality of previous operations. If he notices a colleague's mistake, he gives a signal, and the defect is instantly corrected. Every second counts - in the event of a complete stop of the conveyor, a minute of downtime will cost the company 13,000 euros.
However, the company also cares about its workers. For example, not so long ago, bodies were hung over the assembly line at an angle of 45 degrees - it was believed that it was more convenient for assemblers. However, the company ordered a study, and it turned out that working with a horizontally hanging body is less harmful for the spine, after which all the lines were redone at the factories. Another example: excellent parquet is laid under the entire assembly line. Noticing my surprised look, the escort explained: "Wood is not as hard and cold as concrete, and this is very important for people's health."
The work of Audi designers for years to come is scheduled literally by weeks. Until recently, Audi had 60 months to create a new model, but due to fierce competition, it has now had to switch to a shorter cycle of 50 months (a little over four years). In this cycle, the work schedule of all departments, including designers, is scheduled.
Work on the machine begins with a document prepared by the product planning team. In accordance with the prospects of the market, it issues a terms of reference, which indicates the dimensions of the future AW car, body type, number of seats, basic dynamic parameters, cost level. After that, within eight months, artists can offer almost anything. But with the condition: firstly, it must meet the basic principles of the brand (innovation, sportiness, emotionality), and secondly, it must comply with the age-old traditions and style of the brand. The fact is that Audi firmly adheres to the principle that there should be an evolution in the design of the lineup, not a revolution.
Subsequently, only two projects will be selected from the mass of ideas, and work will be carried out on them at the next stage. Here, three divisions should present their sketches - for the exterior, interior and color schemes. Moreover, they have their own specialization inside: designers for seats, upholstery, instrument panels, controls. And about 25 months after the start, the final one is selected from the two options, and somewhere in the 33rd month a plasticine model is made on a 1:1 scale.
At this point, the designers should prepare accurate images of all the details, including small details such as buttons, instrument arrows, joints and seams. Moreover, each stroke should carry a semantic or functional load. Florian Gulden, one of the designers at Audi, explains how certain decisions can influence people's associations. Some lines and details emphasize the stability and power of the AW car, others - its swiftness, others give a sense of security and peace.
If everything is done correctly, then 15-18 months before the start of production, an almost final version is created, which is agreed with the technologists and exhibited at one of the international AW tosalons. This version is so close to the production model that they even make stamps for many components and tools. However, some amendments can be made after the exhibition: the responses of the press, dealers, and the public play a big role.
The huge complex of Audi AG in Ingolstadt is an excellent example of business development in accordance with the planned strategy. Deciding to promote a prestigious brand, the company did its best to ensure that customers "buy" those same positive emotions here. And next to the factory floors, she built the Audi-Forum - a special client center. In 1992, it was opened by the legendary Ferdinand Piech, who then headed the Volkswagen concern, but who clearly remembered the beginning of his AW car career in Audi AG.
Now the Audi-Forum includes the company's museum, restaurant, offices, AW accessories stores and company merchandise. However, its main part is a huge, stadium-sized branded hangar, which has become the prototype of modern Audi dealerships. It was in it that such standards of the showrooms of the brand were laid as a large amount of light and air, the use of special anti-reflective mirrors and spotlights, and the creation of comfortable areas for customers. "All this pursues one goal - to create an atmosphere of a holiday, a memorable event," says Günther Gerlich, an employee of the center. they are not only Germans, but also residents of other European countries.
The most curious thing is that Audi-Forum does not sell cars - orders for them and payments are accepted by dealers. And in Ingolstadt, you can only get the AW car itself. But how is it done! On the appointed day, buyers arrive at the company. And while the car is being prepared for delivery, customers get acquainted with the museum, they are driven around the factory floors, fed at the expense of the company in a restaurant. You can also buy souvenirs, accessories and even order additional equipment - sports seats, an exclusive steering wheel or alloy wheels.
And when the time comes to receive the keys, the client will be informed about this over the speakerphone, and they will also display information on the light board. It shows that every quarter of an hour another five to ten people or firms become owners of a brand new AW, which also often want to turn the buying process into a pleasure. After that - a short briefing by the consultant, a solemn start-up of the engine, a photo for memory - and go. Obviously, all this is actually attractive: according to the center's employees, many clients come here for the second, or even third time, taking their wives, children, and friends with them. And in general, almost a quarter of all AW cars of this brand sold in Germany are annually released from the Audi-Forum.
Audi (Audi), a German company specializing in the production of passenger cars. Part of the Volkswagen Group. The headquarters is in Ingoldstadt.
