The Next Gen Audi A8 will have an Intelligent mix of four materials including, Aluminium and CFRP.

• Luxury saloon lives up to its reputation as an innovation driver in lightweight design
• Comfortable entry and improved view thanks to roller hemming
• Extraordinary torsional rigidity delivers gains in driving dynamics and acoustics
• Intelligent mix of four materials: aluminium, steel, magnesium and CFRP
• Know-how based on more than one million series cars with Audi Space Frames

Audi is writing a new chapter in its lightweight design success story. For the next generation of the Audi A8, an intelligent mix of four materials is being used for the first time in the weight-bearing body structure – more materials than in any of the brand’s previous production models. 

The luxury saloon is thus once again rightfully claiming its role as an innovation driver in automotive lightweight design: Its low weight and impressive rigidity offer greater performance, efficiency and safety.

The lightweight design experts at Audi long ago abandoned the fixation on using a single material in lightweight design. With a mix of aluminium, steel, magnesium and carbon fibre-reinforced polymer (CFRP) they are establishing a new stage in multi-material construction in the Audi Space Frame (ASF) for the next generation of the Audi A8 – in keeping with the principle “the right material in the right place and in the right amount.”

Audi consistently applies new material technologies and designs that directly benefit the customer – and not only in terms of weight. The upcoming flagship’s torsional rigidity – the critical parameter for precise handling and pleasing acoustics – surpasses the excellent values of its predecessor by a factor of about one quarter.

Innovative production process – the carbon rear panel in the new Audi A8

In terms of its overall dimensions, an ultra-high-strength, torsionally rigid rear panel made of CFRP is the largest component in the occupant cell of the new Audi A8, and it contributes 33 percent to the torsional rigidity of the total vehicle. To optimally absorb longitudinal and transverse loads as well as shearing force, between six and 19 fibre layers are placed one on top of the other, ensuring a load-optimised layout. 

These individual fibre layers consist of tapes 50 millimetres wide and can be placed individually in a finished layered package, with any desired fibre angle and minimal trimming of the fibres. The innovative direct-fibre layering process specially developed for this purpose makes it possible to entirely dispense with the normally needed intermediary step of manufacturing entire sheets. 

Using another newly developed process, the layered package is wetted with epoxide resin and sets within minutes.

A high-strength combination of hot-formed steel components make up the occupant cell, which comprises the lower section of the front bulkhead, the side sills, the B-pillars and the front section of the roof line. Some of these sheet metal blanks are produced in varying thicknesses using tailoring technologies – meaning they are customised – and others also undergo partial heat treatment. 

That reduces weight and increases the strength, especially in areas of the vehicle that are particularly critical for safety.

The aluminium components make up 58 percent of the new Audi A8 body, the largest share in the mix of materials. Cast nodes, extruded profiles and sheets are the elements characteristic of the ASF design. And here too the competition of materials has been driving progress. 

New heat-treated, ultra-high-strength cast alloys attain a tensile strength of over 230 MPa (megapascals). The corresponding yield strength in the tensile test is over 180 MPa, and for the profile alloys it is higher than 280, i.e. 320 MPa – significantly higher values than seen previously.

Rounding out the intelligent mix of materials is the magnesium strut brace. A comparison with the predecessor model shows that it contributes a 28-percent weight savings. Aluminium bolts secure the connection to the strut tower domes, making them a guarantor of the body’s high torsional rigidity.

In the event of a frontal collision, the forces generated are distributed to three impact buffers in the front end.

Benefits for customers and the environment – the new body shop for the Audi A8

In addition to the complete redevelopment of the Audi Space Frame for the next generation A8, the production halls at the Neckarsulm location were specially built for the upcoming flagship. A total of 14,400 metric tonnes of steel were needed just for construction of the new, 41-metre-high body shop, twice as much steel as was used for the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

The highly complex yet energy-efficient production operation uses 14 different joining processes, including roller hemming at the front and rear door cutouts. This mechanical, “cold” technology is used to join the aluminium side wall frame to the hot-formed, ultra-strong steel sheets at the B-pillar, roof line and sills. The engineers thus realised improvements of up to 36 millimetres at the door cutouts compared to the predecessor model. That in turn makes getting in and out of the car even more comfortable and widens the driver’s field of vision around the A-pillar, an area that is key to safe driving.

As for the “warm” joining processes, Audi stands alone among the premium automakers by virtue of its development of remote laser welding for use with aluminium. Exact positioning of the laser beam in relation to the welding edge considerably reduces the risk of hot cracking during the production process. The new process makes it possible to precisely control the penetration depth of the laser by means of the heat input. In this way, process control can immediately determine the gap width between parts being joined, and this can effectively be closed using regulating controls. The laser beam’s high feed rate and low energy use reduce the CO₂ emissions of this production step by about one fourth.

