Motoring Weekly

Innovative Audi A4

April 30 - May 6, 2008
403 views
Gulf Weekly Innovative Audi A4

THE new Audi A4 Saloon has been launched by Audi Centre Bahrain at its ultra-modern showroom in Sitra.

The car was introduced to a host of customers and media representatives at an informal morning function last week.

Pieter Kruger, brand manager for Audi Bahrain, said: "We are extremely excited to have received the long awaited new Audi A4. To introduce its new technologies and driving characteristics, the focus of the launch is to get as many as possible customers - existing and potential - to experience the new A4 in a test drive."

Behbehani Brothers general manager Peter Green and Audi Centre managing director Hussain Shirazi also attended the launch ceremony.

The new Audi A4 saloon is making its entrance confidently with a strong, sporty design and an innovative technical concept.

From the start, it will offer many technologies adopted directly from the large luxury class. The Audi drive select, which changes the driving characteristics of the Audi A4 at the touch of a button ranging from sporty to comfortable, is in a revolutionary move by the manufacturer first introduced in the new Audi A4 rather than in the top of the range Audi A8 or Q7.

Comprehensive standard equipment and many custom extras allow customers to fully personalise their Audi A4 saloon without any compromises. Overall - both emotionally and rationally - the new Audi A4 saloon is an excellent basis for the German premium car manufacturer to expand its foothold in the Middle East also in the smaller segments.

Audi equips its new saloon model with various high-tech systems that have so far been available only on luxury cars. These include standard LED daytime running lights, three-zone automatic air conditioning, front seats with lumbar support function and seat ventilation, the MMI operating system, the bitless intelligent key, which stores the vehicles service information, as well as the Bang & Olufsen sound system.

To move safely from one lane to the next Audi introduces the Audi side assist, as well as the Audi parking system advanced with rear-view camera to provide support when parking the car.

Two innovative new technologies add even greater fascination to the driving experience: the "Audi drive select" control system allows the driver to adjust the operating characteristics of the engine, automatic transmission, steering and adaptive damping to suit his or her own preferences.

The other is Audi dynamic steering, which controls the effective steering ratio according to road speed and acts together with the ESP to stabilise the car when close to the handling limits.

With its expressive, taut and dynamic design and the high precision and technical character of its styling the new Audi A4 confirms Audi's leading position in this field.

Compared with the previous model, the designers have altered the proportions to create a new, sporty impression. The front overhang is shorter, the bonnet and wheelbase distinctly longer.

At an overall length of 4.70 metres, the new A4 is a large saloon and boasts a substantial, powerful road presence. Its body illustrates the technical progress that has been made: it is significantly more rigid and safer than the previous model, but also distinctly lighter, thanks to intelligent weight-saving.

The new saloon cuts its way through the wind with ease, and its 480-litre boot is larger than that of any of its direct competitors. Inside the new A4, the ambience is spacious and full of light, as would be expected in a much larger model. It embodies the traditional Audi strengths: a distinguished appearance, no-compromise high-quality workmanship with close attention to detail and logical, intuitive controls.

The new Audi A4 is being launched with a choice of two refined, powerful engines both of them using the FSI direct fuel injection principle. The 1.8 TFSI with 160 bhp is equipped with a multitronic continuously variable transmission and front wheel drive.

The 3.2 FSI V6 quattro with 265 bhp comes with tiptronic automatic transmission and an even more dynamic, rear-biased quattro four-wheel drive. With their smooth running and impressive flow of power, the engines in the new A4 are a source of pure driving pleasure.

Thanks to the use of numerous aluminium components, the suspension, steering, wheels and brakes are exceptionally light in weight.

The price of the new car ranges from BD16,000 to BD18,000. Also, check out for details of the centre's new five-year service plan on 17459933.







More on Motoring Weekly