Audi previews new compact A3 luxury sedan in New York

While the Audi A3 has consistently been a darling of the automotive press, its hatchback-only shape made it a hard sell in the style-conscious North American market. Enter the forthcoming 2015 Audi A3 sedan.

No doubt the small luxury sedan market is becoming ever crowded with competition from Acura, Buick, Lexus and Mercedes-Benz, but Audi’s A3 sedan comes to the scene ready to claim its place on top of the “A” segment totem pole.

Armed with three different engine choices, owners of the A3 can choose between a fuel-efficient 2.0-liter TDI diesel engine and two turbocharged gas-powered four-cylinder engines; one displacing 1.8 liters and the other 2.0 liters.

But the A3 isn’t about incredible power figures – for that Audi has the forthcoming S3 sedan. Instead, the A3 is about bringing Audi’s signature luxury, style and engineering to a larger clientele.

In that regard the A3 is bound to be a success. Armed with a standard 6-Speed dual-clutch S tronic transmission, the A3 is sure to offer the sporty characteristics buyers expect from a compact luxury sedan, with the convenience of an automatic transmission. Of course compact is a relative term, as Audi is quick to point out that the new A3 sedan, at 4458 millimeters long, is within 100 millimeters of the original A4’s overall length.

The A3 promises to offer a variety of segment firsts to customers, most notably available in-car 4G LTE connectivity; however, the A3 will also offer NVIDIA GPU three-dimensional graphics for the cars navigation system, as well as what Audi dubs a “phone box.” The phone box is located under the A3’s center console and connects a user’s cell phone to a special antenna in the rear window to boost cell phone coverage. On top of this the A3 offers an all-new generation of Audi’s MMI system that the company details in the video below.

Of course fans of the current A3 Sportback don’t need to fret as Audi also announced the return of the model in the form of the Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) e-Tron model. Whether Canada will receive the A3 Sportback e-Tron PHEV or a conventionally powered A3 Sportback is still up in the air. Seemingly confirmed are the e-Tron PHEV’s performance specs, which Audi lists as 204 horsepower and 258 lb-ft of torque for the A3 Sportback e-Tron PHEV shown at the Geneva show earlier in the year.

Though the compact luxury car market is being barraged with quality competition, Audi continues to show its adept ability to grow with the market by releasing an all-new A3 that is poised to take the segment by storm.

Image and video credits: Audi

Meet the people behind Glenmore Audi

Glenmore Audi’s General Manager, Doug Shostak, believes two important qualities have led to the success of Calgary’s first Audi dealership: “The product has a lot to do with it,” he says, “but in the end it’s how you treat people.”

Doug is not only a model salesman, but a stunning businessman. Since separating from our sister dealership, South Centre Fine Cars, in 2002, Glenmore Audi has had to double its sales staff from 30 employees to its current crop of 60 in order to accommodate the increased number of Audi sales over the last decade. In fact, such sales success led to the opening of our other sister dealership, Royal Oak Audi, in 2008.

Doug’s right to believe in the Audi product, a company that is prepped to take the number one spot in luxury car sales worldwide. With gorgeous styling throughout the lineup, Audi’s offer some of the best in engineering and luxury that money can buy. From the sensible Audi Q7, to the fun-to-drive Audi A4, all the way to the outrageous Audi R8, Audi offers a product that fits the lifestyle of most every customer.

Despite the superiority of the Audi product, all sales eventually stem from the sales men and women who put in the time and effort to make each customer’s experience as rewarding and relaxing as possible.

“We do a very honest approach in helping people buy a car,” Doug says and such honesty is why customers continue to flock to Glenmore Audi even after their initial purchase. While some customers return to purchase another Audi vehicle, many more return to Glenmore Audi simply to get their vehicle serviced. Just as in the sales process, customers know that Glenmore Audi technicians are there to treat the customer right and ensure that he or she can be back in their car as quickly as possible with the piece of mind that their vehicle’s service needs were performed to the highest standard possible.

To learn more about Glenmore Audi watch our video, and as always, feel free to stop by the dealership at anytime. Whether you want to purchase a new or used car, ogle the latest Audi products, or simply stop by to say “hi”, we at Glenmore Audi want to provide you with the best customer experience every time you enter our showroom.

Audi celebrates 5,000,000 car’s sold with Quattro

Audi introduced the world to the Audi Quattro, a four-wheel-drive coupe that would go on to change rally racing forever, at the Geneva Motor Show in 1980. Nearly 33 years since the first Quattro coupe graced auto show goers in Switzerland, Audi has produced its five millionth vehicle equipped with its innovative all-wheel-drive system.

