Audi finds the fastest sailor on land 12 August 2014 Audi to test the speed of the sailors in the Audi Final Drive Challenge at Audi Hamilton Island Race Week. For the first time ever, any registered sailor can win! Participants to drive the Audi SQ5 TDI, one of the fastest diesels on-sale in Australia, under the supervision of Steve Pizzati The competitor who achieves the fastest and most consistent performance will win a one-year loan of the A3 e-tron. There will also be the prize of an Audi Drive Experience for the fastest yacht owner or skipper Calling all sailors! Audi wants to test your speed on land at a drive challenge during Audi Hamilton Island Race Week. For the first time ever, the competition can be won by any registered sailor and not just by the divisional winners. The first 180 sailors to sign up will put their driving skills to the test at the Audi Final Drive Challenge. On Lay Day, Audi’s Chief Instructor, Steve Pizzati, will be on hand with his team of trained professionals to put the sailors through their paces at Hamilton Island Airport. Competitors will have the chance to get behind the wheel of the mighty SQ5, one of the fastest diesels available in the Australia. Powered by a high-performance 3.0 TDI Biturbo engine the SUV demolishes 100km/h in just 5.1 seconds. Despite its prodigious power, the 3.0 TDI engine uses the same efficiency technologies that led Audi TDI prototypes to eight victories at the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans. The competitors will be judged on both speed and consistency in equal measures. After two laps of the course, half of the final score will be made up of the lap speed and the other half from the difference between the two lap times. This means the quickest driver may not necessarily be the victor. The winner will get to take home the A3 e-tron for one-year of blissful motoring. “This car is a game changer for us and we believe that customers will appreciate that they don’t have to compromise on style or substance with this hybrid,” said Audi Australia’s Managing Director Andrew Doyle. “The winner of this competition will be among the first in the country to take the A3 e-tron home and we think they will find it hard to return it once the year is up!” Audi has long been a leader of innovation and efficiency technologies, and the new A3 e-tron embodies these values perfectly. It is the first plug-in hybrid from Audi, and it will soon take its place alongside an A3 range that has already been lauded as the World Car of the Year. The A3 e-tron plug-in hybrid will go on-sale from March 2015 and it proves that a hybrid vehicle doesn’t have to be a compromise with an incredible range of 940km. Cementing its performance credentials, the A3 e-tron dispatches the sprint from 0 to 100 km/h in just 7.6 seconds, while delivering incredible fuel consumption of just 1.6 litres per 100 km and emitting only 35 grams of CO2. There will also be a prize for the fastest yacht owner or skipper: a one day Audi Driving Experience in their closest capital city. The winners will be announced at the Audi Hamilton Island Race Week Presentation Dinner on Saturday 23 August 2014. To register, simply visit: http://www.hamiltonislandraceweek.com.au/off-water-events/audi-drive-challenge – ENDS – The Audi Group delivered around 1,575,500 cars of the Audi brand to customers in 2013. From January through the end of September 2013 the Company posted revenue of €37 billion and an operating profit of €3.74 billion. The Audi Group is globally present in more than 100 markets and produces vehicles in Ingolstadt and Neckarsulm (Germany), Győr (Hungary), Brussels (Belgium), Bratislava (Slovakia), Martorell (Spain), Kaluga (Russia), Aurangabad (India), Changchun (China) and Jakarta (Indonesia). The brand with four rings produces cars also in Foshan (China) since December 2013, in 2015 in São José dos Pinhais (Brazil) and 2016 in San José Chiapa (Mexico). AUDI AG’s wholly owned subsidiaries include quattro GmbH (Neckarsulm), Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A. (Sant’Agata Bolognese, Italy) and the sports motorcycle manufacturer Ducati Motor Holding S.p.A. (Bologna, Italy). The Group currently employs almost 73,000 people worldwide, including around 50,000 in Germany. Total investment of around €22 billion is planned from 2014 to 2018 – mainly in new products and sustainable technologies. Audi lives up to its corporate responsibility and has strategically established the principle of sustainability for its products and processes. The long-term goal is CO2-neutral mobility.