audi electric car

Introduction

 These days the worldwide auto industry is so interconnected that it is difficult to find a company that is not heavily involved with at least one other company.  This is certainly the case for Audi which is an automobile company that has operated under the Volkswagen banner since 1964.  Ever since that point in time, Volkswagen has owned more than 99.5% of the shares in the privately owned Audi AG and because of that it is essentially the only company in charge of making decisions for Audi.

 Electric Car Timeline

 The electric car timeline for Audi is a lot longer than it has been for many of the other companies that are now involved in this particular field.  The best way to think about Audi’s electrical timeline is to think of the company as essentially being a testing ground for many of the experimental products that Volkswagen didn’t want to sell under their own banner at first.  This may be a bit unfair to the people running Volkswagen, but for simplicity’s sake just assume that for the moment.

 Although there was absolutely zero interest in electrification following the Volkswagen acquisition of Audi in 1964, it was not soon after that Audi started putting out the idea of electrically-powered vehicles that could be used in lieu of conventional fossil fuels and the combustion engine.  In fact, they were one of the first companies to actually release a hybrid vehicle in 1989 which they proceeded to dub the Audi 100 Avant Duo.  The hybrid electrical engine on this car was heavy, bulky and not particularly efficient and while it did certainly attain a cult following, it was not really a product that could be thought of in any light other than the strictly experimental one.

 The car remained powerful enough however that Audi continued to release new cars under this same product line all the way up to 1997 when they put the Audi A4 Duo into play.  This car featured a fourth generation hybrid engine that did a lot to get smaller and less bulky than the first generation engine.  However, it was still heavy enough to slow the car down enough to mean that there was no added efficiency in the hybrid over the conventional fossil fuel version of the car.  That combined with the relatively low demand for hybrid vehicles during that period of time (partially due to receding memories about the oil shocks in the 1970s) meant that the concept of electrification in an Audi automobile took a forced hiatus as Audi started to pursue other projects instead.

 This is where we need to go back and revisit the original assumption about the relationship between Audi and Volkswagen.  Although Audi was effectively owned by Volkswagen at the time they started their experimentations with electrification, it was not actually until 2005 that active collaboration between the two companies started to happen with the stated purpose of developing modern era hybrid and electric vehicles that in turn could be used to succeed where the earlier attempts by Audi at electrification had failed.  In order to facilitate this goal, Volkswagen signed a partnership agreement with Sanyo, the electronics giant from the country of Japan.  If this alliance is ratified by both parties, it is quite possible that Sanyo will provide the batteries and electric parts for all of the electric vehicles manufactured by both Volkswagen and Audi in the future.

 The new wave of Audi Electrification

 Ever since the signing of that particular alliance document, it is quite clear that Audi has begun to go full steam ahead on the development of all of their automobile concepts.  In particular, the A1 Sportsback Concept has claimed the limelight in their hybrid car manufacturing and the Audi e-tron is definitely the car to watch for people that are interested in going fully electric rather than just to the hybrid setup.

 The A1 Sportsback Concept was first released at the Paris Auto Show in 2008 and ever since has begun to mature into a genuine automobile that could be purchased by people in Europe, North America and elsewhere around the world.  However, in terms of actual innovation it is really not that different from many of the other hybrid engines that have been introduced into cars all over the world.  The fact of the matter is that the Sanyo batteries have really helped the car get off the ground in terms of making a name for itself but aside from that element there aren’t that many surprises in how this car operates.

 The real diamond in the rough here is most likely the e-tron as this electric car has just been getting sleeker and sexier with each iteration.  Now that we are in the year 2010 and the e-tron has made a huge splash at the Detroit Auto Show in the month of January, there is absolutely no question that this is going to be the Audi electric car of the future.  The hybrid cars will continue to be sold of course because they are profitable and needed for people fearing to make a full jump to electrification, but if the e-tron can meet its potential there will be no doubt that Audi has one of the finest electric cars out there.

 As proof of this point, consider the fact that when the e-tron debuted at the auto show, it actually put the owners of the Tesla Roadster and Fisker Karma to shame.  There has always been an officially unofficial contest about which electric vehicle looks the nicest and up until now the Tesla Roadster has really been carrying that banner.  The e-tron however not only looks sleeker in its latest form, but with statistics that are comparable to the Roadster (minus acceleration which is about two seconds slower on the 0 to 60 mph track) and a serious brand name behind it, this could definitely be the electric car that ends up winning countless converts to the electric vehicle group.

 As of right now, Audi is planning to have the first of these automobiles on the road by 2012 with public consumption of the vehicles coming not soon after that date.  This will mean that they will be entering the electric market with the e-tron somewhere in the middle of the pack but still well ahead of the curve when just the major automakers are considered.

 Unique Technology

 Although Audi like many other car companies tends to research practicality and therefore come out with many of the same technological designs as other cars, it is also true that they have some unique pieces of technology that allow them to stand out.

 The first piece of technology worth mentioning is the LED light display that you’ll see on some Audi automobiles and will start to see on more of them as time goes on.  These LED lights are positioned around the actual headlights on the car and are meant to be used during the day in lieu of your actual headlights.  This allows other cars to see you even during foggy conditions and it also saves your actual headlights since the LED lights will last for a lot longer and take a lot less battery power to operate.  This will also be important with the e-tron as of course everything on that car will be run from the main battery.

 The second piece of technology is the computer control system that is installed in most new Audi vehicles and comes as an extra option for all of them.  While all car companies have started to gravitate towards highly technological cars, the Audi system is a thing of beauty.  It virtually makes the car automatic and that in turn allows you to enjoy one of the smoothest rides that you’re ever likely to experience.