Audi A3 1.6 TDI gets 78 mpg in efficiency challenge
On its very first outing under real-life traffic conditions, the Audi A3 1.6 TDI is already turning in impressive consumption figures. The other models of the Audi range also shone on the first three days of the “Efficiency Challenge A to B”, which covers 2,613 miles from A on the Norwegian Lofoten Islands to Bée in northern Italy.
A total of 120 journalists and brand customers are taking part in the tour in 20 cars from across 5 model ranges. The interim results after the first three days offer clear evidence of the outstanding efficiency of the entire Audi product range.
Efficiency is standard fit in every Audi – which is why the sporty top-of-the-range models are also taking part in the Efficiency Challenge – with similarly impressive results.
Leading the pack in terms of minimal fuel consumption is the new A3 1.6 TDI. On the road in Norway in the opening stage, the drivers managed to squeeze out an astounding 78.4 mpg average from the 1.6L diesel engine. Next up was the A4 2.0 TDI e sedan, which went an average of 60.3 miles on every U.S. gallon of diesel.
In addition to the high efficiency models, Audi also opted to include several high performance models this time around to show that even they can get very good fuel efficiency when driven sedately. The 340 hp TT-RS averaged 32.22 mpg, while the utterly absurd Q7 V12 TDI with its 500 hp diesel V12 managed a startling 27.03 mpg.
The phrase “driving from A to B” also stands for everyday mobility – for that multiplicity of individual transportation that everyone takes for granted. In recent days, Audi has been taking this quite literally – with the “Audi Efficiency Challenge A to B”. The journey began in northern Europe, in the Norwegian village of Å on the Lofoten Islands and travels through eight countries all the way to northern Italy, to Bée on Lago Maggiore.
The tour has been split into three waves of three days each – the first runs from Å to Trondheim in Norway, the second to the German capital of Berlin and the third ends at the ultimate destination, the village of Bée above Lago Maggiore. Along the way, the tour offers a diverse range of roads and landscapes; it wends its way along the coastal roads of Norway, as well as the autobahns of Germany. Impressive cities like Oslo, Copenhagen and Prague are also on the itinerary, as are the heights of the Alps. The Audi Efficiency Challenge ends on 30 September 2009.
When it comes to efficiency, Audi claims to hold the leading role among the premium car makers.