This concept car from Audi is one of the most eye-catching exhibits at the IAA in Munich. On the one hand, the Audi Grandsphere shows how the brand’s design will develop in the coming years, on the other hand, it has astonishing technical capabilities. In addition, it should come onto the market in the coming years as the successor to the A8 – up to 80 percent of the body should make it into series production. Here in the video, Audi chief designer Marc Lichte explains the car in detail together with brand manager Henrik Wenders.
“We deliberately developed the car from the inside out in order to use the possibilities that electric mobility offers us,” explains chief designer Marc Lichte, who is clearly enthusiastic about the result. With this concept, he and his team are fulfilling what was promised at the beginning of the “auto-electric age”: completely new interiors with generous amounts of space and previously unknown control elements.
With the Grandsphere, the creatives used the possibilities that result from the combination of fully electric drive and autonomous driving according to level 4. As soon as the person in the left seat switches to autonomous, the steering wheel disappears and the pedals also automatically reverse. At the same time, the interior is transformed into a kind of rolling lounge. Audi calls this state the “experience device”.
Interior as “sphere of experience”
During the autonomous journey, work can be done or individually designed entertainment programs can be called up and projected onto the projection surface in front of the driver and passengers. Audi is already planning to offer passengers exclusive offers ranging from concerts to sporting events. The addition “Sphere” is also part of the program. Because it is no longer just the drive or the driving dynamics that take up the widest space in the specification sheet, but the interior, which is to become a “sphere of experience” for the passengers.
The design of the Grandsphere deliberately dispenses with the usual elements. A single line runs along the side, the more discreetly designed single frame on the front is now a sensor carrier and framed by daytime running lights. Thanks to a windshield that extends far to the front, the front hood is significantly shorter than the previous models from Ingolstadt, which further enhances the dynamic charisma. The classic instrument collection is missing in the interior, instead a display extends over the entire width of the car.
The car is the chauffeur
The Grandsphere also does away with the classic hierarchy in the luxury segment. So far, the boss has been sitting in the best seat in the back. In the new luxury car, he would have to be content with a bench. The best seats are clearly in the front and are reminiscent of the legendary Eames armchair. Between the two seats there is a chilled on-board bar with two glasses and a bottle for drinks specially designed for the Grandsphere. The seats can be tilted backwards by up to 60 degrees when the autonomous technology has taken over. Compared to the two front luxury single seats, the rear bench mutates into a simple seat. Despite its length of 5.30 meters and a wheelbase of 3.19 meters, the futuristic Audi is a 2 + 2-seater.
That will likely change, but most of the elements will appear in the A8 successor. “80 percent of this design is adopted in the series,” says Lichte, looking to the future. However, the doors running in opposite directions will be replaced by conventional ones.
The designers used the so-called Premium Platform Electric as the basis for the Grandsphere. The battery module with 120 kWh for a range of 750 kilometers is located between the two axles. The study also uses the Group’s 800-volt technology.
Two electric motors together have 530 kW / 720 hp and a maximum torque of 960 Newton meters. The sprint from 0 to 100 km / h should only take a good four seconds.
The series version of the Grandsphere will not be at dealers until 2025, and there is good news for the class-conscious boss: the conventional A8 will be offered in parallel for a while. (aum)