Available on all Audi models sold in North America, Quattro helps cars like the 430-horsepower R8 sports car and 560-horsepower RS7 sports sedan maintain traction at sticky track venues, while also working as a safety feature to keep Audi products from venturing off-road in low traction scenarios.

In fact, just shy of half of all Audi’s sold worldwide are ordered with Quattro and Audi reports that consumers in Canada, the U.S., Russia and the Middle East are some of the top selling markets for Quattro equipped Audi’s.

Of course, Audi’s Quattro system has come a long way since it’s inception. Along the way Audi has done away with the original system’s manual center differential and replaced it with a Torsen unit. The switch to a Torsen unit allowed for variable torque distribution between the front and rear axles without any need for the driver to interact with the system. As such, cars like the Audi RS5 can distribute as much as 85 percent of engine torque to the front axle and 70 percent to the rear depending on the conditions the system encounters.

Audi’s Quattro system has shown up in Audi’s with both longitudinal and transverse mounted engines, as well as most recently in Audi’s R18 e-tron Le Mans racecar. While many buyers option their Audi’s with Quattro for safety reasons, cars such as the Audi R18 e-tron serve as a reminder of the system’s motor racing roots and performance potential

Due to the safety-conscious consumers who have made the system so popular, the five-millionth Audi to roll off the assembly line with Quattro was not an RS5 or TT RS, but the not-sold-in-North America Audi A6 Allroad, a crossover based on the Audi A6 wagon. While Quattro has achieved many great feats in the world of racing, no doubt it’s greatest feat of all has been its ability to safely bring drivers and passengers to their destinations for over 30 years.

Since Audi’s inception of Quattro, other luxury automakers have adopted competitive all-wheel-drive systems. In fact, almost every major luxury automaker offers all-wheel-drive on their cars today, from BMW to Mercedes-Benz to Lexus. No doubt, Quattro revolutionized the world of racing, safety and premium automobiles.

To learn more about Quattro stop by ­­Glenmore Audi today.

Image credit: Audi

Car and Driver enjoys 64,000 kilometers with the A8

After 40,000 hard miles (approximately 64,000 kilometers), Car and Driver said goodbye to its long-term 2012 Audi A8L.  And how things have changed in a year for the Audi A8 model line.

Not surprisingly, Car and Driver was impressed by the A8L. The magazine was enamored by the massaging seats they deemed “the best on the market” and they were even more amazed by the 4.2-liter V8’s performance and fuel economy.

Rushing through the quarter mile in 13.6 seconds, the V8 that powered Car and Driver’s long-term A8L is no more, as two new engines within the A8 lineup have supplanted it.

The new 3.0-liter supercharged V6 spits out 333-horsepower and should manage to eek out a few extra kilometers for every liter of fuel used compared to the old V8 – an engine that managed a yearlong average of 21 mpg (approximately 11.2 L/100KM) under the lead feet of the Car and Driver staff.

And though the supercharged V6 does lose a few horsepower to the 4.2-liter V8, Car and Driver found that the 2013 Audi A8L 3.0T still manages to fly through the quarter mile in under 14 seconds.

Those who can’t live with less than eight cylinders can rejoice, as the second engine Audi chose to replace the 2012 A8’s V8 is a 420-horsepower 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8. The new 4.0T V8 engine produces 48 more horsepower than the old 4.2-liter V8. And with 444 lb-ft of torque, the 4.0T towers over the old V8’s peak torque figure of 328 lb-ft.

Though the 2013 Audi A8 may look the same as its 2012 counterpart, a new heart beats beneath its aluminum hood and soon an available diesel engine will give consumers the opportunity to purchase an A8 that achieves even better fuel efficiency.

Like a fine wine the Audi A8 continues to get better with age. Check out caranddriver.com to read the magazine’s full thoughts on their tenure with the 2012 Audi A8L and stop by Glenmore Audi today to learn more about the Audi A8.

Audi R8 takes top two podium spots at the Rolex 24 at Daytona

Daytona Beach in January can be quite cruel to both man and machine. At night temperatures dip surprisingly low, while in the day the mercury rises in the typical Florida heat. Such a dramatic temperature spectrum, as well as fatigue, exhaustion and mechanical problems, are some of the many challenges that racing teams at the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona must fight.

Yet through 24 grueling hours racing across the deep banks and curvy infield of Daytona International Speedway, two Audi R8 GRAND-AM cars crossed the finish line as the first- and second-place contenders in the GT Class.

The winning R8 GRAND-AM was driven by the team of Alex Job Racing, which consisted of drivers Filipe Albuquerquem, Oliver Jarvis, Edoardo Mortara and Dion von Moltke. Less than 1.5 seconds later Team APR Motorsport, which consisted of drivers Ian Baas, Marc Basseng, René Rast and Frank Stippler, crossed the finish line.

