Posts Tagged audi

Audi A8 gets 3G connectivity

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Audi A5 Cabriolet doing at Mobile World Congress? We had no idea, too, until we got into the driver’s seat and noticed a SIM card slot right below the in-car display. What’s really cool, as we found out later, is that the car features UMTS (3G) connectivity powered by an embedded Qualcomm chip. This instantly morphs a ride into a mega hotspot. Not only can passengers connect to the Internet via Wi-Fi, the driver can also get directions from the in-car navigation system that taps on Google Earth. This is combined with a street atlas, as well as both online and offline content for a complete satnav solution. Next to the armrest is the eZONE wireless charging terminal, also by Qualcomm. Any eZONE-enabled device that comes near to this area will be recharged sans cables. The company says eZONE is still under development and the first devices won’t be available until probably eight months later. behind the headrest is the FLO TV Auto Entertainment system which provides live and time-shifted TV for backseat passengers. Audi has a fancy name for these “connected car” technologies called Mobile Media Interface Plus and this will be available on selected Audi A8 vehicles this year.

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Robot Head Assists With Road Navigation

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MIT intends to revolutionize GPS navigation by making it friendly and predictive, using a friendly robot helper to anticipate your needs. The Affective Intelligent Driving Agent (AIDA) is a robot head on an articulated neck, reminiscent of movie robots from the 1980s, that mounts in the center of the dashboard. It incorporates an expressive “face” that can smile, look sad, show warning signs, and even wink at you. AIDA was developed as a collaboration between the Personal Robots Group at the MIT Media Lab, MIT’s SENSEable City Lab, and Volkswagen Group of America’s Electronics Research Lab.

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2010 AVUS Audi TT-RS

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Original Audi Quattro coupe of the late 1980s, AVUS Performance’s take on the new TT RS Coupe sees the car’s 2.5-liter turbocharged inline-five receive a 110 horsepower and 140 lb-ft of torque bump thanks to the modified turbo, reprogrammed ECU and a new exhaust system. This brings the five-cylinder engine’s output to a total of 450HP and 472 lb-ft. Avus did not disclose prices for the engine mods.

The German tuners says that acceleration from zero to 60 mph (96km/h) is trimmed from Audi’s 4.6-second claim for the stock TT RS to 3.8 seconds on the TT RS “Ur Quattro” while top speed is increased from 174mph (280km/h) to 194mph (312 km/h). Avus also modified the coupe’s suspension with adjustable coil-over shocks (priced at €1,299) that lower the ride height and help the RS handle the corners. The TT-RS’ exterior has been upgraded with a flat-black finish (vinyl wrap) that costs €1,999 and a set of 20-inch Sportec Mono alloy wheels in a glossy black finish shod in 255/30/20 Hankook S1 Evo tires priced at €6,400 but only until December 15, as Avus currently offers a 25 per cent discount on the tire/alloy combos.

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