Volkswagen Group posts slightly lower figures for the first six months of the year - VW drops the sales.

• Group Board Member for Sales Christian Klingler: “Group’s overall development in first half year was satisfactory. Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand was not immune to current trends in China.”

Vehicle deliveries by the Volkswagen Group in the first half of 2015 continued at a high level and remained virtually stable, again topping the five million mark. In total, 5.04 (January- June 2014: 5.07; -0.5 percent) million vehicles were handed over to customers from January to June. 

With deliveries running at 840,400 (June 2014: 877,900; -4.3 percent) units, the situation in June was tense. “Overall, Volkswagen Group brands recorded satisfactory development in the first half of the year in what has in some cases been a difficult market environment. 

Developments in South America and Russia remain tense, as do conditions in China, where growth on the overall market has been shrinking steadily since the beginning of this year and became negative in June for the first time in several years. 

As the market leader, the Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand in particular was not immune to these changes currently affecting the market”, Group Board Member for Sales Christian Klingler said in Wolfsburg on Friday.

Group brands grew deliveries on the overall European market, in some countries quite significantly, in the first half of the year, handing over a total of 2.11 (2.04; +3.7 percent) million vehicles to customers. 1.14 (1.07) million customers took possession of a new vehicle in Western Europe (excluding Germany), an increase of 6.9 percent. 

668,300 (626,100;+6.7 percent) vehicles were handed over on the home market of Germany. The Group delivered 304,000 (343,900; -11.6 percent) vehicles in Central and Eastern Europe in the period to June, of which 84,300 (142,600; -40.9 percent) units were handed over to customers on the Russian market where the situation remains tense.

Deliveries in the North America region from January to June rose by 6.0 percent to 451,200 (425,900) units, of which 295,000 (288,000; +2.4 percent) were handed over to customers in the United States. 

In the South America region, where conditions remain challenging, the Volkswagen Group delivered 297,300 (383,700; -22.5 percent) units during the same period,of which 211,800 (301,000; -29.6 percent) were handed over to customers in Brazil.

Chiefly as a result of the downturn in Volkswagen brand deliveries in China, the Group handed over 1.94 (2.00; -3.0 percent) million vehiclesto customers in the Asia-Pacific region inthe first half year, of which 1.74 (1.81; -3.9 percent) million units were delivered in China, the Group’s largest single market.

Outline of developments at Group brands

The Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand delivered 2.95 (3.07; -3.9 percent) million vehicles to customers worldwide in the first half of 2015.

The premium brand Audi handedover 902,400 (869,400) vehicles worldwide from January to June, an increaseof 3.8 percent.

The sports car manufacturer Porsche delivered a total of 114,000 (87,800) vehicles in the period to June, representing an increase of 29.8 percent compared with the previous year.

The Czech brand ŠKODA delivered 544,300 (522,500) vehicles from January to June, a rise of 4.2 percent.

The Spanish car manufacturer SEAT handed over 216,500 (200,100; +8.2 percent) vehicles to customers worldwide in the first half year.

Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles delivered 223,000 (217,700; +2.4 percent) vehicles during the same period.

The MAN brand delivered 49,900 (57,600; -13.5 percent) units from January to June.

The Swedish brand Scania delivered 37,000 (38,400; -3.7 percent) heavy trucks and buses to customers in the period to June.

The tally rises to 36 MILLION cars recalled due to the Takata Airbag Scandal, when will it end ?

The global Takata airbag recall expanded by millions more vehicles for the second time in as many days today, with Honda Motor Co. and Daihatsu calling back more inflators.

The latest recalls affect some 4.89 million vehicles at Honda and about 260,000 at Daihatsu, the mini vehicle subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corp. The safety campaigns came just a day after Toyota and Nissan Motor Co. announced a similar recall of more than 6.5 million cars globally.

The Honda recall doesn’t affect vehicles in the United States or Canada. Vehicles sold in those markets weren’t equipped with the possibly faulty inflators targeted in the latest action.

