Audi to Participate at the SEMA Show for the First Time, Displays include 710HP R8 Spyder

There's a first time for everything. For Audi, it's SEMA as this year's edition of the show will mark the brand's first ever factory-backed appearance at the annual tuning extravaganza in Las Vegas.

In addition to its lineup of after sales and electronics products, Audi will put on display six-vehicles including the driver-less Autonomous Audi TTS Pikes Peak and a customized R8 Spyder tuned by STaSIS Engineering. The latter is equipped with a 5.2-liter supercharged V10 engine delivering 710-horsepower and 523 lb-ft of torque, and can complete the 0 to 60mph [96 km/h] sprint in 3.1 seconds.

"We're thrilled to be a part of the SEMA experience, and look forward to turning heads with our vehicles, demonstrations, and a sophisticated lineup of After Sales and electronics products that enhance connectivity and entertainment," said David Tait, Audi's lead After Sales executive and spokesman on the SEMA project.

"Our show cars will represent the pinnacle of what owners can do with an Audi, and unleash a variety of opportunities for our vendors, as well," he added.

Though no more specific details we given about the cars, Tait said: "Let's just say we'll have a few distinctive, concept items on the stand that definitely won't disappoint the unique SEMA audience".

The 2010 SEMA Show will take place in Las Vegas, Nevada from November 2-5.

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The People have Spoken: Audi TT RS Coming to America, Sales Start Next Year

To the surprise of few, after more than 11,500 fans in the USA expressed their interest for the spicy hot TT RS in a survey on Facebook in just over a month, Audi announced today that it is bringing the five-cylinder coupe to the U.S. market by the third quarter of 2011. Only the coupe version of the TT RS will make its way on this side of the pond with pricing and standard features to be announced closer to the launch date.

"With performance and agility rooted in Audi motorsports success, the TT RS is truly an emotional sports car," said Johan de Nysschen, President, Audi of America in a prepared statement. "That emotion became abundantly clear as we explored interest across the country."

Even though the press release from Audi of America makes word three times of the same 2.5-liter turbocharged five-cylinder engine producing "360-horsepower" and 332 lb-ft of torque found on the European-spec model, we all know that the TT RS's five-pot pot delivers 340HP (the torque figure is correct).

The 2.5T engine will be paired with a six-speed manual transmission and quattro all-wheel drive system allowing the TT RS to complete the a 0 to 62 mph - 100km/h (and not 0-60mph as wrongfully mentioned in the press release) sprint in 4.6 seconds.

Mystery Audi Sports Coupe / Spyder (R4?) Filmed at Ski Resort in the Alps

Audi gone viral or someone at the right place, with... almost the right equipment at the right time? Well, we can't answer that, but we do know that a Youtube user filmed a series of videos showing a mysterious Audi sports coupe (or Spyder) in covers being transferred via helicopter to the Olympia Ski Resort in the Tyrolean Alps, close to Innsbruck, in Austria - or at least that's what we understood, so any corrections welcome. The person who filmed the car said Audi was making some sort of a promotional video.

The mysterious Audi sport coupe's shape looks very similar to the e-Tron Concept model shown at the Detroit motor show earlier this year, but that's all we could make about the vehicle from the videos we've added below.

While the possibilities are almost endless, recent reports from Germany suggest that along with the A7 Sportback and S1 hot hatch, Audi will lift the covers off a more production ready version of the e-Tron Concept called the R4 - possibly in Spyder form- at this month's Paris Motor Show.

Could this be that car or is it something different such as a concept version for a new TT? Watch the videos below and share your thoughts in the comments section.

Hat tip to Marcus!

Audi TTS Pikes Peak Driverless Model Wears its War Colors [with Video]

These are the first pictures of Audi's driverless TTS Pikes Peak experimental model in Ingolstadt's traditional motorsports colors. Audi is currently gearing up the so-called "Autonomous TTS" for high-speed test runs up Pikes Peak in Colorado this fall.

"With the changed appearance, the Autonomous Audi TTS Pikes Peak is now squarely aligned with Audi cars that made motorsports history a generation ago in the Pikes Peak Hill Climb and other rally racing events," said the German manufacturer in a statement.

Based on the standard production model using the same 2.0-liter turbocharged four-pot, the Autonomous TTS Pikes Peak vehicle is a joint project between the Volkswagen Group Automotive Innovation Laboratory (VAIL) in Palo Alto, California, Stanford University and Sun Microsystems.

The Autonomous TTS is equipped with a fully automated drive-by-wire system that controls the steering, throttle, brakes, gearbox and parking brake as well as a special GPS system to help communicate with the piloting software, thus eliminating the need of a driver inside the car.

The company says it's "intended to explore the best capabilities of current and future driver assistance technologies."

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2011 Audi TTS Coupe: New Photos of Facelift Model

Audi has published a new picture gallery of the subtly facelifted 2011 TTS Coupe that will go on sale in the U.S. this fall. Cosmetic changes are limited to the revised single-frame grille with its aluminum-look horizontal double bars and the bumper, along with the addition of a new Panther Black exterior finish and a new two-tone (silver/black) option for the interior.

Unlike the base 2011 TTs, there are no mechanical upgrades for the TTS Coupe and its Roadster sibling that continue to be powered by the German firm's 2.0-liter TFSI with the larger turbocharger and other modifications that develops 272HP and 350Nm (258.15 lb-ft) of torque, the latter from 2,500 to 5,000 rpm.

The Ingolstadt-based automaker says that the TTS Coupe with the optional S tronic sprints from zero to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 5.2 seconds and goes up to a governed top speed of 250 km/h (155 mph). With the S tronic, the Coupé consumes an average of 7.7 liters of fuel per 100 km which is equal to 30.55 mpg US.