Audi was founded in 1909 by August Horch. Its roots go back to the now non-existent, but no less famous in the past company Horch (“Horch”), which shone in the German sky during the Third Reich. In 1899, the talented inventor August Horch founded the company Horch and Company in Mannheim, which moved to Zwickau 4 years later. In 1909, he built a new, very unsuccessful 6-cylinder engine, which almost brought the company to the brink of bankruptcy, which greatly outraged his companions, who decided to deal with the zealous inventor and expel him from his own company. But Horch immediately founded another company nearby, which, of course, also bore the name Horch. His former partners, sensing a strong competitor in the young company, filed a lawsuit against Horch demanding that the name of the company be changed. According to a court decision, the new automobile production enterprise could not bear the name Horch, and August Horch turned to the Latinized version of the former name: the word horch, which means “listen” in German, became audi. Thus, in 1909, the famous trademark and the no less famous Audi company were born.
The first car called Audi-A was released in 1910. The Audi-B followed the next year. Horch exhibited three such cars in June 1911 at the first Auto Alpenfart race in the Austrian Alps, about 2500 km long, which replaced the famous runs for the prize of the German Prince Heinrich.
In 1912, the most famous model, the Audi C, appeared. In the same year, its first samples were seriously tested at the next Alpine races and achieved good results, for which the C series cars began to be called "Alpenziger" or "Conqueror of the Alps".
In the 1920s, Audi was on the verge of bankruptcy. She had to merge with another firm.
In 1928, the company was acquired by the German DKW (DKW), Jørgen Skafte Rasmussen became the owner of Audi.
In 1932, the economic crisis prompted a number of German firms to create the Auto Union concern ("Auto Union"). It included, along with DKW and Wanderer ("Wanderer"), former rival firms "Horch" and "Audi". The concern released two models equipped with front-wheel drive and Wanderer engines. Cars sold well until the outbreak of World War II.
After World War II, Audi and other Auto Union partner firms were nationalized. They were transformed into a subdivision of the Association of People's Enterprises for the Production of Automobiles.
In 1949, Auto Union was reformed by attracting a majority of the shares of Mercedes-Benz ("Mercedes-Benz").
In 1958, Daimler-Benz AG acquired a controlling stake in Auto Union, but then sold it to Volkswagen. After the transfer of a controlling stake in 1965 to Volkswagen ("Volkswagen"), the name Audi began to be used again. Shortly after this event, a new front-wheel drive car was released, and by the end of 1968 Audi was back on the market with a good range of models and excellent sales statistics. Four circles were retained as an emblem, symbolizing the 1932 merger of the four companies.
The 100, introduced on the market in 1968, and its successors, including the famous Audi Quattro, featured a sporty profile and all-wheel drive, which was a new milestone in the German automotive industry. It was the Quattro model, which appeared in 1980, that gave a powerful impetus to the development of the automotive industry and brought worldwide fame to Audi, a subsidiary of Volkswagen. It was a light, fast Gran Turismo with excellent stability, a type of rally car. It was hard for competitors to compete with this rally Quattro. The model performed exceptionally well in several races.
In 1969, the Volkswagen Group bought the Neckarsulmer Automobilwerke (Neckarsulm Automobile Plant, NSU). As a result, the name of the company changed, the company became known as Audi NSU Auto Union, and in the summer of 1985 the name of the company was transformed back into Audi AG.
Since 1970, Audi has been widely exported to the United States. At first, exports to the US were limited to the Audi Super 90 (sedan and station wagon). as well as the new Audi 100. Since 1973, they were joined by the Audi 80. which, unlike the European version, also existed as an Audi 80 wagon (actually a VW Passat Variant with a higher level of equipment). Later, Audi models received their own designations in the US market: Audi 4000 for Audi 80. Audi 5000 for Audi 100. However, repeated cases of violations of manufacturer's responsibility for their products from the mid-80s led to a decline in Audi deliveries in the USA.
In 1980, the all-wheel drive sports coupe attracted huge attention at the Audi booth at the Geneva Motor Show. For the first time, a light-duty, all-wheel drive, high-performance vehicle was offered as the Audi quattro with an all-wheel drive concept that had hitherto only been used in trucks and SUVs. The idea for such a passenger car arose in the winter of 1976/77 during test runs on the VW Iltis SUV being developed for the Bundeswehr. The excellent behavior of this car when driving on ice and snow led to the idea of integrating the all-wheel drive VW Iltis into the production Audi 80. A higher power option was also developed - introduced in the fall of 1979, a five-cylinder 2.2-liter turbo engine with a power of 147 kW / 200 hp. With.
In 1982, the Audi 80 quattro launched the large-scale production of permanent all-wheel drive. Gradually, the quattro concept was also offered for other Audi model series.
