2009 Audi A4 will debut in the 2007 Frankfurt motor show at AutoFans www Auto Com

2009 Audi A4 will debut in the 2007 Frankfurt motor show

When Audi rolled out the current A4 in 2004, the company made a radical change in styling to help improve its image and increase sales. Despite the new sheetmetal, the car was an evolution of the previous A4, not a ground-up redesign. This time around, there’s drastic change to the car’s underpinnings and an evolution of style to keep up with new offerings from its traditional German rivals, Mercedes-Benz and BMW.

The 2009 A4 grows by 4.6 inches to a total length of 185.2, with a wheelbase that has been stretched by 6.5 inches to 110.5, thanks to the swapping of the differential with the clutch or torque converter, which allows the front axle to be moved 6.1 inches forward. Despite the extra length and 2.2 inches of width (the car is now 71.1 inches wide), the 2009 A4 is just a few dozen pounds heavier than the outgoing model thanks to the use of lightweight materials inside and out.

Some of the extra size translates into additional passenger space. There’s more head- and shoulder room, and rear passengers now have an additional 1.4 inches of knee room for a total of 35.7 inches. There’s now 17.0 cubic feet of space in the trunk in front-drive and quattro options. Folding rear seats are standard.

The A4’s new sheetmetal is heavily influenced by the A5. The extended wheelbase reduces the size of the front overhang while lengthening the hood and fenders. The optional Xenon headlights feature R8-inspired LED daytime running lights consisting of 14 white LEDs. These lights also are available with adaptive light technology that turns the headlights with the car.

The 2009 A4 will be offered with a total of five diesel and gasoline engines, though U.S. models will likely continue to be offered only with the 2.0-liter turbo four and 3.2-liter V-6. The output of the V-6 gets bumped to 264 horsepower and 243 pound-feet of torque, allowing the V-6-equipped A4 to make the sprint from 0-to-62 mph in 6.2 seconds. Transmission choices consist of a six-speed manual, six-speed automatic, and multitronic CVT. Audi’s famous quattro all-wheel drive is available once again, but has been recalibrated to send 60 percent of its power to the rear wheels under cruising conditions instead of the previous 50 percent to better match the rear-drive dynamics of its competitors. Brakes are 12.6 inches in diameter up front and 11.8 in the rear.

Handling is one of the areas Audi focused on when designing the 2009 A4, and the car’s performance is enhanced by a new lightweight suspension and variable-ratio steering. There are two default sport settings for the car, and the new Audi drive select system allows the driver to select one of three preset modes — comfort, auto, or dynamic — or manually change individual settings like accelerator response, shift points for the automatic transmission, amount of power steering assistance, steering ratio, the electronically adjustable shock absorbers, and a number of other chassis settings using the “individual” mode.

Safety systems include six airbags, with the front airbags linked to sensors in the front seats that record the exact position of the seat to limit the force of the airbag and seatbelt tensioners. An additional pair of side airbags for the rear seats are available as an option. The A4 also will be offered with Audi’s lane-departure-warning system and a rear backup sensor. Stability control is standard as well.

2009 Audi A4 Rear

Luxury options are plentiful. For instance, the optional “climatic comfort” seats are equipped with small cooling fans in the seatback and seat cushion in addition to heating elements. Wrapped in perforated leather upholstery, the seats are available in one of four colors. Standard and sport seats are offered in leather as well, with Alcantara and leather upholstery available with the sport seats. Other equipment includes a 14-speaker 505-watt Bang & Olufsen sound system, navigation with a seven-inch color touch screen, and the electric-mechanical parking brake seen on the Audi A8, which assists the driver when the car is moving from a stop, a handy feature for manual-transmission cars driven in hilly areas and adaptive cruise control. The Bang & Olufsen and standard audio systems can be equipped with the Audi Music Interface that provides iPod compatibility.

Audi will introduce the 2009 A4 at the Frankfurt Motor Show , and the car will arrive in U.S. dealer showrooms next September.

[source: Motor Trend]

Other Audi Cars:
+ Audi A8 2.8 FSI SE
+ 2007 Frankfurt Motor Show Preview: Audi S8 facelift
+ Audi bringing two new models to Frankfurt, possibly RS6
+ 2007 Audi S5 Driving Experience

2009 Audi A4 will debut in the 2007 Frankfurt motor show

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This entry was posted on Thursday, September 6th, 2007 at 2:06 am and is filed under Audi, Auto Show, Frankfurt Auto Show, Frankfurt Motor Show. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.