Audi Promises RS Models Will Be Electrified 'In The Near Future'

Audi's 48-volt mild hybrid technology will 'proliferate' through the brand's model lines.

Nearly four years ago, Audi announced plans to bolster the electrical systems in its cars with newfangled 48-volt technology. One of the promised innovations from that development was an electrically-driven turbocharger that could virtually eliminate turbo lag. Unfortunately, all the benefits of Audi's 48-volt technology have not yet come to pass, but they could be on the horizon. Speaking with Anthony Garbis, Product Manager for RS 5, at the 2018 New York Auto Show, we learned RS models will get juiced sooner rather than later.

“You will see future Audi Sport models with electrification,” said Garbis as he was careful not to give specifics. “We will be thrilling you in the near future. Pretty soon. You’re going to be seeing some future RS models with electrification and 48-volt will proliferate through the model lines in the future.” While electrification could give RS models a performance boost, Audi could leverage the technology to hedge against future changes in global emissions regulations. Rumors of Audi applying its 48-volt technology to performance models have swirled since 2014, when then-head of Quattro GmbH, Heinz Hollerwerger, said the company was open to it.

“Really, to reduce below 100g, we have to add some kind of electrification,” Hollerwerger told CarAdvice at the time. “The question is, in which way? We could not exclude electrification and we would not exclude electrification. I think it’s a technology that gives some additional performance [as well as emission benefits].” As for which RS models could get electrified first, Garbis kept quiet. “We can’t really discuss much on that at the moment,” he said, though a logical application of the technology would likely be in the upper echelons of Audi's model range. Even so, don't expect it to happen on the R8 in conjunction with an engine smaller than a V10.

“R8 is a V10 car,” said Garbis. “You know, I love [the R8 turbo V6 rumor]. It always seems to come before an auto show, too. I don’t know why [...] Everyone says that and then I chuckle every time I read it, and then it goes away. So if that’s enough of an answer for you...”

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Future Audi Cars Will Adopt More Distinctive Designs

Audi is finally ditching its ‘Russian doll’ design philosophy.

For years, Audi’s cars have been hard to distinguish thanks to the automaker’s repetitive design language across its line-up. That’s soon about to change however, as CEO Rupert Stadler revealed to Autocar that future Audi cars will adopt more distinctive designs. In fact, we’ve already seen Audi belatedly revamp its styling with the new compact Q2 crossover, its flagship sedan, the all-new A8, and the stylish A7 sportback. But what inspired Audi to adopt its ‘Russian doll’ design philosophy in the first place?

According to Stadler, it was a deliberate strategy to make Audi more recognizeable in “newer and emerging” markets like China. “This [repetition] design process was used to make Audis more recognizable in newer and emerging markets,” Stadler explained. “Now we are well known in major markets like China, we can begin to change this philosophy and give each car its own look.” “We recognize that there is a place for more differentiation now,” Design boss Marc Lichte added. “Since our cars are in production for a minimum of six years, in today’s world I think each model should have its own design to be attractive for this long time.”

We’ll start to see even more significant styling changes when Audi introduces more electric cars to its lineup after the E-Tron SUV launches next year. “Design will go in a very different way” according to Lichte, as working with electric powertrains will give Audi more freedom to change proportions. As a result, we’ll start to see cars in Audi’s lineup boast shorter overhangs and lower hoods, resulting in a “more attractive design overall”.

Aston Martin Seeking A Chinese Partner For Future EVs

Question is, why does it need a partner in the first place?

It’s not easy to break into the world’s largest EV market, but Aston Martin fully intends to try. That market would be China, but instead of building EVs with an Aston Martin badge in the country itself, the goal is to find a collaborate partner. Automotive News reports that Aston Martin CEO Dr. Andy Palmer is “seeking a Chinese partner to share its lightweight materials and aerodynamic technologies with” as the country continues to improve the performance of EVs.

Turns out Palmer is already having discussions with established Chinese automakers, suppliers, such as battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL), and other start-ups. At the moment Aston Martin does not have an EV, but that will change once the RapidE electric sedan goes on sale next year. However, it will be limited to a mere 155 examples. That’s nothing compared to what Aston Martin has planned long-term. It has already stated its goal to have EVs account for 25 percent of its sales by 2030, while the remaining 75 percent of vehicles will be hybrids. You may be asking yourself right about now why can’t Aston Martin develop EV technologies on its own?

Why does it need a partner? The answer is that Aston Martin does not have a major parent company to rely upon for R&D funds. At the moment, Aston Martin is privately held, though it is said to be considering an IPO but that has yet to be finalized. Just last week Aston Martin announced a massive five-year trade and investment deal with China worth more than $850 million. The goal of that deal, quite obviously, is to expand into the world’s largest automotive market. Last year saw fantastic brand growth, 89 percent to be precise, due in large part to the new DB11. This year the all-new Vantage will go on sale worldwide and will surely be a solid source of profit.

