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Audi TT
The Audi TT is a production front-engine, 2-door, 2+2 sports coupé and roadster, manufactured and marketed by Audi from 1998 to 2023 across three generations. For each of its three generations, the TT has been based on consecutive generations of Volkswagen's "Group A" platforms, starting with its "PQ34" fourth generation. The TT shares powertrain and suspension layouts with its platform mates, including the Audi A3, like a transversely mounted front-engine, powering front-wheel drive or four-wheel drive, and fully independent suspension using MacPherson struts in front. The TT's first two generations were assembled by Audi's Hungarian subsidiary, one of the world's largest engine manufacturing plants, using bodyshells manufactured and painted at Audi's Ingolstadt plant and parts made entirely by the Hungarian factory for the third generation. The last of the 662,762 Audi TTs was manufactured in November 2023. Design Styling of the Audi TT began in the spring of 1994 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Volkswagen Group A Platform
The Volkswagen Group A platform is an automobile platform shared among compact car, compact and mid-size cars of the Volkswagen Group. The first version debuted in 1974 and was originally based on the engineering concept of the Volkswagen Golf Mk1, and is applicable to either front-wheel drive, front- or four-wheel drive vehicles, using only Front-engine, front-wheel-drive layout, front-mounted transverse engines. Volkswagens based on this platform have been colloquially referred to by generation number, e.g. the first Golf version (A1) is referred to as a Mark 1 Golf." Often each generation is designated by substituting "Mark_(designation), Mark" for "A," but this can be misleading. For example, the Mk1 and Mk2 Scirocco are both based on the A1 platform. Furthermore, confusion was possible with the Volkswagen Passat, which has been produced on both the Volkswagen_Group_B_platform, B platform alongside the Audi A4, as well as the A platform depending on the generation. Volkswagen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Audi AG
Audi AG () is a German automotive manufacturer of luxury vehicles headquartered in Ingolstadt, Bavaria, Germany. A subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group, Audi produces vehicles in nine production facilities worldwide. The origins of the company are complex, dating back to the early 20th century and the initial enterprises (Horch and the ''Audiwerke'') founded by engineer August Horch. Two other manufacturers (DKW and Wanderer (car), Wanderer) also contributed to the foundation of Auto Union in 1932. The modern Audi era began in the 1960s, when Auto Union was acquired by Volkswagen from Daimler-Benz. After relaunching the Audi brand with the 1965 introduction of the Audi F103 series, Volkswagen merged Auto Union with NSU Motorenwerke in 1969, thus creating the present-day form of the company. The company name is based on the Latin translation of the surname of the founder, August Horch. , meaning 'listen', becomes in Latin. The four rings of the Audi logo each represent one of fo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Front-wheel Drive
Front-wheel drive (FWD) is a form of internal combustion engine, engine and transmission (mechanics), transmission layout used in motor vehicles, in which the engine drives the front wheels only. Most modern front-wheel-drive vehicles feature a transverse engine, rather than the conventional longitudinal engine arrangement generally found in automobile layout#Rear wheel drive layouts, rear-wheel-drive and four-wheel drive, four-wheel-drive vehicles. Location of engine and transmission By far the most common layout for a front-wheel-drive car is with the engine and transmission at the front of the car, mounted transversely. Other layouts of front-wheel drive that have been occasionally produced are a front-engine mounted longitudinally, a mid-engine layout and a rear-engine layout. History Prior to 1900 Experiments with front-wheel-drive cars date to the early days of the automobile. The world's first self-propelled vehicle, Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot's 1769/1770 Nicola ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Car And Driver
''Car and Driver'' (''CD'' or ''C/D'') is an American automotive enthusiast magazine first published in 1955. In 2006 its total circulation was 1.23 million. It is owned by Hearst Magazines, who purchased it from its prior owner Hachette Filipacchi Media U.S. in 2011. It was founded as ''Sports Cars Illustrated.'' The magazine is based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. History ''Car and Driver'' was formed as ''Sports Cars Illustrated'' in 1955. In its early years, the magazine focused primarily on small, imported sports cars. In 1961, editor Karl Ludvigsen renamed the magazine ''Car and Driver'' to show a more general automotive focus. ''Car and Driver'' once featured Bruce McCall, Jean Shepherd, and Brock Yates as columnists, and P. J. O'Rourke as a frequent contributor. Former editors include William Jeanes and David E. Davis, Jr., the latter of whom led some employees to defect in 1985 to create ''Automobile''. When CBS acquired Ziff Davis' consumer magazines in 1985, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Martin Smith (designer)
Martin Smith (born 1949) is a British retired automobile designer, noted for extensive stints at Audi, Opel and Ford of Europe. Background Born in 1949 in Broomhill, Sheffield, England, Smith attended King Edward VII School. A car fanatic since he was a boy, he wrote letters to Mini designer Alec Issigonis asking how to become a car designer and received kindly and encouraging replies.'Audi's Modest Mr Smith', Quality Cars pp22-24, ''The Sunday Times'', Spring 1988 He studied engineering at the University of Liverpool before graduating with a master's degree in vehicle design from the Royal College of Art in London. Career Audi Having begun his career at Porsche in 1973 which also included a short stint working on commercial vehicles for Ogle Design in Letchworth, Smith moved to Audi in 1977, then briefly to BMW only to return to Audi where he would remain for the majority of the 1980s and 1990s. At Audi he transformed the mundane Audi Coupe into the legendary Audi Quattro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Peter Schreyer