Honda’s recall covers 1.72 million vehicles in Japan that were manufactured from 2002 to 2008. Those 17 nameplates were made in Japan, Thailand and the United States. The remainder of the recalls falls in other regions. Honda said it will announce the regional breakdowns locally.

Daihatsu’s recall affects cars only in Japan.

Including the latest actions, about 36 million vehicles have been recalled worldwide since 2008 over Takata inflators, according to Reuters estimates. That includes 19.6 million from Honda alone, some 8.2 million of which are in the United States, Honda spokeswoman Yuka Abe said.

Honda and Daihatsu said they aren’t aware of any injuries or deaths linked to the latest recalls.

Carmakers are calling back more cars after investigations showed that certain inflators were susceptible to moisture damage over time and possibly prone to rupture. Honda said it is acting based on the results of a study provide in March by Takata Corp., the Japanese supplier that has produced millions of airbag inflators that may explode, showering occupants with metal shards.

Mazda Motor Corp. said it was investigating whether the current findings warrant a similar recall of its vehicles. A Mitsubishi Motors Corp. spokesman said the company couldn’t comment on whether it plans a recall before officially notifying transportation authorities. A spokesperson for Subaru-maker Fuji Heavy Industries was not immediately available for comment.

That study, conducted independently by Takata, showed that moisture intrusion can cause the inflator’s propellant to lose density over time, raising the risk of rupture, Honda’s Abe said.

Honda said engineers have yet to determine the root cause of the problem.

Honda is acting in May, even though it received the study’s results in March, because it took time to determine how many cars were affected and where those cars were sold, Abe said.

Honda said it will replace the Takata-made driver-side inflators with inflators made by Autoliv and Daicel. Takata inflators on the passenger-side will be swapped for ones from Daicel and Takata. Abe said Honda opted to source from companies that can supply replacement quickly, and did not opt for Takata’s competitors because of concerns about Takata quality.

Daihatsu is replacing the Takata inflators with new inflators from Takata.

Toyota said Wednesday, while announcing its recall of about 5 million vehicles that it would opt for new inflators from Daicel on the driver-side because it could deliver the needed volume more quickly. Toyota will used Takata replacements for the passenger-side.

Toyota’s recall involved 35 models, including 1.36 million cars in Japan, 1.27 million in Europe, 637,000 in the U.S. and 18,000 in Canada, the company said in an email.

U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration spokesman Gordon Trowbridge said Toyota and Nissan as well as Japanese government officials have been in contact with the U.S. safety agency over the last few days, and NHTSA will soon announce "significant new steps" related to accelerating Takata recalls.

Nissan said it was recalling about 1.56 million cars globally over the same issue, adding that no accidents or injuries had been reported. Nissan's recall includes 563,000 cars in Europe, 326,000 in North America, 288,000 in Japan and 274,000 in China.

In the U.S., the Nissan recall affects 12,725 units of the 2004 Pathfinder and about 251,000 Sentra compact cars from the 2004-06 model years from all 50 U.S. states. The company's latest move expands earlier recalls that were limited to regions with high humidity, a Nissan spokesman said.

Nissan will begin notifying customers in June, the spokesman said.

Six fatalities in Honda cars, including five in the U.S. and one in Malaysia, have been blamed on shrapnel from Takata airbags. At least 105 injuries are connected to the flaw, U.S. Senator Bill Nelson said last month.

Regulators in Japan and the U.S. are investigating Takata airbag inflators that may malfunction, deploying them with so much force that the part breaks and hurls metal shrapnel at the car's occupants.

A group of 10 automakers hired aerospace and defense company Orbital ATK to test potentially faulty Takata airbag inflators. The Japanese component maker has also commissioned German research group Fraunhofer Society to investigate the cause of airbag ruptures.

Takata, which has forecast a return to profit this fiscal year, has said it's unable to estimate the penalties from the lawsuits associated with the airbags and hasn't set aside any amount to cover them as the cause of the defect is still being investigated.

Ryan Beene 

Hans Greimel

REPORT HERE

Vauxhall celebrates 5,000,000th car to come off the Ellesmere Port Production Lines.

