The unbeatable lightness of technology: Audi in Guangzhou

AUDI’S technological prowess began even before there was an Audi, with cars like the Auto Union Type C Grand Prix car.

THE AUDI e-tron Spyder is pure sports car, with a powerful 3.0-liter turbodiesel combined with electric drive.

Audi has constructed a unique exhibition at the center of Guangzhou City in China. Visitors to the park at the city’s business district can be forgiven for thinking that a spaceport has sprouted at the park’s southern end. At the Hai Xin Sha Tourist Park Island, near the banks of the Pearl River, Audi has built an expansive exhibition hall. (The 2010 Asian Games opened on this spot.) Behind the wide rectangular building are four spheres, reminiscent of the brand’s four-rings logo. Each sphere is designed to contain one aspect of the brand’s automotive technology.

As a prequel of sorts, the first vehicle to greet visitors is the Auto Union Type C racing car from 1936. With a midmounted engine which produces 520 horsepower channeled through what seem like bicycle tires  compared to the tires of today’s race cars, the Type C was a Grand Prix car that trounced its competitors, thanks in part to a lightweight chassis weighing in at 825 kilograms. Also, a visual art installation consisting of an interactive projected image is displayed within the black interior of the antechamber. Called the Data Wall, it takes into account changing traffic and weather patterns. It was created by Beijing native Jennifer Wen Ma.

AN AUTO Union racer for the 21st century, the urban concept Spyder features electric drive and a carbon-fiber frame.

We then exited into the daylight and crossed a bridge to the first of the four large white spheres. We entered a hall filled with the sound of birds and the sight of hundreds of silver foil balloons. Helium-filled balloons dot the ceiling, while dozens more are covering the floor. At the center of it all is the chassis of an Audi R8 e-tron. The installation by artist Sebastien Leon Agneessens is meant to highlight Audi’s lightweight-construction technology. The sports car’s body structure weighs in at just 199 kg, out of the car’s 1,780-kg curb weight. Audi made use of aluminum and carbon fiber reinforced polymers to pare as much weight from the chassis while maintaining the rigidity required of a sports car.

Pinnacle of Audi’s quattro

AUDI’S formidable R18 prototype race car that combines electric-hybrid power and a diesel engine to win races like the Le Mans 24 Hours.

In the next sphere was the Audi R18 e-tron quattro, winner of the 2012 and 2013 Le Mans 24-hour race. Sliding panels on either side of the car act as virtual X-ray machines, highlighting the aspects of the car’s race-winning technology. The impressive racing machine, which hosts a slew of innovations including energy-recovery systems and a powerful turbo-diesel engine, is currently the pinnacle of Audi’s quattro technology. The R18, with 490 HP and 850 Newton-meters on tap, uses the combustion engine to drive its rear wheels, with the fronts powered selectively by electric drive.

Quattro is Audi-speak for all-wheel drive, pioneered by a group of engineers led by  Dr. Ferdinand Piëch, then the Audi board member for technical development. Quattro is one of the means by which Audi distinguishes its cars from its front-wheel-drive platform-mates. Audi was the first maker to win Le Mans with a diesel race car, with the R10 TDI in 2006.

AUDI Crosslane coupe highlights chassis technology such as multimaterial aluminum and carbon-fiber chassis that can be applied to near-future production cars.

After catching a glimpse of Audi’s racing present, it was time for a glimpse of the road-car future. The next white sphere housed the Crosslane coupe concept car. The Crosslane further develops Audi’s concepts of lightweight chassis construction and hybrid drive. The Crosslane’s multimaterial space frame is built with aluminum, carbon fiber and glass-fiber polymer. The 2+2 targa-style car weighs in at 1,390 kg, including a large-capacity lithium-ion battery. Even the car’s signature single-frame grille is part of its rigid structure, with the frame visible under cutouts in the hood. Front and rear structures are built from carbon fiber. The Crosslane is powered by a 1.5-liter three-cylinder engine paired with two electric motors. The concept car can travel up to 100 kilometers with just 1.1 liters of fuel.

Sci-fi feel

If the Crosslane is an example of a concept that might see production in the near future, the final part of the technology exhibit highlighted concepts that have a sci-fi feel and yet are not that far removed from present-day technology. One such car was the e-tron Spyder, exhibited in a giant glass case outside the exhibit hall. Like the Crosslane, the e-tron Spyder uses two electric motors for the front wheels and a single turbodiesel engine mounted in front of the rear wheels.

A CHAMBER full of silver balloons seems enough to lift the relatively lightweight frame of the Audi A8 e-tron.

More futuristic is the urban concept Spyder, a carbon-fiber roadster that echoes the form of past race cars like the Auto Union Type C. This one is thoroughly modern, with propulsion via electric motors powered by lithium-ion batteries. The urban concept Spyder is one possible mode of transportation in a future city. The e-bike Worthersee sport bike with a 1.6-kg carbon-fiber frame is another. It would fit nicely within a concept such as the Shenzhen 2030 urbanism concept, where materials and goods would move underground, reserving the ground level for people’s commuting needs.

Meanwhile, technology such as cars with an autopilot function and self-parking cars—as in cars that can drop one off at the driveway and make their own way to a slot in a parking garage—were shown via video demonstration. Adaptive LED technology that selectively dims parts of the road ahead, such as oncoming cars, is also nearing production installation.

WITH A 1.6-kilogram carbon-fiber chassis, the e-bike from Audi is another environment-friendly way of commuting.

Then there’s the Audi A1 Living One. Short of a full transformer model, the car can move its body panels in reaction to its environment, such as persons approaching the car. The car has  sounds which are activated depending on who is approaching: the owner or a stranger.

The Audi Innovation Exhibition also mounts an outdoor light show by the Pearl River, using 30-meter-wide, 15-meter-high 3D projections, laser cannons and a powerful sound system.

Audi also announced that the A3 Sedan and A3 Sportback cars will start production in China. The site will be Foshan near Guangzhou, and it will be the second joint plant with partner FAW-Volkswagen. Audi is China’s leading luxury carmaker, with nearly 400,000 cars sold in that market in 2013.