22 Audi ultra
Audi ultra:
Every gram less extends the lead.
Audi ultra, the pioneering lightweight technology
from Audi, is more than just the sum of its
individual components. It combines innovative
materials, intelligent design principles and
production processes that use resources
sparingly into an overall concept. Many Audi
ultra lightweight measures have already been
implemented in the Audi RS 6 Avant.
That starts with the body itself. The aluminium
hybrid body combines low weight with high
rigidity. The body is produced in a hybrid steel-
aluminium design. This provides a high level
of safety with an agile driving sensation – and
reduced fuel consumption. The aluminium
components on the front and rear axles as well
as the lightweight forged aluminium wheels
consistently implement this lightweight theme.
Innovative wave brake discs with a wave-
shaped
contour and aluminium brake disc
chambers
specifically reduce the weight on the wheels. The
resulting reduction in unsprung masses leads to
improved rolling characteristics.
Technologies such as FSI® direct fuel injection
and turbo charging have made Audi engines more
and more powerful. The modern 4.0 litre V8 TFSI
engine in the RS 6 Avant produces more power
with less displacement and is therefore
significantly lighter than similar engines in
previous series.
Each lightweight component has an effect on
other components, allowing their dimensions
to be reduced as well. The result is a continuous
development process towards less and less
weight and more and more efficiency. In figures:
a vehicle that weighs 100 kg less can save up
to 0.3 litres of fuel per 100km.
The fuel consumption and CO₂ emission figures as well as the efficiency class can be found on page 56.
About weight reduction
The demands placed on modern vehicles
are contradictory. On the one hand, they
must offer enhanced performance and
comfort, on the other they need to be more
economical and efficient. Audi ultra resolves
this conflict by examining each and every
component. We demand the highest
functionality combined with the lowest
possible weight. The result is an intelligent
mix of materials that even allows a reduction
in engine size: lighter vehicles no longer need
a large engine to be agile. In 2013 and the
two preceding years, it was a significantly
more compact and lightweight V6 TDI engine
that powered multiple Audi R18 podium
finishes at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Their
victorious predecessor in 2010, the R15 TDI,
had featured a larger V10 TDI engine.
Aluminium sheet
Cast aluminium
Aluminium profile
Hot-formed steel
Cold-formed steel