Today, in its 50^th year as one of the UK’s most prolific car plants, Vauxhall’s Ellesmere Port factory has released dramatic footage of a vehicle sign-off like no other, while celebrating the five-millionth car to be produced at the Cheshire plant.

News of the landmark car will be an extra boost for the near-1,800 workforce at EP, who build a new car every two minutes, and is currently gearing up for production of an all-new Astra later in 2015. As the lead manufacturing plant in Europe for the new model, Ellesmere Port is taking on an additional 300 staff next month as part of a £140 million investment by parent General Motors, which will secure the plant’s future into the middle of next decade.

Vauxhall started building its compact cars at the Cheshire plant in 1964, and has been responsible for all Viva models (a nameplate that’ll return to the brand next year), the Chevette and all six Astra models from 1982. In all, an average of 100,000 units has left the plant in each of the last 50 years.

But like its sister plant in Luton (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7r5FyzPX3W8) Ellesmere Port can also reveal footage of its extreme car sign-off process, which has evolved from clandestine ‘testing’ in the factory during the Sixties and Seventies, to one of the most comprehensive quality validations in the motor industry.

In 1964, when the first Viva HA rolled off the line, Ellesmere’s workforce was as passionate and skilled as it is today, but one employee – known simply as ‘Ellesmere Pete’ – developed a finely-honed test process, which is now used as a rubber-stamp by the factory on all the vehicles it makes.

Pete works during the plant’s downtime, and uses EP’s vast Body Shop to put randomly selected Astras through a variety of tough tests. Suspension components are only signed off after Pete has jettisoned an Astra into mid-air and had it land safely, while steering geometry is analysed by completing a half-circuit of the body-shop on two wheels.

But while the process has always remained the same, from the earliest Viva HA’s right through to modern day, Pete admits to some favourite test-drives around the plant. ‘The Firenza Droopsnoot was a cracker. It had so much poke that the biggest challenge was not clipping some of the machinery as you drifted it between production lines. And when I got my hands on the first Astra GTE back in ’82, it was by far the fastest thing I’d put through the stillage-chicane in Body Shop. I could hit 60 on a good day.’

Ellesmere Port’s current Plant Director, Stefan Fesser, was sceptical about the testing when he arrived in 2013. ‘Of course, Ellesmere Pete is a legend in GM circles, but I wasn’t convinced until I saw the breadth of his high-speed testing in the plant, and the detailed reports he generates. And you know what? After fifty years, he still does a fantastic job of validating the great quality that comes with every car we produce. Long may he continue.’

To view Ellesmere Pete at work, from 1964 to 2014, please click on the following link: http://bit.ly/1w5DhU2

Today’s Astra range is as popular and diverse as ever. With power outputs ranging from 100PS through to 280PS for the VXR model, it almost always features in the UK’s top-five best sellers and is available as a 3-door GTC coupe, 5-door Hatch and Sports Tourer estate. Both the Hatch and Sports Tourer are built at Ellesmere Port, with 76 per cent of total volume going to export.

USA - Ford prepares to celebrate the 5,000,000th F-Series pick-up.

• 5-millionth Ford F-Series Super Duty will roll off the assembly line at Kentucky Truck Plant in October, marking a major milestone for the best-selling heavy-duty pickup truck and chassis lineup
• Ford-designed, Ford-built second-generation 6.7-liter Power Stroke^® V8 turbo diesel delivers best-in-class 440 horsepower and best-in-class standard diesel torque of 860 lb.-ft.; F-450 pickup boasts best-in-class towing of 31,200 pounds
• Super Duty is the No. 1 heavy-duty pickup truck, with a market share of 44 percent over the past year, according to IHS Automotive Polk data, and the first choice of tradespeople in the hardest-working industries* – from emergency vehicles to construction to mining 

Ford, America’s truck leader, celebrates production of the 5-millionth Ford F-Series Super Duty next month.

For 15 years, Ford F-Series Super Duty pickup trucks and chassis cabs – from F-250 to F-550 – have rolled off the assembly line at Kentucky Truck Plant and into the hands of hardworking customers.