This new process also results in a 95 percent savings on recurring costs in series production because it eliminates the need for costly process controls required with conventional laser welding. The remote laser welding technology perfectly symbolises the entire production of the new Audi A8.

In 1994 it was the first generation of this luxury saloon, with its aluminium unitary body, that made the Audi Space Frame an established presence in the automotive world. Since then the company has built more than one million production cars in accordance with this design principle, and it has been continually building upon its know-how in the use of materials and joining techniques.

AUDI continues to grow and go to places others can only dream of, this time, AUDI is off to the moon.

• Audi is working with the Part-Time Scientists in the Google Lunar XPRIZE
• The winning team must transport an automated vehicle to the moon
• Part-time Scientists achieved two Milestone Prizes in the competition so far

Audi is taking on an entirely new type of challenge: a mission to the moon. The company is assisting the Berlin-based engineering group “Part-Time Scientists” in the “Google Lunar XPRIZE.” This space travel competition was organized for engineers and business enterprises worldwide, and it offers approximately $30 million in prize money. Audi is supporting the lunar expedition with its expert knowledge – and the Audi lunar quattro.

To win the competition, a team – which must be at least 90-percent privately financed – needs to transport an automated vehicle to the moon. Competition rules state that this rover must drive at least one-half kilometer distance on the moon and transmit high-resolution images and video footage back to Earth. 

In addition, the lunar vehicle with the Audi lunar quattro must launch into space by the end of 2017 aboard a launching rocket that will travel over 380,000 kilometers (236,121 mi) to the moon. The trip takes five days and – according to estimates by the Part-Time Scientists – it will cost around 24 million euros. 

The target landing zone is north of the moon’s equator, close to the 1972 landing site of NASA’s last manned mission to the moon, Apollo 17. In this region, temperatures fluctuate an enormous 300 degrees Celsius; when the sun is shining, it gets up to 120 degrees Celsius due to the lack of an atmosphere.

The Part-Time Scientists – whose headquarters is in Berlin and whom Audi is assisting – are the only German participants. So far, their rover prototype has already won two prizes known as Milestone Prizes in the competition. 

These prizes, which carry a monetary value of $750,000, were awarded by the competition jury for development of the rover and its optical systems. The Berlin- based researchers are continually refining their lunar vehicle, and extensive tests have been conducted in such places as the Austrian Alps and on Tenerife.

Many of the rover’s components are made of high-strength aluminum, and it weighs 35 kilograms (77.2 lb). In continued development of the vehicle into the Audi lunar quattro, its weight will be further reduced by the use of magnesium and design modifications, even though the vehicle might grow somewhat in size. 

A swiveling solar panel captures sunlight, and the electricity it generates is fed to a lithium-ion battery that powers the four wheel hub motors. All four of the wheels can be rotated 360 degrees.

The theoretical maximum speed is 3.6 km/h (2.2 mph) – but more important on the rugged surface of the moon are the vehicle’s off-road qualities and safe navigating abilities. 

Two stereo cameras that acquire detailed 3D images are mounted to a moving head at the front of the vehicle. A third camera is used to study materials, and it generates extremely high-resolution panoramic images.

The Audi working group that is assisting the Part-Time Scientists currently consists of ten employees from different technical departments. 

In addition to their lightweight design competence, they have much more know-how to offer, especially their expertise about the quattro permanent all-wheel drive system and the electrical e-tron drive system. The goal here is to further enhance performance by making additional improvements to the electric motors, power electronics and battery.

The brand with the four rings is also providing wide-ranging assistance in testing, trials and quality assurance. Using their high-tech tools and methods, specialists from Quality Assurance will study the parts of the future Audi lunar quattro for wear. The motors and electronic components must withstand stress tests in climate chambers. In parallel, Audi Concept Design Munich continues to refine the form of the rover.

The Google Lunar XPRIZE started with 34 teams, and 16 groups remain today. The Part-Time Scientists team was founded in late 2008 by Robert Böhme, who works as an IT consultant in Berlin. 

The majority of its team members, who currently number over 70, come from Germany and Austria. Experts from three continents support the team, including former leading NASA employee Jack Crenshaw from Florida. Assisting the group, in addition to Audi, are numerous research institutes and high-tech companies such as NVIDIA, the Technical University of Berlin, the Austrian Space Forum (OeWF) and the German Aerospace Center (DLR).

Audi see's sales grow despite the corporate scandal it is involved with, will 2016 see sales dip ?

• Audi CEO Rupert Stadler: “We have exceeded our Strategy 2015 target by 300,000 units”
• Sales chief Dietmar Voggenreiter: “Foundations for further growth have been successfully laid”
• U.S. sales doubled in five years

AUDI AG achieved a new sales record in 2015: Compared with 2014, worldwide deliveries increased by 3.6 percent to around 1,803,250 automobiles. This total was achieved despite the fact that the first representatives of the current model initiative – the new A4, the new Q7 and the new R8 – were not yet available in all regions of the world. 

