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"Wrap-Around" Interior

The sinewy sportiness of the exterior carries over into the interior of the A7 Sportback, where Audi again demonstrates its leading role in automotive design. The salient element is the "wrap-around," a horizontal line that encircles the driver and front-seat passenger in the interior to provide a feeling of safety and security. The wave-shaped application strip with its integrative dynamics is the salient element of the dashboard.

The utmost care has been devoted to every last detail in the interior. Workmanship is at a craftsman's level. Optional climate-control and massage functions are available for the front seats covered in high-grade Audi leathers. The optional ambient lighting fills the entire interior with atmosphere.

Like Audi's A8 flagship, the A7 Sportback also combines a new level of technical intelligence with logical, intuitive ergonomics and self-explanatory operation. The advanced MMI operating system with central menu button and reduced number of buttons comes standard, while one of the options is a new head-up display that projects the most important information on the windshield. The MMI touch system combines a hard drive navigation system with the convenience of touchpad input.

The driver can use the touchpad to perform numerous functions, such as using his or her finger to write the letters of the destination or the digits of the telephone number.

The online services work together with Google to connect the five-door Audi coupe to the Internet via the Bluetooth car phone. A UMTS module delivers images and information from Google Earth to the monitor and combines them with the navigation route. A WLAN hotspot is used to connect mobile devices. Further to the Bose sound system, the top-of-the-line option is the Advanced Sound System from Bang & Olufsen featuring 1,300 watts of power and 15 speakers.

The top navigation system works closely together with the many optional driver assistance and safety systems in the A7 Sportback. It forwards the route data to the control units for the headlights, the automatic transmission and the adaptive cruise control with stop & go function, enabling these systems to recognize complex scenarios. In many cases, the Audi pre sense safety system can reduce the severity of accidents and their consequences. The new Audi active lane assist helps the driver to keep the A7 Sportback firmly on course, and the new park assist system relieves the driver of the chore of steering when parallel parking.

For Start, a Choice of Four Engines

Audi will initially offer the A7 Sportback with a choice of four powerful and cultivated V6 engines: two gasoline and two TDI units. Their power output ranges from 204 hp to 300 hp, and their efficiency sets impressive new standards in the vehicle class. The 3.0 TDI is available in two versions. The more powerful version of the big diesel, which has been completely redesigned, produces 245 hp between 4,000 and 4,500 rpm and 368.78 lb-ft of torque between 1,400 and 3,250 rpm. The S tronic and quattro all-wheel drive are also standard here. Acceleration from 0 to 60 mph takes 6.3 seconds and top speed is limited to 155 mph. Efficiency is impressive: just 6.0 liters of fuel per 100 km (39.20 US mpg) on average, which corresponds to only 254.28 g/mile (158 grams of CO2/km).

The second version of the 3.0 TDI, which will follow somewhat later, does even better in this discipline. It produces 204 hp between 3,750 and 4,500 rpm. With front-wheel drive and the stepless multitronic automatic transmission, it really flaunts its efficiency: 223.70 g/mile (139 grams CO2 per km) and an average fuel consumption of 5.3 liters per 100 km (44.38 US mpg) are groundbreaking figures.

All engines use Audi's innovative thermal management system, a recuperation system and a start-stop system.

The standard automatic transmissions also play a role in the high efficiency of the Audi A7 Sportback. Audi offers two different transmissions depending on the engines: The continuous multitronic sends the power to the front wheels, while the sporty seven-speed S tronic works together with quattro permanent all-wheel drive. The latest evolutionary stage of quattro features a crown-gear center differential and torque vectoring.

The drive system is particularly flexible and dynamic. The optional sport differential actively distributes the power between the rear wheels.

The chassis also combines sporty precision with luxurious comfort. The Audi A7 Sportback rolls on large wheels measuring from 18 to 20 inches in diameter. The chassis features aluminum control arms and a newly developed power steering system with an electromechanical drive for high efficiency. The Audi drive select dynamics system is standard and can be supplemented by the optional adaptive air suspension with controlled damping.

Audi A7 3.0 TDI: Photo Gallery, Review (1/2) and Specifications