Two other R8 GRAND-AM cars finished in the top-12 at Daytona as they battled against the specially prepared Ferrari and Porsche models that also compete in the GT Class.

More amazing than the 1-2 sweep of Audi at the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona, is the reliability of the R8 GRAND-AM cars throughout the lengthy race. As Audi notes, the production-derived 5.2-liter V10 engines of the R8 GRAND-AM cars endured “65 percent of each lap having been driven at full throttle.” Altogether the winning car completed 678 laps, and none of the four cars in GT-Class wearing the Audi badge had to leave the race prematurely.

As much as winning their class was an amazing feat for Alex Job Racing, the ability for the R8 GRAND-AM to reliably endure 24 constant hours of racing is the real win for both Audi and its customers. Though buyers shouldn’t expect any less than the best from Audi, a one-two win by the company at the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona serves to only confirm that speed, quality and desirability continue to be the essence of Audi’s products.

Image and video credit: Audi

Audi continues to expand its RS-line of performance vehicles with the 560-horsepower Audi RS 7

The all-new Audi RS 7 answers a question nobody asked – can I have more power with my Audi S7? In fact, the standard 310-horsepower A7 offers enough power that Automobile Magazine recently declared that the, “3.0-liter supercharged V-6 packs enough midrange punch that it fooled several passengers into thinking the car had a V-8.”

Yet, as bona-fide car enthusiasts we at Glenmore Audi aren’t ones to say “no” to more performance. In that regard Audi hasn’t let us down. Besides a 560-horsepower 4.0-liter twin turbo V8 engine, Audi has fitted the RS 7 with an aggressive body kit that enhances the car’s elegant lines while speaking to the RS 7’s 305 km/h top speed.

Of course, reaching such speeds requires that owners purchase the dynamic package plus. Like most German cars, the RS 7 comes standard with a 250 km/h governed top speed that can be lifted to 280 km/h when owners purchase the midline dynamic package.

Audi wouldn’t sell a sedan capable of breaking 300 km/h without the ability to come to a sufficient stop. Replete with what Audi describes as a “weight-saving wave design”, the standard vented discs measure a massive 390 mm up front. Yet, for even greater stopping performance, Audi will offer carbon ceramic disc brakes that measure an even more impressive 420 mm up front. These optional brakes are not only more capable due to their increased size, they are also significantly more resistant to brake-fade.

Of course it wouldn’t be 2013 without some concession to fuel economy. Besides a quick shifting and efficient 8-speed automatic transmission, the Audi RS 7 also comes with a cylinder on demand (COD) system that shuts down half of the RS 7’s eight cylinders when full power isn’t needed. The inclusion of such technology allows the RS 7 to burn a mere 9.8 liters of fuel for every 100 km, according to Audi.

To learn more about the all-new RS 7 watch the video below as Audi’s Product Manager for the A6, A7, A8 and Q7 Anthony Foulk shows off the RS 7’s many exciting luxury and performance features.

Video courtesy of Audi.

Audi RS5 Tackles California’s Mulholland Highway

If you’re a fan of the YouTube channel Drive you may recognize Matt Farah as the host of “Tuned!” Or you may remember Farah from the short-lived Speed channel television show “The Car Show”. Perched next to Adam Carolla and the Wall Street Journal’s Dan Neil, Farah was neither as funny as Carolla nor as knowledgeable as Neil. Nonetheless, Farah’s a car-guy and a seasoned on-screen presenter, and thus his work with “The Smoking Tire” is certainly worth a watch.

A former Audi S5 owner, Farah found the car to be “fun” but “far from a sports car.”  Of course since Farah’s S5 left his personal fleet in 2010, the model has been supplanted by the RS5 in Audi’s model range supremacy.

Armed with a 450-horsepower engine, a redline set at 8,500 rpm and a quick shifting 7-speed S tronic semi-automatic transmission, Farah takes the all-wheel-drive monster down the curvy mountain road of Mulholland Highway that simply goes by the name, the “Snake”.

It’s clear that Farah is enjoying himself while sawing at the RS5’s flat-bottom steering wheel and tapping the car’s paddle shifters, but you’ll have to watch the entire video to find out if Farah finds the RS5 to be the sports car his S5 failed to be.

2014 Audi SQ5 Packs 354 Horsepower Punch

Audi will unveil the 354 horsepower SQ5 to the press and guests of the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Mich. next week.