In Europe and China, Audi confirmed its position as the most successful premium brand; in the United States, the brand with the four rings grew at twice the rate of the market. 

In December, around 158,450 customers worldwide chose an Audi, an increase of 5.6 percent. This means that the company has increased its sales for the 72nd successive month.

“With sales of 1.8 million, we have surpassed the target set in our Strategy 2015 of 1.5 million cars by 300,000,” says Rupert Stadler, Chairman of the Board of Management of AUDI AG. “2015 has proved that Audi is solidly on track and that we are able to master a year that presented various challenges very successfully.”

Regarding developments in the sales regions, sales chief Dietmar Voggenreiter explains: “In Asia, we adapted very flexibly to the slower market pace and consistently geared our activities toward healthy and profitable businesses. With strong results in the United States and the successful launch of our model initiative in Europe, foundations for Audi’s further growth have been successfully laid.”

The new generation of key Audi models is well underway: the new generation of Audi’s bestselling A4 model was launched in Europe in November 2015. It will also be appearing in overseas markets this year. Available in Europe since June 2015, the new Q7 celebrated its premiere in China at the end of the year, in advance of its arrival in the United States and other major markets in 2016.

Audi’s entire SUV family once again grew disproportionately in 2015, gaining 6.0 percent across all Q models to around 537,950 automobiles worldwide. The A3 and its variants contributed to Audi’s growth with an increase in sales of

20.3 percent to around 372,750 units. Furthermore, with deliveries of around 29,950 units (+87.0%), the TT became the best-selling compact sports car in the premium market.

In Europe, the full-size class strengthened Audi further. In addition to the Q7 (+103.8% to around 27,050 automobiles), sales of the A6 rose significantly with an increase of 9.9 percent to around 99,800 cars delivered. Across all models, European sales rose by 4.8 percent to the new record of around 799,950 units. In December, the first full month for the new A4, 

European deliveries climbed by 17.5 percent to around 57,650 units. Over the last five years, Audi has increased its annual sales in Europe by almost one quarter, while the overall market has only recovered to its 2010 level so far. In 2015, Spain (+16.5% to 44,587 cars) and Italy (+10.3% to 54,054 cars) led the positive trend for Audi. France gained 5.2 percent with sales of 60,216 units. 

Audi sold more automobiles than ever before in Germany (+5.7% to 270,063 cars) and the UK(+5.0% to 166,817 cars). Conditions remained difficult in Russia: down 24.6 percent to 25,650 Audi customers in 2015.

In the United States, the company surpassed the 200,000 mark for the first time in its history: rising 11.1 percent to 202,202 units. Audi has thus doubled its U.S. sales within five years. In December, despite the voluntary temporary halt to sales of diesel models, deliveries increased by 6.0 percent to 20,399 automobiles.

With  sales rising 22.6 percent to 52,006 SUV models for the full year, the Q5 set a particularly strong pace and led the Q family boom. 32,119 customers made the Audi A3 Sedan (+52.4%) the most popular compact sedan in the U.S. premium market. 

In addition to the United States, Audi’s strong performance overall in the Americas was supported in particular by Canada (+9.1% to 26,754 cars), Mexico(+9.3% to 14,147 cars) and Brazil, which showed continued strong growth of 38.7 percent to 17,130 units.

In China, Audi once again achieved very high sales levels in 2015, ending the year with 570,889 customers, slightly below the comparative figure for 2014 (-1.4%). 60,197 units in December represent the second-best month in the company’s history in this market, 3.8 percent below the record level set in the same month last year. 

In late 2014, the launch of the A3 Sedan as another locally produced model had created particularly high customer traffic at dealerships. 

Over the course of the next months, the company will introduce various new models throughout its  Chinese product portfolio: by the summer of 2016, successors will be launched for models that represent around 60 percent of total Audi sales in China.

Sales for AUDI AG	In December			Cumulative
	2015	2014	Change from 2014	2015	2014	Change from 2014
World	158,450	150,012	+5.6%	1,803,250	1,741,129	+3.6%
Europe	57,650	49,070	+17.5%	799,950	762,949	+4.8%
- Germany	17,087	14,733	+16.0%	270,063	255,582	+5.7%
- UK	9,003	7,973	+12.9%	166,817	158,829	+5.0%
- France	5,355	4,121	+29.9%	60,216	57,214	+5.2%
- Italy	3,575	3,326	+7.5%	54,054	49,022	+10.3%
- Spain	2,886	1,770	+63.1%	44,587	38,277	+16.5%
- Russia	2,340	2,983	-21.6%	25,650	34,014	-24.6%
United States	20,399	19,238	+6.0%	202,202	182,011	+11.1%
Mexico	1,516	1,458	+4.0%	14,147	12,939	+9.3%
Brazil	1,309	228	+474.1%	17,130	12,350	+38.7%
China (incl. Hong Kong)	60,197	62,576	-3.8%	570,889	578,932	-1.4%