“Super Duty trucks are engineered to meet the needs of the toughest customers,” said Doug Scott, Ford Truck group marketing manager. “Their continued sales dominance with these demanding customers proves how hard they deliver.”   

Power and efficiency

Truck customers demand maximum horsepower and torque to get the work done, but it’s also important the powertrain be as efficient as possible to help keep operating costs low.

In 1999, the largest gasoline engine in the original Super Duty – the Triton 6.8-liter V10 – produced 275 horsepower and 410 lb.-ft. of torque, while the 7.3-liter diesel engine produced 235 horsepower and 500 lb.-ft. of torque.

Today, Super Duty’s 6.2-liter gasoline V8 delivers 385 horsepower and 405 lb.-ft. of torque, and the 6.7-liter Power Stroke V8 turbo diesel supplies 440 horsepower and 860 lb.-ft. of torque. Both engines are more fuel-efficient than the 1999 powertrains.

Both of today’s engines deliver power through the efficient TorqShift^® six-speed SelectShift^® Automatic transmission, while the transmission offerings in the 1999 Super Duty trucks were a four-speed automatic and six-speed manual – the latter available only with the diesel.

Today’s TorqShift transmission offers live drive power takeoff, or PTO, to power auxiliary equipment such as snowplows, aerial lifts, tow truck lifts, cement mixers and dump trucks.

Super Duty trucks are known for their capability. For the 1999 F-350 Super Duty pickup, the maximum tow capacity rating was 14,600 pounds. Now, the 2015 F-450 Super Duty pickup leads the way with a best-in-class standard tow rating of 31,200 pounds, based on the Society of Automotive Engineers J2807 standard. That’s 1,200 pounds more than the nearest competing crew cab 4x4 heavy-duty pickup.

With its new tow rating, the 2015 F-450 ups its already best-in-class gross combined weight rating from 40,000 pounds to 40,400 pounds – beating its nearest competitor by 2,500 pounds.

We own work

Ford F-Series Super Duty is the No. 1 heavy-duty pickup truck, with 44 percent market share over the past year, according to IHS Automotive Polk data, and the first choice of tradespeople in the hardest-working industries* – from emergency vehicles to construction to mining.

Super Duty is the market leader in a variety of fields, including:

• 72 percent of metal mining workers
• 70 percent of law enforcement agencies
• 54 percent of highway maintenance workers

*Percentage based on IHS Automotive Polk U.S. heavy-duty pickup and class 2-5 pickup truck combined new registrations (January 2013 to May 2014 year-to-date) within emergency vehicles, mining/quarrying, construction, petroleum, metal, mining, moving/storage, petroleum refining and related industries, electric gas and sanitary services, justice, public order and safety, heavy construction except building, forestry/lumber products, manufacturing, agriculture/farm, auto repair services and parking/rental, road/highway maintenance, specialized/heavy hauling, landscaping and horticulture, wrecking and demolition, agriculture prod (sic or vocation)

SEAT Celebrates 30 years of the Ibiza.

• Iconic Ibiza turns 30 this weekend (27 April 2014)  
• SEAT’s best-selling model, with five million sold
• Giugiaro, de’Silva and Donkerwolke among the car design legends with a hand in the Ibiza story 

This coming Sunday (27 April 2014) will be exactly 30 years since the very first SEAT Ibiza rolled off the production line in SEAT’s Zona Franca factory. Since that day, the Ibiza has remained SEAT’s most iconic and popular car, with sales approaching five million across three decades and four generations.

The car was a game-changer for SEAT, the first designed and developed completely by the Spanish company from start to finish – with a little help from some friends. Namely, collaborations with Giorgetto Giugiaro’s Italdesign design company, coachbuilder Karmann, and Porsche helped make the Ibiza a truly cutting edge small car, and the foundation of 30 years of ongoing success.

The very embodiment of the Spain of the ‘80s, the first SEAT Ibiza was ambitious, dynamic and ground-breaking. Its name, taken from the Mediterranean island, reinforced the exotic image given to it by virtue of its Spanish roots.

