Detroit Motor Show 2012: Audi Q3 Vail

OK, so we're all wondering what happened to the snow this year, but that hasn't deterred Audi from launching a winter sports-themed concept car in Detroit this year. The Audi Q3 Vail concept is a chunky little SUV with a punchy 2.5-litre, 310bhp five-cylinder petrol engine, seven-speed S tronic transmission and 295lb-ft of torque (so guess who'll be the one pulling out other cars when they get stuck in the snow?). It rockets up to 60mph in 5.5 seconds and has a top speed of 163mph.

It's fitted with off-road tyres and the track width has increased by 40mm at the front and back compared to series production models and the body is 30mm higher. At the back, there and twin tail pipes integrated into the diffuser and underbody area.

The styling includes flared wheel arches, 20-inch wheels, running boards, roof racks made for skis and snowboards, and a themed interior that includes induction chargeable lights, warmed drinks flasks and heated cushions. The front roof-rail support integrates efficient, wide-angled LED lights that illuminate the area around the car, controlled via buttons in the roof module. Audi has also made much of its headlights and the Q3 Vail is no exception - the zones in the lower area of the light-guide elements, which generate the daytime running lights, are painted a lovely anthracite. The top of the side air inlets are covered by solid aluminium panels and the front underbody guard is also made from aluminium. Even the struts have been gussied up with matt quartz-based paint.

A red, black and grey colour scheme on the inside reflects the Energy Red colour of the exterior. Materials such as Alcantara leather and a leather/fabric blend have been used to make the interior rather tactile and aluminium plays a big role in making the instrument panel look very stylish indeed. Even the soft keys for the sat nav system are aluminium and the monitor can be folded out manually. The system includes an animation showing the longitudinal and latitudinal tilt angle of the car. If you venture into regions that are not included in the map data, the MMI navigation plus system logs the GPS coordinates of the route so you can get home safely.

There's no word on a production date but this is a rather finished looking concept car so we're hoping it will hit showrooms sooner, rather than later - and ideally in time for next winter where hopefully we'll get a little snow...














By Georgia Lewis

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