Based on the Audi 80, a sports coupe (Audi Coupe) was produced, which debuted at the end of 1993. The cabriolet version was first introduced in Geneva in 1991. This veteran of the Audi family was discontinued in mid-2000. Since 1992, about 72 thousand pieces have been made.
In December 1990, the new Audi 100 (internal designation C4) was introduced, which for the first time in the history of the company was also offered with a V-shaped six-cylinder engine. The compact (128 kW. 174 hp) powerful unit with an engine displacement of 2.8 liters was the shortest and lightest in its class.
The Audi A4 is the successor to the Audi 80, produced from 1986-1994. It was first introduced in October 1994.
In 2001, the A4 Avant station wagon and the A4 Cabrio coupe-cabriolet saw the light, which will receive a folding hardtop (like the Mercedes-Benz SLK) and, obviously, will be assembled at the Karmann plant.
The Audi A8, the flagship of the Audi lineup, was first shown in February 1994.
In May 1994, the public was presented with a five-seater RS2 Avant with a 2.2-liter 315-horsepower injection turbo engine.
The Audi A3 model is based on the Golf IV platform. The first show of the model took place in June 1996. Production of the Audi A3 began in 1997.
The Audi A6 was first introduced with a sedan body at the Geneva Motor Show in 1997. In February 1998, the A6 Avant was introduced with a station wagon body. All models of the C4 platform were removed from production in the summer of 1997 in connection with the development of a completely new A6 (4B-type).
A little more than two years passed from the moment the conceptual Audi A2 was shown in the fall of 1997 to the start of mass production (early 2000) of the A2 model. So Audi has a new family of cars in the European size class B.
AUDI S4/S4 Avante/RS4, high-performance sports version of the Audi A4 with 2.7-V6-Biturbo engine. It was first presented at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 1997. In 1999, a modification of the RS4 Avante with a 2.7-V6-Biturbo engine (380 hp) was introduced.
In the fall of 1996, the "sporty" S6 / S6 Avant trim levels appeared.
The Audi TT sports car with a coupe body was first introduced in Geneva in September 1998, with a roadster body in August 1999. The prototype model was presented in 1995 at the Frankfurt Motor Show.
AUDI S3, a sporty modification of the Audi A3 with a 1.8 20V turbocharged engine and all-wheel drive transmission, with high power. It was first introduced in March 1999.
AUDI S8, a high-performance sports version of the Audi A8 with a 4.2 V8 engine and all-wheel drive. It was first shown in early 1998.
The Audi Allroad, an SUV model based on the A6 Avant, was first introduced in February 2000.
Currently, Audi, which is an integral part of the Volkswagen concern, is experiencing a rapid rise. Such success was made possible thanks to the new developments of the company.
The first generation Audi A4 was produced from 1994 to 2001. Four-cylinder engines 1.6 and 1.8 developed power from 101 to 170 forces. Two years after the release, a station wagon and an all-wheel drive version of the A4 quattro appeared, a version with a 2.7 biturbo with a capacity of 265 hp was fixed at the top of the range With. More than 30,000 of these have been sold.
The model was completed with a five- and six-speed manual gearbox or a four- or five-speed "automatic".
2nd generation, 2000–2006
The second-generation Audi A4 model with the B6 index was produced from 2000 to 2006. The car was equipped with a three-liter engine, developing a power of 220 liters. With. The car was offered with five- and six-speed "mechanics" and "automatic". The car was produced in several versions: four-door sedan, five-door station wagon, two-door convertible.
3rd generation, 2004–2008
The “third” Audi A4 with the B7 index, produced from 2004 to 2008, can be called the result of a restyling of the previous model. Five gasoline engines (the most powerful "six" 3.2 developed 255 hp) accounted for the same number of diesel engines. At the top of the range was a 420-horsepower modification, equipped with an atmospheric "eight" 4.2 with direct injection.
The car was offered with a five- and six-speed “mechanics”, a six-speed ZF tiptronic and a seven-speed multitronic.
In 2008, a sedan and station wagon were created based on this model.
4th generation, 2008–2015
The fourth-generation Audi A4 has been produced since 2008 in Germany. At the end of 2011, the model went through a restyling. In 2009–2010, a “screwdriver” assembly of machines for the Russian market was carried out at a plant in Kaluga. Charged versions of the car were called and.
The cars were equipped with turbocharged engines, gasoline and diesel, with a volume of 1.8, 2.0 and 3.0 liters. Drive - front or full. Transmission - "mechanics", CVT or robotic preselective gearbox.
Prices for the model in the most affordable version in Russia started at 1,480,000 rubles. In 2015, there was a generational change.