Future Audi Cars Will Adopt More Distinctive Designs

Audi is finally ditching its ‘Russian doll’ design philosophy.

For years, Audi’s cars have been hard to distinguish thanks to the automaker’s repetitive design language across its line-up. That’s soon about to change however, as CEO Rupert Stadler revealed to Autocar that future Audi cars will adopt more distinctive designs. In fact, we’ve already seen Audi belatedly revamp its styling with the new compact Q2 crossover, its flagship sedan, the all-new A8, and the stylish A7 sportback. But what inspired Audi to adopt its ‘Russian doll’ design philosophy in the first place?

According to Stadler, it was a deliberate strategy to make Audi more recognizeable in “newer and emerging” markets like China. “This [repetition] design process was used to make Audis more recognizable in newer and emerging markets,” Stadler explained. “Now we are well known in major markets like China, we can begin to change this philosophy and give each car its own look.” “We recognize that there is a place for more differentiation now,” Design boss Marc Lichte added. “Since our cars are in production for a minimum of six years, in today’s world I think each model should have its own design to be attractive for this long time.”

We’ll start to see even more significant styling changes when Audi introduces more electric cars to its lineup after the E-Tron SUV launches next year. “Design will go in a very different way” according to Lichte, as working with electric powertrains will give Audi more freedom to change proportions. As a result, we’ll start to see cars in Audi’s lineup boast shorter overhangs and lower hoods, resulting in a “more attractive design overall”.

Audi Won't Build The Future TT Nobody Wanted

The TT's body style will continue how it should be.

Earlier this month we learned that Audi was considering a four-door version of its TT coupe when the time comes for a redesign. Audi’s logic was that the coupe and roadster segment is quickly dying, and only a few brands are finding success. It may not be worth Audi’s development time and money any longer.

But the TT is still a recognizable name, so Audi toyed with the idea of turning it into a more practical four-door coupe. According to CarAdvice, that won’t be happening. The Australian publication recently spoke to Peter Oberndorfer, Audi’s head of communications, who confirmed the four-door coupe idea is no longer.

Now, some of you may recall back in 2014 when Audi seriously considered an entire “TT family”, so to speak, consisting of a coupe, sedan and even a crossover-ish type of vehicle. That idea originated from now former Audi technical chief Ulrich Hackenberg, who was ousted following the revelations of Dieselgate.

“Actually we had the idea of a TT ‘family’, so to speak,” Oberndorfer said. “Not so much anymore. I think the TT is an icon, and to do a family (car) out of that is quite difficult. And especially in these times where we have to concentrate more and more, because we have to do gasoline and diesels on the one side, and electrification on the other side.”

The guy brings up some good points here, the main one being the TT always has been and should always be two-doors. “So you have to concentrate more and more and think about what you can do and what you can afford. So we’re quite happy with one TT at the moment," he added. But what does Audi have to say regarding that four-door TT rumor? “Where the recent stories came from, I don’t know. I don’t know about a four-door TT,” Oberndorfer said.

Audi Won't Build The Future TT Nobody Wanted

The TT's body style will continue how it should be.

Earlier this month we learned that Audi was considering a four-door version of its TT coupe when the time comes for a redesign. Audi’s logic was that the coupe and roadster segment is quickly dying, and only a few brands are finding success. It may not be worth Audi’s development time and money any longer.

But the TT is still a recognizable name, so Audi toyed with the idea of turning it into a more practical four-door coupe. According to CarAdvice, that won’t be happening. The Australian publication recently spoke to Peter Oberndorfer, Audi’s head of communications, who confirmed the four-door coupe idea is no longer.

Now, some of you may recall back in 2014 when Audi seriously considered an entire “TT family”, so to speak, consisting of a coupe, sedan and even a crossover-ish type of vehicle. That idea originated from now former Audi technical chief Ulrich Hackenberg, who was ousted following the revelations of Dieselgate.

“Actually we had the idea of a TT ‘family’, so to speak,” Oberndorfer said. “Not so much anymore. I think the TT is an icon, and to do a family (car) out of that is quite difficult. And especially in these times where we have to concentrate more and more, because we have to do gasoline and diesels on the one side, and electrification on the other side.”

The guy brings up some good points here, the main one being the TT always has been and should always be two-doors. “So you have to concentrate more and more and think about what you can do and what you can afford. So we’re quite happy with one TT at the moment," he added. But what does Audi have to say regarding that four-door TT rumor? “Where the recent stories came from, I don’t know. I don’t know about a four-door TT,” Oberndorfer said.

7 New Cars That Will Become Future Collectibles

We think these cars will only go up in value.