The SQ5 that debuts at the 2013 NAIAS is a different beast from the European SQ5 TDI Audi showed off in June. This is due to the fact that the SQ5 forgoes the SQ5 TDI’s twin-turbo 3.0-liter diesel V6 engine in favor of a gasoline fed supercharged V6 that also displaces 3.0-liters. Though the gasoline-powered SQ5 makes an additional 41 horsepower over its TDI counterpart, its 347 lb-ft of torque simply can’t match the diesel’s astounding 479 lb-ft of torque.

While North Americans won’t be able to enjoy the additional kick in the backside the SQ5 TDI’s extra 132 lb-ft of torque gives, owners of the gasoline-powered SQ5 will not be wanting for performance. According to Audi, the new SQ5 will reach 100 km/h in 5.3 seconds on the way to an electronically limited 250 km/h top speed. All the while Audi anticipates that the SQ5 will use only 8.5 liters of fuel for every 100 kilometers travelled.

Speed and quickness aren’t the only strengths of the new SQ5, though, as Audi’s ace in the hole may just be the little SUVs improved agility. Sport springs and shock absorbers are standard equipment on the SQ5 and drop the car an additional 30 millimeters.

Yet a lower ride height isn’t the only visual cue that separates the SQ5 from its Q5 brethren. Distinct fascia designs, as well as a roof spoiler, help the SQ5 maintain a sporty look. Meanwhile unique instrument gauges, and aluminum-look shift paddles and pedals remind the driver and accompanying passengers that the SQ5 is a dedicated driving machine.

Though Audi has yet to release pricing for the all-new SQ5, the company notes that the car will come standard with power sports seats that are covered in leather and Alcantara, 20-inch wheels, xenon headlights, Quattro all-wheel-drive and an eight-speed automatic transmission. To learn more about the 2014 Audi SQ5 visit Glenmore Audi today and keep an eye on Glenmore Audi’s blog for the latest Audi news.

Photo credit: Audi

Ward’s awards Audi’s 3.0 TFSI engine with spot on 10 Best Engines list

For the fourth year in a row Audi’s 3.0 TFSI engine has been awarded a spot on Ward’s 10 Best Engines list.

Audi’s supercharged V6 engine powers many of its models, including a pair of Car and Driver’s 10Best winners: the Audi A6 and A7.

Ward’s specifically tested the award-winning engine in the 2013 Audi S5, noting that “the first-rate engine and transmission go together with the [S5’s] chassis like a Vulcan mind meld.”

Powerful and fuel efficient, the 333-horsepower 3.0 TFSI engine in the Audi S5 was able to average over 11.1L /100 km under the hands of Ward’s editors during testing.

The 3.0 TFSI engine is available in multiple states of tune. In the Audi Q5 the engine makes 272-horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque, while in the Audi Q7 the 3.0 TFSI engine makes 280-horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque. Audi A6 and A7 models equipped with the 3.0 TFSI engine produce 310-horsepower and 325 lb-ft of torque, while Audi S4, S5, A8, and Q7 S-Line models make 333-horsepower and 325 lb-ft of torque.

To learn more about the award-winning 3.0 TFSI engine come to Glenmore Audi, and to see the nine other engines that made Ward’s 10 Best Engines list go to wardsauto.com.

A6 and A7 awarded by Car and Driver as 10Best

Over the past 31 years, the fine folks at Car and Driver have nominated 10 cars on the market to its annual “10Best” list. For the second year in a row the Audi A6 and A7 sedans, as well as the S6 and S7, were deemed one of the “10Best” vehicles on sale in North America by the publication. Due to the numerous shared structural parts and powertrain elements of the A6 and A7, Car and Driver considers the two cars to be one and the same, allowing nine other vehicles to nab spots on the magazine’s “10Best” list.

Car and Driver praises the pair of Audis for their performance, handling and overall quality. As the magazine notes, “In a recent comparison test, the S6 put the hurt on the vastly more powerful BMW M5 and Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG. On the road, the S6 is an inexhaustible cannon, more cohesive and less fiddly than cars costing an additional $20,000. Audi’s modus operandi for the non-S varieties is basically the same, minus 110 horsepower.”

Of course, current owners of any Audi know the praise given to the duo is by no means a surprise. Audi’s technological developments, luxurious accouterments and standout performance have always been staples of the brand. Nonetheless, receiving a “10Best” award by Car and Driver is high praise for the two cars that compete against the likes of the BMW 5-Series and Mercedes-Benz E-Class, two cars that did not make Car and Driver’s “10Best” cut. To learn more about the Audi A6 or A7, or the sportier S6 and S7, stop by Glenmore Audi today. And to read about what other vehicles Car and Driver nominated to its 2013 “10Best” list go to caranddriver.com.