The backdrop chosen for the world première of the SEAT Ibiza was the prestigious Paris Motor Show in 1984, and from then on the car has gone from strength-to-strength, achieving success both in its domestic market (it has been the best-selling supermini in Spain since 2001, for example) and abroad, with almost seven of every ten produced exported; 69% of 5,000,000 total Ibiza production has been exported to more than 75 countries worldwide. 

The most important markets for the Ibiza during the early years were Italy, France, Germany, United Kingdom, Portugal and Mexico, in addition to Spain.

SEAT will celebrate this resounding and continued success with the launch of a 30^th Anniversary model, set to go on sale in June.¹

History: the SEAT Ibiza and the Martorell production plant

SEAT ended the ‘80s with production and sales records, and became a member of the Volkswagen Group. Until 1993 the brand’s activity had been concentrated in the Barcelona Zona Franca, but its membership of a new group, the success of its new models, and the need to increase production meant that a new industrial production complex was required. SEAT would be provided with a new modern factory next to its Technical Centre in Martorell, opened in 1991.

The second-generation Ibiza would be the first vehicle built at SEAT’s new Martorell production facility. More than that, the establishment of the new factory would give rise to the creation of a suppliers’ industrial estate, which at that time comprised 20 companies.

Today Martorell remains one of the most modern and flexible factories in Europe, its international standing attested to when SEAT received the ‘Automotive Lean Production’ award. Almost 700 Ibiza vehicles are built every day on Martorell’s Line 1, employing around 1,600 people directly; all told, SEAT generates direct and indirect employment for approximately 70,000 families.

The Martorell facility is also among the most environmentally efficient in the world, not least because of the recent completion of the ‘SEAT al Sol’ project, which saw the Spanish company install 53,000 solar panels on the roof, capable of producing enough energy to meet one quarter of annual Leon production and reducing factory CO₂ emissions by 7,000 tonnes per year.

Today the multiplying effect SEAT has on the economy is indisputable: SEAT cannot be understood without Martorell, and the Spanish car industry cannot be understood without SEAT.

The SEAT Ibiza: sporty, young-spirited and design-driven

The Ibiza is 100% SEAT, since it was the first vehicle designed and developed in its entirety by the company. Design has always formed part of the Spanish brand’s DNA, and in the case of the Ibiza the four generations have borne the hallmark of distinguished names in the field of automotive design.

For the first generation of the Ibiza (1984-1993), SEAT collaborated with Italdesign, the company of world famous Italian designer Giorgetto Giugiaro, with Karmann for the development of the bodywork, and Porsche for the technology of the ‘System Porsche’ engines.

There was a clear aesthetic leap in the second generation (1993-2002), which again bore the hallmark of Giugiaro. The lines were rounded and aerodynamic, and the car given a level of equipment and mechanical sophistication that were in those days normally only found in cars in the segments above.  

Italian designer Walter de’Silva, the current Head of Design at the Volkswagen Group, was responsible for the outline of the third-generation Ibiza (2002-2008), which took another step forward in manufacture quality, engine range and dynamic performance. Walter de’Silva introduced more attractive aesthetics, while the car’s dynamic prowess took another leap forward thanks to the ‘Agile Chassis’ concept developed by SEAT’s Technical Centre in Martorell.

The current generation of the Ibiza (2008 onwards) is the work of Luc Donckerwolke, Head of Design at SEAT in 2008 and formerly of Lamborghini. The concept of ‘Arrow Design’ was introduced with the 2008 Ibiza, resulting in a car distinctively sportier than its predecessors.

The raciest Ibiza conquers the world rally championship

The first SEAT Ibiza with a clear sports calling was the SXI with a 100 PS engine, the forerunner of the current Cupra and FR versions. In 1996, the company presented the Cupra version, with a 2.0-litre 150 PS engine, offering outstanding performance and a distinctly sporty image.

The Ibiza Kit Car was a much-awaited launch, with which SEAT achieved a brilliant triumph in the FIA 2.0-litre World Rally Championships – a success that was repeated in 1997 and 1998.

Did you know that?

