Today's News by Jack Nerad for Driving Today

Audi A7 Sportback: Emotion on Wheels

Thursday, August 19, 2010

The new Audi A7 Sportback, which was announced with great fanfare at Munich’s Museum Brandhorst, is so strikingly attractive that bringing up the word “utility” might serve only to dampen enthusiasm for it. But Audi hopes it will appeal to those who seek a luxury vehicle that will seat four in plush accommodations, handle as well as the top sports sedans, and at the same time, offer station wagon-like cargo-carrying abilities. It’s like dating a supermodel and then finding out she can cook.

The decision to make the A7 a “hatchback” is not without its risk, at least in the American market. Several manufacturers have tried to market upscale “five-doors” here in the U.S., but they have pretty much fallen on their faces. For good or ill, American luxury buyers seem to view hatchbacks as cheap cars unworthy of their attention. But Audi executives are banking that the A7’s emotion-packed design, sporty character and innovative technology will allow them to succeed where others have failed.

The car continues Audi’s recent tradition of high-tech, lightweight body structures using numerous aluminum components. Also in the interest of low fuel consumption and low carbon dioxide emissions, the exterior has a stunning 0.28 drag coefficient, and the power steering is electromechanical rather than hydraulic.  

Europeans will have a choice of four engines, but when the car comes to North America, we’re likely to see just one, at least in the beginning. Happily, it’s a good one: A 3.0-liter TFSI supercharged engine that produces 300 horsepower and a heavy amount (325 pound-feet) of torque, which promises to offer velvety acceleration. In conjunction with the S tronic automatic transmission and quattro power train, the A7 is likely to be a sweetheart to drive in any weather. 

Equally sweet is the interior. The A7 will come in a variety of flavors inside, but we were taken with the laminated wood dash that reminds us of teak decking on a yacht. The infotainment and navigation system is probably smarter than most of your college buddies. It works closely with the other systems on board, reading the road ahead from the 3-D navigation data. The system then provides predictive data to the control units for the automatic transmission, the adaptive cruise control and the headlights -- enabling these systems to recognize complex scenarios (something your buddies might have difficulty doing).  

Oh, and we did mention this is a hatchback, right? That means it has a large rear hatch that opens wide to reveal a large, beautifully finished luggage compartment that is very easy to load. With the rear seats in place, it offers an ample 18.9 cubic feet of cargo space, and with the rear seats folded, that space balloons to 49.1 cubic feet. But let’s not talk about utility. The A7 Sportback is too attractive for that.

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