Audi A7 2014 News

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has published its latest round of safety recalls, with models from Ford, Mazda, BMW, Kia, Audi, Jeep, Alfa Romeo and Lamborghini affected.

A number of potentially hazardous faults have been identified in vehicles sold in Australia, prompting a wide range of recalls.

Audi and Volkswagen have issued three safety recall notices involving 582,822 vehicles sold exclusively in the United States.

As the new global boss of VW promises to compensate customers for a loss in resale value, lawyers are lining up in Australia to represent more owners of cars with software that can cheat diesel emissi

But a number of other car makers took out awards in the Automotive and Transport category including the Peugeot 3008 and Kia Optima which received Design Awards. The Peugeot RCZ, Hyundai Elantra and the all new Ford Ranger utility were also commended for Good Design. The recently launched Audi A7 four-door coupe was the named overall winner of the category. Director of Good Design Australia, Brandon Gien, said award winners were the result of unwavering dedication to good design and commitment to a professional design process. "Innovation, creativity and attention to detail are clearly at the heart of each project," he said. This latest design accolade adds to the growing number of awards the A7 Sportback has received since launch, including the highly-sought after Auto Bild Design Summit. In 1958, a small group of design and industry professionals established the Industrial Design Council of Australia (IDCA). Today, more than 50 years later, the Australian International Design Awards — a division of Good Design Australia — continues this proud tradition to recognise the best in design and innovation available to Australian consumers.

Its Mercedes CLS lookalike, the A7, arrives before mid-year in 2011 as a Sportback but already Audi has hinted at convertible and a coupe spinoffs. There's even an S7 and RS7 in the wings that are set to take on the Porsche Panamera, Aston Martin Rapide and Jaguar's supercharged XJ Sports. The A7 sits tightly between the A6 and A8 sedans and shares engines and transmissions. It has the same platform as the Audi A8, but gets the CLS tear-drop styling treatment and a cheaper price. Audi Australia isn't talking about the A7 but expect a top-line 4.2-litre V8 quattro to cost about $195,000. That's a $10,000 discount on the A8 with the same mechanical specifications. Audi Australia spokesperson Nadine Giusti says 'we cannot yet give you timing for local market launch. It will arrive here in 2011 but we cannot be more specific than that - it is too early for us to confirm'. However, she says hopes are high for sales success. "We believe the car will do extremely well here," she says. The A7 is to get Audi's ubiquitous 3-litre V6 turbo-diesel, which is likely to be the entry-level version, and get a price tag of about $140,000. Audi is aiming to lure CLS fans and pick up those enamoured by BMW's 5-Series GT. Getting buyers into the four-ring brand starts with the A7's style, then extends to features including the panoramic glass roof, high-end leather and wood, large pop-up monitor, electric rear hatch, acoustic windscreen and optional heads-up display. The four-seater has a huge rear hatch over a luggage area of 535 litres, expanding to 1390 litres with the split rear seats folded flat. The Audi A7 comes out of the Audi Sportback Concept that went on show at the Detroit motor show three years ago. It gets carry over items such as 20-inch wheels, LED tail lights and front eyebrows, and the long tapered rear deck. Future models based on the A7 Sportback are a cabrio - which will be Audi's biggest ragtop and take on the Mercedes E-Class and even SL models, and a coupe to rival the Mercedes E-Class and BMW 6-Series.

And the Carparazzi picture car this week is being hussled at high speed around the Nurburgring in Germany.  And the curvy roofline and low-to-the-road suspension settings do suggest something similar to the BMW 5 Series Gran Turismo. But this is actually an Audi, and the newest segment-buster from the German brand.  The test car is the A7, which arrives in 2011 as a sporty alternative to the A8 luxury limousine at the top of the family tree. The design is a lot like the A5 Sportback — and the car is expected to be called A7 Sportback — but it picks up its inspiration from the Mercedes-Benz CLS and is likely to be shopped against BMW's new 5 Series GT. Carparazzi shooters report the A7 is as big as the A8, but with a much more rounded roofline and a hatchback rear end. With some of the camouflage stripped away it is much more dramatic, too, than the A8 with a chiselled look and sports-set suspension. The A7 is likely to be revealed at either the upcoming Moscow Auto Salon or the Paris Motor Show in October, with Australian sales in the second half of next year.

The Mercedes-Benz Shooting Break concept has aired ahead of its debut at Auto China in Beijing. Although Mercedes executives aren't revealing too much, the Shooting Break shows off the future direction if the German carmaker chooses to make a station wagon version of the CLS. With Audi’s A7 hatchback arriving soon and BMW’s recently introduced 5-Series GT, a CLS wagon could be on the cards. Even though the Shooting Break is a concept the long, low and sleek design looks production ready with a roof that tapers towards the rear of the car, providing an almost coupe-like shape. At the front the grille and headlight treatment borrows some cues from the SLS AMG. The grille is flanked by LED headlights on each side - the first time Mercedes has used LED technology to such a dynamic effect. The side profile and shoulder line is sharp and leads down to a Pontoon-style curve above the rear wheel arches at the rear doors. The coupe-like profile is emphasized by the shallow window design. Inside the concept gets plenty of wood and leather and an eye-catching full-length centre console, which dictates that this is a four-seater only. The wooden floor of the luggage area gets contrasting silky oak highlights and aluminium highlights and protective strips. Powering the Merc is one of the next-generation V-engines.