• The approximate price of the SEAT Ibiza in 1984 was 825,000 pesetas (€4,950). At today’s prices that would be €15,620.
• The SEAT Ibiza was the official car at the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games.
• The second generation of the Ibiza was the first model in its segment to be equipped with a TDI diesel engine, in this case a 90 PS unit.
• The SEAT Ibiza was the first model in its segment to have ESP (electronic stability control) as standard in the whole range.
• Sales by generation:
  • Ibiza I, 1984-1993: 1,308,461 units
  • Ibiza II, 1993-2002: 1,522,607 units
  • Ibiza III, 2002-2008: 1,221,200 units
  • Ibiza IV, 2008-to date: 924,183 units

1. An announcement will be made shortly regarding the UK release and specification of the Ibiza 30^thAnniversary Edition.

Five millionth Audi with quattro all-wheel drive rolls off the assembly line at Neckarsulm

• A6 allroad 3.0 TDI is five millionth Audi with quattro AWD
• More than 140 quattro variants currently bolster the Audi model range
• Over 43% of Audi customers chose quattro in 2012

Audi has just proved that there really is safety in numbers by producing its five millionth quattro all-wheel-drive-equipped model – an A6 allroad. The rugged, air-suspended Avant is just one of over 140 variants across the Audi range currently benefiting from this invaluable all-weather grip enhancer, which made the pioneering transition from rally stage to road courtesy of the Vorsprung durch Technik brand back in the Eighties.

“quattro is one of the key pillars of our brand and has been a critical factor in our successful history,” said Rupert Stadler, Chairman of the Board of Management of AUDI AG. “The quattro permanent all-wheel drive system makes it possible to directly experience our ‘Vorsprung durch Technik.’ We are committed to our pioneering role and will continue to develop this advantage with new technologies.”

An instant hit at the 1980 Geneva Motor Show, the 200PS Audi quattro showcased the first mainstream four-wheel-drive system. It triggered the intensive development that has culminated in today’s leading edge Audi all-wheel-drive technology, which instils impressive all-weather traction and exceptionally high limits of adhesion in the latest quattro variants.

Last year, more than 43 per cent of Audi customers opted for the added reassurance of quattro, and the Neckarsulm plant in Germany – home of quattro GmbH – equipped one car in every two on the production line with the technology.

Audi quattro: the latest incarnation

A rear axle-mounted multi-plate clutch version of the quattro system currently safely contains Audi models with transversely mounted engines from the Q3 through to the TT, and a further developed version will soon return to the all-new A3 and 300PS S3. Models with longitudinally mounted engines, including the A4, A5, A6, A7, A8 and Q7, divide their torque across all four wheels by way of a self-locking centre differential, the most advanced version of which is the crown gear differential used by RS 4 Avant, RS 5 Coupe and RS 5 Cabriolet models, and soon to feature in the forthcoming RS 6 Avant and RS 7 Sportback models.

The advanced crown gear differential channels power to where it is needed, and away from where it isn’t, more quickly than ever before in the interest of optimal handling composure and agility. Up to 70 per cent of torque can be apportioned to the front axle, and up to 85 per cent channeled to the rear, where in the RS models a sports differential is also on hand to divide power between the rear wheels in the most effective proportions possible.

The latest generation R8 incorporates another variation - a viscous coupling capable of diverting between 15 and 30 per cent of torque to the front wheels, depending on conditions. Located on the front axle, the coupling is powered through a cardan shaft that runs to the front from the transmission through the engine’s crankcase.

Motorsport domination

Since its humble beginnings in 1981, quattro all-wheel drive has monopolised motorsport with formidable performances on track and tarmac. Four titles in the rally world championships (Driver’s & Manufacturers’), three overall victories at Pikes Peak, a championship win in the TransAm (Driver’s & Manufacturers’), two DTM titles, almost 20 national touring car championships (Driver’s & Manufacturers’) and the FIA Touring Car World Cup have been notched up by Audi thanks in no small part to the supreme control and grip supplied by quattro.

