Audi has showcased the stunning Prologue Concept at the Auto Expo 2016. It gives a glimpse at the future design language of the marque.
The Prologue has a very wide stance and the company says that it is is shorter and flatter than the production A8 sedan. It measures 5.10 metres in length, 1.39 metres height, 1.95 metres wide and has a wheelbase of 2,94 metres. It has a large front grille that sits lower than the Audi cars of the current generation. The headlights are slim and on the flatter side and come with Matrix laser technology. The pupils of the headlights are formed by a projection lens with laser light source. The front bumper gets large air intakes located just under the headlights. and a front spitter as well. It gets flared wheel arches and a line runs right across the side of the car from the front fender to the rear. The lower area of the doors have a concave shape running across the side to the rear.
The door mirrors are sculpted out of aluminium and also create the open door sensor surfaces. The Prologue has no door handles. The door can be opened electromechanically when the illuminated sensor surfaces are touched.
The rear gets long LED tail lights with 3D glass. There is an LED light strip that runs across the rear of the car. Brake lights are located deep inside the tail light. When brakes are applied, the bottom of the 3D imprint is also illuminated. A diffuser is located under the rear bumper and is finished in gloss black. It runs across the entire rear bumper. Two trapezoid shaped exhaust tips complete the rear end.
The Prologue uses a combination of aluminium and high end steel in its construction. The window frames are made up of matte polished aluminium frames. There is a large C pillar that is made of aluminium and rear windows can be rolled down too. The fuel tank lid located on the right of the car is operated electrically. It can also be lowered into the C pillar at the press of a button. The car is finished in light diva grey, which is a new pearl effect paint.
Coming to the interior, there are separate seats and a new operating system with three touch screen displays. The infotainment options can be configured by the front passenger via a widescreen display integrated into the instrument panel. He can swipe to send these to the right driver display or to the Audi virtual cockpit future behind the steering wheel. Rear passengers get an additional OLED display on the centre console which they can use to adjust the seats, climate control system and the infotainment for their area or to exchange data with the driver. The show car offers its driver and passengers superior comfort before the car even begins to move. The “butler” – an innovative, intelligent software program – identifies the passengers as they get based on their smartphones and adjusts the seats and climate control system according to their preferences. The system also makes suggestions for music and route planning according to the owner’s preferences. The Easy Slot system in the centre console connects the phones with the onboard infotainment system and charges them too.
The Prologue is powered by a 4.0 TFSI engine that develops 605 horsepower and 700 Nm torque. There is also an overboost mode that can be activated for 15 seconds. This mode takes torque to 750 Nm. It goes from 0 to 100 kph in 3.7 seconds. The engine is mated to an eight speed tiptronic gearbox and comes with Audi’s quattro all wheel drive system The car also has a 48 volt electric motor which makes it a mild hybrid. This motor recovers upto 12W energy while braking.
The Prologue is equipped with air suspension with controlled damping. There are larger carbon ceramic brake discs and the 20 inch front brakes are held by six piston fixed calipers. The front and rear suspension is engineered as light weight five link design. The Prologue also has dynamic all wheel steering where the rear wheels steer upto angles of five degrees.
