The shape of things to come

AUDI recently showcased its visionary electric off-roader: the Audi AI:TRAIL quattro, a comprehensive concept for sustainable mobility off the beaten track. Four visionary vehicles—the Audi Aicon, AI:ME, AI:RACE and AI:TRAIL were on show together throughout the Frankfurt motor show.

The four-seater Audi AI:TRAIL quattro combines the capacity for automated driving with superb off-road capabilities. The glass surrounding the cabin extends all the way to ground level, providing unrivalled all-round visibility. The ample battery capacity ensures sufficient range even away from dense networks of charging stations.

The Audi AI:TRAIL quattro is the fourth entrant in the series of concept cars with electric drive systems, which began with the presentation of the Audi Aicon at the 2017 iteration of the IAA. Following this luxury-class vehicle very much intended for highly automated long-distance driving, an emissions-free monoposto designed for the race track, the Audi PB18 e-tron, made its debut in Pebble Beach in 2018.

With the AI:TRAIL, Audi is now opening up the potential applications for its visionary vehicles to include off-road terrain. The car is equipped with four electric motors, systems for assisted and automated driving and—typically for Audi—quattro permanent all-wheel drive.

With an exterior length of 4.15 meters (13.5 ft) and a width of 2.15 meters (7.05 ft), the brawny Audi AI:TRAIL’s potential away from paved roads is immediately apparent. The roof height of 1.67 meters (5.5 ft) and the enormous 22inch wheels with 850 mm (33.5 in) tires hint at the vehicle’s excellent off-road capabilities even when it is standing still.

The cabin itself is an extensively glazed space surrounded by polygonal shapes, with room for up to four people. One characteristic feature—and one that indicates the vehicle’s kinship with Aicon and AI:ME—is the protruding ridge halfway up the side windows. This line continues to both the front and rear and acts as a waistline uniting the entire body in one monolithic whole. With the electric drive system arranged around the axles and the battery in the floor, there is no need for overhanging sections or separate attachments for the motor or batteries.

The interior of the Audi AI:TRAIL is tidy and spacious, and it has just a few visible control elements. There are two comfortable-looking, almost delicate seat shells in the front row, both equipped with four-point seat belts. Light colours dominate the upper interior area down to the level of the seat cushion and the low dashboard.

Pedals, a yoke for a steering wheel, a few buttons, and a smartphone attached to the steering column as a display and control center for vehicle functions and navigation— those are all the elements there are for the interaction between the driver and the vehicle.

Instead of conventional headlights, self-contained light sources sit below the A-pillars and can shine both THE third generation SEAT Leon has achieved 1 million sales since its launch in 2012. SEAT’s biggest-selling vehicle was presented at the Paris Motor Show that year and arrived to market shortly after with a completely renewed design.

Thanks to the ‘formula Leon’, based on design and functionality, it became the most widely sold model in the SEAT range, overcoming the dominance held by Ibiza for the previous 30 years.

Designed, developed and produced in Martorell, the current generation Leon has been built on the Volkswagen Group’s modular MQB platform since it first rolled off the production line.

This platform involved an investment of €800 million at the time and meant an unprecedented leap in technology. With the Leon, production quality increased in line with Group standards, and it consolidated 1,600 direct jobs at the factory and more than 6,000 in supporting industries.

The success of the Leon transformed SEAT’s recent history from a commercial and financial standpoint, and implied a qualitative leap in the perception of the brand image. Likewise, the Leon also enabled the increase of profitability outward and inward. These LED elements are dimmable and adjustable and can be used as interior lighting as well as for lighting the vehicle’s path.

Instead of conventional low beams and high beams, the Audi AI:TRAIL is equipped with a total of five rotorless, triangular, electrically operated drones with integrated matrix LED elements. They are capable of landing on a roof rack or directly on the roof of the vehicle, and docking onto the inductive charging elements.

The flying objects are Audi Light Pathfinders, which generate their lift in the same way as bladeless fans produce their air flow. Thanks to their markedly lightweight design, they can fly ahead of the AI:TRAIL, consuming comparably little energy in the process, and illuminate the path ahead, thereby replacing headlights entirely. If desired, the on-board cameras generate a video image that can be transmitted to the display in front of the driver via Wi-Fi, turning the Pathfinders into eyes in the sky. margin per SEAT model, which contributed to turning the negative figures of 2012 (- €149 million) to the best ever in the history of the company (profit after tax of €294 million in 2018).

SEAT closed 2012 with a total of 321,000 cars sold, nearly the same amount of vehicles delivered in the first six months of 2019 (314,300). Furthermore, the Leon has been a key model for boosting sales in countries such as Germany and the UK, where SEAT deliveries have gone up by almost 70% and 60% respectively since 2012. The Leon is still SEAT’s top-selling model, and one out of every four cars sold by the brand in the first six months of 2019 was a Leon.

The Leon was the first car in its segment to feature the iconic headlamps equipped with full LED technology which, together with the blisters on its dynamic chassis, gave it personality and a sense of sportiness. The gradual implementation of the latest technologies such as SEAT Full Link and, more recently, the digital cockpit and wireless charger provided customers with connectivity and convenience inside the vehicle. These advances have all enabled the Leon to create its hallmark on the industry.