Car Moon

The Audi A1 premium supermini is proving to be a flying success for the brand with the four rings. Just after a year from launch and without the car being sold in the all-important North American market, the 100,000th A1 rolled off the assembly line at Audi’s plant in the Forest district of Brussels in Belgium. Read more »

An updated version of the Audi A1 1.6 TDI with increased fuel economy and lower CO2 emissions has been introduced into the British market. The Ingolstadt firm’s engineers optimized the 1.6-liter turbo diesel’s fuel system and engine management software, and as a result, reduced CO2 output from 105g/km to 99g/km, and boosted its combined economy figure from 70.6mpg UK to 74.3mpg UK (equal to 3.8 lt/100 km and 61.9mpg US).

German tuning firm Senner has a new solution for anyone looking to upgrade their desperately plain Audi A1 supermini. The tune starts with the A1’s 1.4-liter TFSI gasoline engine, which normally produces 122-horsepower and 265Nm of peak torque. A custom-tailored ECU along with a sports exhaust system bumps those figures to 165HP and 265Nm (195.5 lb-ft). The engine tune is complemented by an adjustable sports suspension from KW. Read more »

For the past thirty year, tens of thousands of enthusiasts of Volkswagen Group cars assemble on the shores of Lake Worthersee in Austria to participate in the largest festival of its kind in the world. Over the years, Volkswagen and the other brands of the German group including Audi, Seat and Skoda, have used the show to unveil special concepts, new models and studies that hint at future production versions or accessories.

At this year’s event (June 1 to 4, 2011), the VW Group prepared several vehicles for the festival including the production VW Golf GTI 35 Edition with 235HP, the VW Golf Cabriolet GTI and R concepts, the wild 503HP Audi A1 Clubsport Quattro study, and the Skoda Fabia RS 2000 Convertible prototype. As you may have noticed, the company didn’t show much love for its Seat brand which was left to display its current lineup.

Every year, fans of the Volkswagen Group get together at the Wörthersee festival, held in Reifnitz, Austria, to share their passion about cars. The show is so big that the VW Group’s brands spare no money to develop dedicated one-off models for the event. Audi’s star attraction at this year’s Worthersee Tour (June 1 to 4, 2011), which celebrates its 30th anniversary, is the ludicrous A1 clubsport Quattro.

The one-off show car is a rally-inspired A1 hatch that uses a heavily modified version of the 2.5-liter turbocharged five-cylinder petrol engine found in the TT RS and the RS3 Sportback. The five-pot normally produces 340-horsepower and 450 Nm (331.90 lb-ft), but thanks to the systematic tuning of the turbocharger, intercooler, induction tract and the exhaust, output has been boosted to 503-horsepower and 660 Nm (487 lb-ft) of torque.

The most powerful version of the new Audi A1 to date, the 185-horse 1.4 TFSI S-Line is now available to order in the UK with prices starting from £20,705 on-the-road (US$32,900). The 1.4-liter supercharged and turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine comes with a standard S tronic seven-speed twin-clutch transmission that transfers power to the front wheels.

In its latest take on the new Audi A1, Senner Tuning has released a sports kit for the gasoline powered 1.4 TFSI model. The German tuning firm begins with the 1.4-liter motor which gains a new free-flow air filter, a reconfigured ECU and a custom stainless steel exhaust system. These upgrades help raise output on the gasoline engine from 122 horsepower and 200Nm of torque to 156 horsepower and 250Nm.

Ever since the presentation of the all-new A1 in early 2010, we have been wondering if and when Audi will introduce its trademark all wheel drive quattro technology that we've come to know as synonymous with the brand to its premium supermini. Well, it appears that this may happen sooner than expected as the Ingolstadt-based automaker revealed that it is currently testing an unmarked A1 quattro prototype on Canada’s densely snow-packed roads.

Bavarian tuner HS Motorsport has teamed up with Autohaus Kempen and various other aftermarket specialists to create the Audi A1 project car, which features exterior modifications, upgraded suspension and some interior appointments as well.

Last week, we told you that the Paris motor show organizers confirmed the Audi S1 and that sources made word of a slightly more powerful variant of the new VW Polo GTI's dual-charged 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine producing a little over 180 ponies.

