Audi has unveiled its urbansphere concept, aimed at maximising interior space and comfort when travelling around large cities.
The urbansphere concept car is designed for metropolitan Chinese cities known for peak hours traffic congestion and scarcity of personal space. It has the largest interior space of any Audi to date and acts as a lounge on wheels and mobile office, the company said.
The urbansphere variant is 5,510mm long, 2,010mm wide, and 1,780mm tall, the grand dimensions that place it in the upper echelons of the automobile world. It comes with two driving options: manual with a steering wheel and level 4 automated driving.
“Level 4 automated driving technology transforms the interior without a steering wheel, pedals, or displays into a mobile interactive space that opens up to the offerings of a comprehensive digital ecosystem,” the company said.
It has a 3,400mm wheelbase, 1,780mm headroom and expansive glass surfaces. These dimensions result in an exceptionally spacious experience of the interior – both subjectively and objectively.
There is a large-format and transparent OLED screen that pivots vertically from the roof area into the zone between the rows of seats. “Using this ‘cinema screen’, equal to the width of the interior, passengers in the back row can do a video conference or watch a movie,” Audi said.
The control panels are integrated into the armrests on the doors while the VR glasses, also in the armrests, can be used in conjunction with infotainment options.
The car takes care of everyday tasks, such as making dinner reservations or shopping online. The autonomous urbansphere concept also picks up its passengers at home and takes care of parking and battery charging on its own.
The two electric motors can deliver a total output of 295 kW and a system torque of 690Nm.
“The heart of the drive system is the 800-volt charging technology. It ensures that the battery can be charged with up to 270 kW at fast-charging stations in the shortest possible time,” said Audi. The battery, which holds more than 120 kWh, can be charged from 5 to 80 percent in less than 25 minutes.
The latest addition to Audi sphere series of EVs, the urbansphere concept car joins Audi skysphere and Audi grandsphare. The German auto giant is showcasing these variants as its vision for the future of premium mobility.
Last August, Audi launched the skysphere variant, an autonomous GT that transforms itself into a self-driving sports car with variable wheelbase. A few weeks later at the IAA 2021, it unveiled the second model, the grandsphere concept car, a four-seater saloon.
In all three variants, the entire concept is derived from the ability to drive as a level 4 autonomous vehicle, a technology that the Ingolstadt-based automaker is in the process of introducing after 2025 together with Cariad, the Volkswagen Group’s software think tank.