New Audi sports car is not a TT successor: "It won't be called TT"
Audi will soon unveil a new sports car. It won't be a successor to the TT or R8, but something completely different—based on the controversial new Concept C.
Although the future sports car will be electrically powered, it will reportedly have the necessary features to make the driver believe they are driving a gasoline-powered vehicle. Simulated gearshifts and fake engine noises are said to be part of the fun package.
Audi CEO Gernot Döllner told Top Gear that they've found that "a virtual gearbox and sound really enrich the driving experience of an electric car." Döllner noted that on a racetrack, he's "faster with a car with a virtual gearbox."
To get the maximum performance out of a vehicle on the track, clear communication between driver and car is essential. Electric cars lack many of the physical signals our bodies perceive while driving. Artificial sounds and gearshifts can provide a solution.
"We're developing it, and I think we'll have one," Döllner told the publication. "The company is very open to innovative solutions in this area." And Audi could "virtually" revive the five-cylinder engine sound. The software allows the Ingolstadt-based company to implement any engine sound in its future e-sports car. Historically, the five-cylinder engine would certainly be an exciting solution.
Image by: Audi
The production car that will emerge from the concept will be "almost exactly" between the TT and the R8, Döllner said. He didn't elaborate, but we assume that the new sports car will be somewhere between the two icons in terms of performance and price. The TT RS recently produced 400 hp with its five-cylinder engine. The R8 had a V10 with more than 600 hp.
Döllner added that the car would not be called the TT. He suggested that Audi could give it a real name, or one that "begins with an R." The Audi boss admitted: "Sometimes it's easier to develop a car than to find a name for it."
Is the future of sports cars electric?
Falsifying the reality of electric vehicles is nothing new. Lexus launched its first electric car with fake gearshifts. Porsche could go even further by incorporating simulated gears and artificial engine noises.
The upcoming electric M3 will also cheat with its sound, and Kia recently gave its EV6 GT artificial gearshifts. The Hyundai Ioniq 5 N has apparently done excellent pioneering work in this area.
motor1