Well, get this; today, Audi presented a new flagship version of the A1 powered by a tweaked dual-charged 1.4 TFSI delivering 185HP and 250 Nm (184.39 lb-ft) - but, the Germans aren't calling it the S1. Instead, the most powerful variant of the A1 series to date is plainly named the 'A1 1.4 TFSI'.

Just six months after the presentation of the A1 e-tron concept car at the Geneva Salon this past March, and Audi has announced plans to begin fleet testing of it extended range electric premium hatchback.

The Ingolstadt-based automaker said that by the middle of next year, 20 examples of the A1 e-tron will take to the streets of Munich as part of a pilot project undertaken by Audi AG in partnership with E.ON, the Munich municipal utility company Stadtwerke München (SWM) and the Technical University of Munich (TUM).

It's (semi) official; the Paris Motor Show organizers have confirmed the presentation of the Audi S1. While Ingolstadt has not yet confirmed any technical details on the go-fast version of the A1 premium supermini (keep in mind, the car pictured here is not the S1 but one of the Wörthersee show concepts), sources state that it will be powered by the same 1.4-liter TSI turbocharged engine found under the hood of the Polo GTi. It is possible that Audi may tweak the four-cylinder unit to produce a few more ponies than the 180HP it returns on the VW model.

German firm Senner Tuning has released a new line of styling and performance enhancements for the freshly introduced Audi A1 supermini with the 1.6 TDI diesel engine. The tuner starts by massaging the 1.6-liter diesel with a recalibrated ECU, boosting output from 105HP to 140HP. Peak torque also climbs from 250Nm to 310Nm.

Come 2011, Audi will offer the A1 outside of Europe due to a significant amount of worldwide demand. To be precise, the A1's dedicated website attracted more than 150,000 interested customers from all four corners of the world. The German company had previously expected average production volumes of 100,000 A1 units per year, primarily for the European market at first.

The largest tuner of vehicles from the VW group has set its eyes on Audi's smallest model, the all-new A1 supermini, with the release of performance and styling packages. ABT's design proposal for the A1 comes in three flavors "KLECKS" (translates to 'splash'), "ALOHA" and "HIGH-VOLTAGE".

The special auction item of Elton John's White Tie & Tiara Ball on Thursday night (June 24), a brand-new Audi A1 art car painted by Britain's Damien Hirst, surpassed all expectations by fetching a whopping £350,000 or about US$522,500 / €425,000.

All proceeds from the auction will benefit The Elton John AIDS Foundation, which is said to be one of the 10 largest AIDS grant making organizations in the world, managing over £14 million in programmes across 15 countries.

This year's edition of the White Tie and Tiara charity ball that raises money for the Elton John AIDS Foundation will feature a special version of Audi's A1 premium supermini designed by British contemporary artist, Damien Hirst.

This year's edition of the Wörthersee GTI Tour that takes place in Reifnitz, Austria, on May 12 will see Audi showcasing seven custom versions of its new A1 premium supermini, including a model sporting an "FC Bayern" look, taxi and police variants.

The other four custom A1s are a "Hot Rod" version with a matt-finish look, steel wheels with white-wall tires and extremely low ride height thanks to the air suspension, one fitted with a "competition kit" that pays homage to Audi rally vehicles from the 1980s, the "Wasserwacht" model that's dedicated to the local water rescue service and a "Fashion" edition.

As anticipated, Audi came out with an official press release on its AMI motor show offerings that include the world premiere of the redesigned 2011 TT Coupe and Roadster. The German automaker did not reveal any specific details about the facelift models.

Other highlights at the show, which runs from from April 9-18, include the German premieres of the new A1 premium supermini, the A8 limo and the RS5 Coupé, the e-tron concept and the car that won the 2009 DTM (German Touring Car Masters).

It really all comes down to simple arithmetic. Audi wants to add another subcompact model to its range. It already has the A1 supermini and the A3 compact hatch, so if you subtract 1 from 3, you get 2. Add an 'A' up front and voila; you have the return of the A2 nameplate.

"There's clearly room for another product and another concept between the A3 and A1," Audi CEO Rupert Stadler told journalists on the sidelines of the 2010 Geneva Motor Show.