Some people think that the whole "collector car" market is a bubble waiting to burst. We don't necessarily love the idea of buying a car just to flip it and make a profit, but as long as it's happening we'll keep analyzing the situation. Everyone wants to know what the next car that will appreciate is going to be. We don't have a crystal ball, but we've been right in the past with cars like the 996 Turbo and F430 manual. Here are seven brand-new cars that we think could be nice collectible assets in the future.

The new 991.2 GT2 RS is the most powerful 911 ever and will be limited to just 1,000 units. This car will be an instant collectible and will probably trade at double or triple its initial price of $289,000. The previous 997 GT2 RS is currently trading at well above its original price, so we have no doubt that this 700-hp beast will be extremely collectible.

The AMG GT-R is the most hardcore version of the AMG GT sports car. The last track-focused model from Mercedes was the SLS Black Series, which is now worth more than its original asking price. Mercedes says that it will build 2,000 examples of the GT-R for $157,995 each. This is far less than a similarly quick Porsche 911 GT3 RS. We think that Mercedes has priced this car too low, and the market will certainly inflate the price of this rare model with markups.

The initial hype and dealer markup that surrounded the Dodge Challenger Hellcat has finally died down. This hype has now shifted to the long-awaited Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk and the more powerful Demon. However, we think that the Hellcat hype will be ramped up as soon as the Widebody models reach showrooms. We have no doubt that the Demon will appreciate like crazy, but it will also be extremely difficult to obtain. Those that can't get their hands on a Demon allocation will have to settle for the recently revealed Hellcat Widebody, which has added grip from the Demon's fender flares.

We love the new Audi RS3 and TT RS and think that both cars are relative performance bargains. Both cars are powered by a wonderful 2.5-liter five-cylinder engine with 400 hp. Unfortunately, both cars have been predicatbly hyped up. This means that Audi dealerships have begun to charge a dealer markup on both models. If you want one of these cars, you'll probably have to pony up an extra $10,000. The hype for these cars should eventually die down, but the original TT RS has actually done a good job of holding value and not depreciating as much as we'd expect of a German luxury car.

Porsche finally listened to its fans and decided to offer the 991.2 GT3 with a manual transmission option. This is great news, but there's a catch. The manual transmission models won't be built until later in the production run. Manual GT3 owners will have to wait a while to take delivery of their car, but their patience will be rewarded. These cars will likely be collectible in the future and should command a hefty premium over PDK models.

If the BMW 1 Series M is any indication, the new M2 should hold its value quite well. We think that the manual models will be more desirable than their DCT counterparts, and the most desirable color will be the rare Austin Yellow. BMW don't offer individual paint on the M2, with Blue, Black, Grey and White the only official colors. BMW did, however, make a few examples of the M2 in the M4's Austin Yellow . The photo of this M2 comes from @todorov5 on Instagram.

The Ford Fiesta ST is the cheapest car on our list, but it also one of the most fun to drive. The Fiesta ST has been the opposite of a good investment so far, and prices have sank down to less than $12,000 in some cases. However, there is a very real chance that Ford will discontinue the Fiesta in the US and leave us without the wonderful ST, at which point prices will begin to surge. We urge anyone that wants one of these amazing hot hatchbacks to go out and buy one now before they may be gone forever.

Audi Won't Build The Future TT Nobody Wanted

The TT's body style will continue how it should be.

Earlier this month we learned that Audi was considering a four-door version of its TT coupe when the time comes for a redesign. Audi’s logic was that the coupe and roadster segment is quickly dying, and only a few brands are finding success. It may not be worth Audi’s development time and money any longer.

But the TT is still a recognizable name, so Audi toyed with the idea of turning it into a more practical four-door coupe. According to CarAdvice, that won’t be happening. The Australian publication recently spoke to Peter Oberndorfer, Audi’s head of communications, who confirmed the four-door coupe idea is no longer.

Now, some of you may recall back in 2014 when Audi seriously considered an entire “TT family”, so to speak, consisting of a coupe, sedan and even a crossover-ish type of vehicle. That idea originated from now former Audi technical chief Ulrich Hackenberg, who was ousted following the revelations of Dieselgate.

“Actually we had the idea of a TT ‘family’, so to speak,” Oberndorfer said. “Not so much anymore. I think the TT is an icon, and to do a family (car) out of that is quite difficult. And especially in these times where we have to concentrate more and more, because we have to do gasoline and diesels on the one side, and electrification on the other side.”

The guy brings up some good points here, the main one being the TT always has been and should always be two-doors. “So you have to concentrate more and more and think about what you can do and what you can afford. So we’re quite happy with one TT at the moment," he added. But what does Audi have to say regarding that four-door TT rumor? “Where the recent stories came from, I don’t know. I don’t know about a four-door TT,” Oberndorfer said.