#abt

ABT Sportsline, a leading tuner for Volkswagen Group, showed off something a little different at the IAA Commercial Vehicle Show in Germany: electric vehicles.

Audi will officially be the first German manufacturer on the Formula E grid when it takes over ABT Formula E’s grid spot next season.

Famed tuner ABT Sportsline has now taken their turn with the new Volkswagen Beetle, putting plenty of blood, sweat and tears into refining the fun automobile. As the world’s largest tuner of Volkswagens, it’s natural to see ABT Sportsline adding some spice to the agile and fun Beetle, which ABT has nicknamed Speedle. Unfortunately exact specs on the power upgrades haven’t been finalized yet, but ABT did release the power gains they expect to make from the various models.

Audi‘s answer to Mercedes‘ CLS has been growing in popularity and now certain aftermarket tuners are offering enthusiasts options for the A7 much like Brabus has for the CLS. One of the major Audi tuners, ABT Sportsline, is now offering a styling kit and performance upgrades for various A7 models, enhancing horsepower and aesthetics to fulfill the search for a sporty, yet luxurious, driving experience.

ABT Sportsline perhaps stole a part of the show at Geneva with their R8 GT S, their take on Audi’ s R8 Spyder. Featuring a beautiful chrome red exterior, ABT Sportsline clearly aimed to grab the attention of the public with the contrasting carbon fiber components and the overall sinister red-and-black theme throughout the vehicle.

ABT Sportsline has teamed up with their North American Distributor, GGI European Tuning, to release 25 limited edition Audi R8 GT R‘s to the public. The official North American debut will take place at this year’s SEMA Show. The popular Volkswagen and Audi tuner, ABT Sportsline, has taken the 5.2L FSI R8 to a whole new level, pushing horsepower from the factory 525-hp to an astonishing 620-hp in their GT R variant.

ABT Sportsline has been tinkering around with Audi‘s newest TT-RS for a while now, debuting a power package back in September 2009 that helped put down 420-hp from the roadster. An 80-hp increase from the factory 340-hp, most would think that would be enough to keep everyone happy. But ABT Sportsline wouldn’t be ABT Sportsline if they didn’t find a way to break the 500-hp mark.

Well well, ABT Sportsline didn’t waste any time on this one did they? Even though Audi just released the 2011 A8, ABT already has a fantastic tuning package available for it. The German Audi-tuner says their A8 is a sports car in a classy outfit and we can’t help but to agree.

Let’s start with the exterior where ABT has transformed the luxury sedan with a subtle front spoiler, side skirts and three piece rear wing. There is also a new rear diffuser with exhaust covers. All of the exterior accessories are much like ABT Sportsline’s other aesthetics for other vehicles: mild and subtle. Nothing over the top, which is expected especially on the A8 sedan. ABT also offers a selection of 20- or 21-inch wheels.

Under the hood, ABT also pushes out 35 additional horsepower (350 to 385) and raises torque from 590 ft-lbs to 650 ft-lbs on the 4.2-liter turbo-diesel. There’s no word yet on tuning options for the 500-hp W12.

Overall, it’s a nice, clean and simple option for those with A8s looking to enhance their vehicle without going too crazy.

GALLERY: ABT Sportsline Audi A8

Check out the press release after the break.

Germany’s largest and best-known Audi/VW-tuner ABT Sportsline will display three finely-tuned new models, as well as an even more hard-core version of the V10-powered R8 5.2. Called the ABT R8 GTR, this German exotic is based off the modified R8 5.2 that ABT brought to Geneva last year, and boasts the same V10 under the hood, which has been tuned to 600-hp.

Audi tuner ABT Sportsline has just unleashed a 600hp version of the V10-powered R8. The German tuner isn’t saying much about how it got an extra 75hp from the 5.2-liter V10 engine, other than with the addition of an exhaust system.

When Audi first released the new 2010 S4 with a supercharged V6 rather than a V8 we knew it would be a hit with tuners. One of the first companies to get its hands on a new S4 is Abt Sportsline, Germany’s largest VW/Audi tuner and they did not disappoint.

Output has been increased from the standard 333hp to 425hp and torque also gets a significant bump from 325 ft-lbs to 384 ft-lbs. Combined with Audi’s incredible seven-speed DSG gearbox, the sprint to 100km/h (62 mph) takes just 4.6 seconds as compared to 5.1 seconds in the stock Audi.

What might be even more impressive, however, is Abt’s claim that fuel-consumption is not negatively affected.

In addition to these performance modifications, Abt also offers a four-pipe muffler set, as well as AR or BR wheels in anywhere from 18- to 20-inch fitments.

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