Icy winds and snow are blowing across Motown, dumping on the auto capital of the world at a time when American politicians are applying relentless pressure for a major shift in the way that General M

The car industry uses a web of alliances to survive.Lust, affairs, one-night stands, engagements, marriages and divorces — it can be hard sharing your love. It can also be expensive, especially if the human analogy is applied to the car business.DaimlerChrysler's recent divorce cost the now-solo Daimler AG a cool $33 billion.Daimler and its former partner, now known by her maiden name of Chrysler Group, still share the kids.These include shared components and manufacturing, including the Chrysler Crossfire (based on the previous Mercedes-Benz SLK) and Jeep Grand Cherokee, which uses Mercedes' V6 diesel engine and transmission.Daimler-Benz and Chrysler courted in the late 1990s, sealing their association in 1998 with a new name, DaimlerChrysler.The marriage was mutually beneficial. Daimler gained economies of scale and a new customer for engines, transmissions and an outlet for its old platforms. The previous Mercedes E-Class shares the same platform as the Chrysler 300C.Chrysler gained unprecedented, cost-effective access to the drivetrains used to power its distinctively styled cars.Of the divorce, shareholders of Daimler- Chrysler spitefully said “I knew it wouldn't work”.Marriages may be difficult, but alliances are what keep many car companies afloat.All these inter-relationships are spurred by one goal — profit. So competitive is the car industry that every dollar counts.Making cars cheaper improves profits, even if that means relocating factories to countries with low labour costs, non-existent unions and tax-free government incentives.Few would know that 10 models on the Australian market are made in Thailand. South Africa makes five, there's one from the Czech Republic, three from Slovakia, one from Poland, four from Malaysia and one from Indonesia.Build quality in most cases is as good as you'd expect from a country-of-origin factory.The biggest difference is manufacturing costs. Building a Volkswagen Golf in Germany, for example, costs substantially more than building the same car in South Africa. Sharing components such as engines, transmissions, platforms and bodies with a rival company — or at least one perceived as being a rival — is big business.The platform of the Mazda3 is similar to the Volvo S40 and Ford Focus. Ford has a big chunk of Mazda's shares and owns Volvo outright.The Toyota Aygo, a one-litre hatch soon to be sold in Australia, is built in the Czech Republic with the Citroen C1 and Peugeot 107. The only differences are interior trim, grilles, head and tail lights. Everything else, except the badge, is identical.General Motors has a giant web of ownership, component sharing and minor shareholdings. It owns Saab and Hummer, and rebadges cars including the Daewoo Matiz as Chevrolets.GM owned 20 per cent of Fiat until it dissolved the relationship in 2005. But retains component sharing deals and owns 50 per cent of Fiat's JTD diesel engine technology.GM also has 3 per cent of Suzuki (it had 20 per cent until selling down in March 2006) and 7.9 per cent of Isuzu.This relationship crosses with Fiat. Suzuki buys Fiat diesel engines for its European cars but also buys diesels from the PSA group (owner of Peugeot and Citroen) and Renault. Fiat this year will also supply diesel engine's to Saab.The Suzuki Splash, to be launched in Europe later this year is based on the Swift/SX4 platform, but will be rebadged the Opel/Vauxhall Agila for European sales.Fiat sells the Suzuki SX4 as the Sedici in Europe.Suzuki also owns 11 per cent of GM-DAT, the Korean-based company that makes the Holden Epica, Captiva, Viva and Barina.GM sold its 20 per cent of Subaru parent, Fuji Heavy Industries, in 2005. Fuji bought back most of the shares, though Toyota bought in and now owns 8.7 per cent of the company.Toyota also owns Daihatsu and has a big stake in Yamaha. Yamaha has an engineering alliance with Toyota — twin-cam engine and multi-valve heads included — and recently created the V8 engine for Ford-owned Volvo.GM also gets its Saab plant in Sweden to make the Cadillac BLS mid-size car, alongside its Saab 9-3 and 9-5.The Hyundai Sonata's 2.4-litre engine is shared with the Jeep Compass, Dodge Caliber, Chrysler Sebring and Mitsubishi Outlander.Renault has an alliance with Nissan and owns Samsung (Korea) and has a joint venture with Mahindra (India).Porsche's Cayenne SUV is built in Volkswagen's factory in Slovakia alongside the Volkswagen Touareg and Audi Q7. Porsche's Cayman is built in Finland. That's just the tip of iceberg.Peyton Place has nothing on these guys.