Peter Schreyer (born 1953) is a German automobile designer widely known for his design contributions to the Audi TT. He has been the chief design officer at Kia Motors since 2006 and, on 28 December 2012, he was named one of three presidents of the company. In 2006, '' Car Design News'' called the Audi TT one of "the most influential automotive designs in recent time". Education and early career Schreyer was born in 1953 in Bad Reichenhall, Bavaria, West Germany, and he began studying in 1975 at the Munich University of Applied Sciences (Fachhochschule München – Industrie Design). He worked with Audi first as a student in 1978, graduating in 1979 with his industrial design degree. Subsequently, he won the Audi Scholarship to study at the Royal College of Art in London from 1979 to 1980 as a transportation design student. In 1980, Schreyer began working with Audi in exterior, interior and conceptual design. In 1991, he moved to the company's design studio in California. He ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Freeman Thomas
Freeman Thomas (born August 20, 1957) is an American automobile and industrial designer who has worked for Porsche, Volkswagen Group, DaimlerChrysler and Ford. Background Thomas, the son of an American military air traffic controller and a German mother, traveled frequently around Europe during his childhood. This led to an early awareness of cars - in his own words, "a certain sense of automotive space." Early career After graduating from Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, Freeman worked as a senior designer at Porsche from 1983 to 1987. After leaving Porsche, he worked in consultancy, journalism and teaching, before joining Volkswagen of America in 1991. Volkswagen Group While at the Volkswagen Design Center in Simi Valley, California, he collaborated with fellow Art Center graduate J Mays on the design of the Volkswagen Concept 1 concept car, a modern re-interpretation of the original Volkswagen Beetle. This was first shown at the 1994 North American Int ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
J Mays
J Carrol Mays is a retired American industrial designer who served as Group Vice President of Global Design and Chief Creative Officer at Ford Motor Company, and was Chief Design Officer at Whirlpool. His first name is simply "J", after his grandfather, S J Mays. Background Born in rural Oklahoma, Mays started working at his family's auto parts store at an early age. While attending Maysville High School in Maysville, Oklahoma, Mays enrolled in an occupational drafting program at Mid-America Technology Center in Wayne, with aspirations of architecture. After high school, he studied commercial art at the University of Oklahoma before briefly switching to journalism. In 1976, he transferred to the ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, California, graduating in 1980 with a Bachelor of Science degree in transportation design. Career Volkswagen Group and BMW Mays began his career as an exterior designer at AUDI AG, a subsidiary of Volkswagen Group, in Ingolstadt, Germany. Whi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Frankfurt Motor Show
The International Motor Show Germany or International Mobility Show Germany, in German known as the ''Internationale Automobil-Ausstellung'' (''IAA'' – International Automobile Exhibition), is one of the world's largest mobility trade fairs. It consists of two separate fairs, that subdivided in 1991. While the ''IAA Mobility'' displays passenger vehicles, motorcycles and bikes, the ''IAA Transportation'' specializes in commercial vehicles. Before the separation, the show was held solely at the Messe Frankfurt. In 2021, the IAA adopted the ''New Mobility World'' concept, formats and business model, rebranded to IAA Mobility, and moved to Munich. The IAA is organized by the Verband der Automobilindustrie (VDA – Association of the German Automotive Industry) and is scheduled by the Organisation Internationale des Constructeurs d'Automobiles (OICA), who recognize the IAA as one of the "big five" most prestigious auto shows worldwide. History At the turn of the 20th century ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Concept Vehicle
A concept car (also known as a concept vehicle or show vehicle) is a car made to showcase new styling or new technology. Concept cars are often exhibited at motor shows to gauge customer reaction to new and radical designs which may or may not be produced. General Motors designer Harley Earl is generally credited with inventing the concept car, and did much to popularize it through its traveling Motorama shows of the 1950s. Concept cars never go into production directly. In modern times, all would have to undergo many changes before the design is finalized for the sake of practicality, safety, regulatory compliance, and cost. A "production-intent" prototype, as opposed to a concept vehicle, serves this purpose. Design Concept cars are often radical in engine or design. Some use non-traditional, exotic, or expensive materials, ranging from paper to carbon fiber to refined alloys. Others have unique layouts, such as gullwing doors, three or five (or more) wheels, or speci ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Volkswagen Group
Volkswagen AG (), known internationally as the Volkswagen Group, is a German public multinational conglomerate manufacturer of passenger and commercial vehicles, motorcycles, engines and turbomachinery. Headquartered in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany, and since the late 2000s is a publicly traded family business owned by Porsche SE, which in turn is half-owned but fully controlled by the Austrian-German Porsche and Piëch family. The company also offers related services, including financing, leasing, and fleet management. In 2024, it was the world's second-largest automaker by sales. It has maintained the largest market share in Europe for over two decades. It ranked 11th in the 2024 ''Fortune'' Global 500 list of the world's largest companies. In 2024, Volkswagen Group was the largest company in the European Union and the largest car manufacturer in the world by revenue. The Volkswagen Group sells passenger cars under the Audi, Bentley, Cupra, Jetta, Lamborghini, Pors ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Ingolstadt
Ingolstadt (; Austro-Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian: ) is an Independent city#Germany, independent city on the Danube, in Upper Bavaria, with 142,308 inhabitants (as of 31 December 2023). Around half a million people live in the metropolitan area. Ingolstadt is the second largest city in Upper Bavaria after Munich and the List of cities in Bavaria by population, fifth largest city in Bavaria after Munich, Nuremberg, Augsburg and Regensburg. The city passed the mark of 100,000 inhabitants in 1989 and has since been one of the major cities in Germany. After Regensburg, Ingolstadt is the second largest German List of cities and towns on the river Danube, city on the Danube. The city was first mentioned in 806. In the late Middle Ages, the city was one of the capitals of the Bavarian duchies alongside Munich, Landshut and Straubing, which is reflected in the architecture. On 13 March 1472 Ingolstadt became the seat of the first University of Ingolstadt, university in Bavaria, whic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
