The Audi Allroad Shooting Brake concept provides pointers to styling cues of future models as well as the interior design of the third-generation TT out this year.
Audi’s crossover makes its public debut at this week’s 2014 Detroit motor show, where a new large ‘three dimensional’ grille and LED headlamps preview a bold front-end approach for cars including the TT sports car and mid-sized A4 sedan.
Audi technical boss, Dr Ulrich Hackenberg, says the company is “offering very concrete glimpses of the near future in this show car”.
At 4.2 metres long and 1.85m wide, the Audi Allroad Shooting Brake is slightly bigger than the outgoing TT, while also featuring two doors and four seats.
Extra height (1.4m), dark grey body cladding familiar from other Audi Allroad models (A4 and A6), and a compact-wagon body style mark this out as something different, however.
As spy photos have indicated, the new Audi TT will be a design evolution of the current coupe. The Allroad Shooting Brake’s interior, however, showcases the TT’s new interior that was first shown in early January at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
This includes the stylish, turbine-like air vent nozzles that incorporate climate control buttons, and the high-resolution 12.3-inch screen that dominates the ‘instrument cluster’ ahead of the steering wheel.
Information can be controlled via the multi-function steering wheel and MMI touchpad on the centre console, with the menu system said to be inspired by smartphones.
The digital display includes speedo and rev counter but also navigation maps and other infotainment graphics.
There’s also a ‘powermeter’ display for the hybrid drivetrain of the Audi Allroad Shooting Brake.
A 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo petrol engine with 215kW and a 40kW electric motor combine to feed power to the front wheels via a six-speed dual-clutch gearbox.
A secondary electric motor with 85kW is positioned at the rear axle and can turn the Shooting Brake into an all-wheel-driver if the vehicle heads off the bitumen onto surfaces with reduced grip.
Total power and torque figures are 300kW and 650Nm, and Audi says the Allroad Shooting Brake can reach 100km/h in 4.6 seconds. Fuel consumption is claimed at a low 1.9 litres per 100km.
The electric motors are powered by a lithium-ion battery pack positioned just ahead of the rear axle, avoiding adversely affecting weight distribution or cargo space (helped by folding rear seats), says the company.
The Allroad Shooting Brake has a range of up to 820km, with 50km possible on electric power alone.
A charging port features on one side of the car, with a fuel flap on the opposite side.
The compact Allroad’s mass touches 1600kg, with the weight of hybrid components counteracted in part by an exterior constructed from aluminium and carbonfibre reinforced plastic (CFRP).
The large, 19-inch wheels also feature rims made of CFRP.
Stay tuned to CarAdvice for full coverage of the 2014 Detroit motor show.
