Audi has unveiled its electric Skysphere autonomous concept car, which has an electrically-adjustable wheelbase, and previews the company’s self-driving future

Photos: Audi

SINGAPORE

Audi has pulled the wraps of its Skysphere concept car, which offers a preview of the brand’s future design direction, as well as potential new self-driving technologies that could make their way into Audi cars over the next decade. The Skysphere also features a unique mechanism that Audi says can vary the car’s wheelbase electronically.

The Skysphere will be unveiled on 13 August at the Monterey Car Week in Pebble Bay, California, and is the first in a series of concepts that Audi will unveil as part of its vision of the future. The electric-powered Skysphere takes the form of a two-door convertible that evokes images of a grand touring roadster, with its long bonnet and short rear end.

The front end design offers a unique take on Audi’s single-frame grille, which on the concept is embedded with white LED lights that can display moving light sequences. A similar LED display runs cross the length of the rear, and allows for unique and customisable lighting sequences to be displayed.

Arguably the Skysphere’s greatest party trick though is its variable wheelbase, with the car being able to extend itself by 250mm, using a series of electric motors and a sophisticated mechanism with the body and frame components. The extra length is added through an expandable section in front of the A-pillar, with the front rocker panel moving along as appropriate.

In shortened Sport mode, the Skysphere sits at 4,940mm long, and is some 10mm lower to the ground, which Audi says gives the car a more agile and sportier driving demeanour. In longer Grand Touring mode, the car extends out to 5,190mm in length, and raises its height to deliver a more comfortable and luxurious touring experience.

Under the car’s long bonnet is the Skysphere’s electric drivetrain, with its electric motor developing 623hp and 750Nm of torque, allowing the car to go from 0-100km/h in 4 seconds. The batteries are located behind the cabin, giving the car a 60:40 rear biased weight distribution, and Audi claims that the Skysphere will have an electric driving range of 500km in GT mode.

The interior of the Skysphere has been designed with a view to catering for a Level 4 autonomous driving future, meaning that in certain defined road and traffic situations, the driver can delegate complete responsibility to the car and no longer has to intervene. The steering wheel and pedals can be hidden away once in self-driving mode, and the cabin is able to transform itself into what is essentially a mobile lounge.

Large touch-sensitive screens dominate the dashboard, and displays relevant information depending on the driving mode. When the driver is in control, the dashboard showcases the usual infotainment and vehicle systems. In self-driving touring mode however, the screens can be used as an entertainment centre, displaying content such as streamed movies or video conference calls.

The Skysphere is the first of three Audi concepts that the company will unveil as part of its ‘Sphere’ series, with the Grandsphere and Urbansphere set to follow in the coming months. All three concepts will highlight Audi’s future design direction, as well as place a focus on showcasing Audi’s vision of luxury autonomous driving that it hopes to introduce in the years ahead.

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