Audi quattro in detail – the road to success

The origins of quattro can be traced back to the winter of 1976-77, when a group of Audi engineers conducted test drives in the deep snow in Sweden. A Volkswagen Iltis was also participating for comparison purposes, and despite its mere 75PS output, the leggy all-terrain vehicle easily outran the much more powerful Audi prototypes with their front-wheel drive systems. A few weeks later a small team of engineers led by Dr. Ferdinand Piëch, then the Audi Board Member for Technical Development, began developing an all-wheel-drive car.

Their tour de force, which made the possibility of series production genuinely viable, was a seemingly simple hollow shaft, the integration of which permitted construction of an all-wheel drive system that was virtually tension-free, light, compact and efficient, and that operated without the need for a heavy transfer case or second cardan shaft.

The hollow shaft was a drilled-out secondary shaft in the transmission through which power flowed in two directions. It drove the centre differential from its rearmost end. The other half of drive torque was transferred to the front axle’s differential along an output shaft rotating inside the hollow secondary shaft.

The revolutionary technology made its world debut at Geneva in 1980 in the new Audi quattro, a 200PS sports coupé which was originally destined for production in low volumes. Such was the demand for this now legendary four-wheel-drive crusader, though, that it remained in the model line-up right up until 1991. In 1984 the compact, short wheelbase Sport quattro with 306PS was also added, and in 1986 the first generation model’s manual-locking centre differential was replaced with the Torsen differential (Torsen = torque sensing). This worm gear transmission was capable of variable distribution of drive torque. The next big step came in 2005 with the planetary drive that offered asymmetrical, dynamic distribution of the power.

In parallel, Audi further expanded its line-up of quattro models, and early on in the 1980s elected to offer the system in every model line; the new models were important milestones on Audi’s path to the premium segment in the market. The first TDI with permanent all-wheel-drive appeared in 1993; four years later the technology moved into the compact segment.

Audi quattro – the motorsport connection
In early 1981 the quattro was launched headlong into the world championship scene, and quickly dominated it. Hannu Mikkola of Finland won the first six special stages in the snow on the Monte Carlo Rally, but unfortunately, despite a lead of almost six minutes, had to concede defeat after his car made contact with a wall. By as early as 1982, the quattro had proved itself unbeatable; Audi redefined the benchmark with seven victories and captured the Manufacturers' Championship. The following year Mikkola took home the drivers’ title.

The 1984 season also started off with a bang – the newly recruited two-time world champion Walter Röhrl won the Monte Carlo Rally ahead of his team colleagues Stig Blomqvist (Sweden) and Hannu Mikkola. At the end of the season, Audi took the world Manufacturers’ title as in 1982 and Blomqvist won the drivers’ title.

The final car was the Sport quattro S1. It celebrated its greatest triumph in 1987: Walter Röhrl stormed up the 156 curves of Pikes Peak in Colorado, USA, in absolute record time with about 600PS of power at his disposal.

In the following years, Audi shifted its focus to racing touring cars. Starting in 1988 the brand raced in the TransAm series and won the title on its first attempt. In 1990 the brand switched to the German Touring Car Championship, or DTM, and Hans Stuck also took the title here in the first year with the large and powerful V8 quattro.

Audi became the first manufacturer in the history of the German Touring Car Championship to stage a successful defence of its title.  Frank Biela rounded off an impressive first season for Audi with a double win in the last race of the season at Hockenheim, succeeding his team-mate Hans-Joachim Stuck - placed third - as champion. In 1996 the A4 quattro Supertouring, with its two-litre, four-cylinder engine, entered seven national championships on three continents – and won them all.

Two years later the European ruling bodies banned all-wheel drive almost completely from touring car races. The Audi balance sheet up to that point read as follows: four titles in the rally world championships, three victories at Pikes Peak, a championship win in the TransAm, two DTM titles, eleven national touring car championships and a touring car world championship. All-wheel-drive didn’t reappear again in racing until 2012. The hybrid-diesel Audi R18 e-tron quattro interpreted the formula in a new and groundbreaking way – and immediately celebrated a dazzling one-two victory in the Le Mans 24 Hours.