Following initial leaks online Audi has officially revealed its centrepiece for this week's Detroit Auto Show. The concept car is called the 'allroad shooting brake' and while said to mix elements of Audi's allroad variants with its hybrid e-tron technology for the first time, it also is thought to show the styling direction for the company's new TT coupé model.
Exterior
Picture a sharper suited version of the current Audi TT, wearing headlights from the most recent Audi sport quattro concept. Now add in an 'allroad' stance with grey rubbing strips and pronounced arches, plus under-body protection front and rear. Finally, bin the swooping coupé roofline and replace it with a 'shooting brake' profile, but keep the frameless doors and stick on some roof rails for good effect. That's the allroad shooting brake concept in a nutshell.
Interior
Audi rather ruined the surprise of the concept's advanced cabin by revealing it at the CES event in Las Vegas as that of the next-gen TT's, but of course the allroad shooting brake has a few tricks up its sleeves. The air vents (said to mimic jet engine design) contain individual controls for the climate control, ventilation and even seat heating. Not only that, but they extend out to meet an approaching hand. Meanwhile, the centre console moves with the driver's seat so the controls remain at the same distance away at all times.
In terms of seating, the concept features space for four, while the rear backrest folds completely flat.
Mechanicals
First the numbers: maximum system outputs are 408hp and 650Nm of torque. The 1,600kg show car accelerates from 0-100km/h in just 4.6 seconds and is limited to 250km/h. Combined cycle fuel economy is 148.7mpg and CO2 emissions are rated at 45g/km. Oh and the concept will theoretically go 800 kilometres between fill-ups. Sounds like complete science fiction, right?
Making all this possible is a plug-in hybrid drive system incorporating a 2.0-litre TFSI petrol engine producing up to 292hp and 380Nm of torque. It apparently features a large turbocharger and uses indirect and direct injection to suit different conditions. Bolted to this is a six-speed e-S tronic dual-clutch transmission, which features a disc-shaped electric motor that can be decoupled from the driveline. This adds 54hp and 270Nm of torque to proceedings.
All of the above sends go to the front wheels. There's a second electric motor on the rear axle, sending up to 114hp and 270Nm of torque to the rear wheels when required. In Audi-speak all this makes the concept car an e-tron quattro.
An 8.8kWh lithium-ion battery is located ahead of the rear axle, allowing zero emissions running on electric power alone for up to 50 kilometres. This can be charged by plugging the car in to a suitable charging point. Various modes of operation are selectable by the driver, including one where the battery charge is maintained at maximum until the end of a journey, to allow for a portion of city driving for example.
Anything else?
Audi has used a mix of carbon fibre and aluminium in the construction of the allroad shooting brake in a bid to offset the extra weight of the electrical hardware. Other chassis details include an electro-mechanical power steering system, MacPherson front suspension and a four-link rear axle set-up.