Car Throttle

The minicar segment is growing in the United States with the Fiat 500, MINI and Chevrolet Spark entering the marketplace. It is still a small segment though, and one luxury automakers haven't dared to go into yet. Despite leaving us out of the plan for the A1, the car features heavily in Audi's global plans. It has been selling very well overseas, and new spy shots show that Audi is working on an RS1 model. RS1? There isn't even an S1 yet; Audi could be skipping that designation. The RS3 is currently the smallest RS vehicle, and it is powered by the 350-horsepower 2.5-liter five-cylinder that is also used in the TT-RS. We get the TT-RS, but not the hotter version of the A3. That's down

So far, the only really successful minicar in the United States has been MINI. BMW brought the original back and it was met with smashing success. New models like the Clubman and Countryman are helping to expand that appeal. The Fiat 500 is the only direct MINI competitor. Globally the MINI figures even more importantly though, and as such it was a must for Audi to compete against rival BMW with a model of its own. Enter the A1, a car we don't get here in the U.S. Audi has just announced that production for the car has reached 100,000 in its first year. The A1 is produced at Audi's plant in the Forest district of Brussels, Belgium. With an important milestone reached, Audi

Senner Tuning is a German company known for its recent efforts tuning Audi vehicles. One of those is their take on the A5 Sportback, dubbed the Grand Prix. It is one of our favorite tuned examples of the A5 (which we unfortunately can't get here in the United States). Now, the company has turned its attention to the A1 supermini, being one of the first tuning companies to offer a package for the diminutive Audi. Senner started with the A1 1.6 TDI model, and the main change is boosting power output from 103 to 138 horsepower. The changes are available individually, or as a package. The bump in power will set you back €899 (about $1,146 USD at current exchange rates), a figure that

Manufacturers have been preparing to launch new small models in the United States more than ever. T he Beat is coming from Chevrolet, Ford is bringing over the Fiesta and Fiat the 500. Mercedes-Benz has even been rumored to be considering the A-Class and B-Class to our shores. The A1 is a supermini that many have wanted to see as a full competitor to the MINI, which is really the only successful car of its type in our country. That could be the reason Audi has an apprehension about bringing it over. Audi A1 S-Line Pictured In Europe, the car has met high demand, with Audi receiving over 50,00 preorders ahead of the car's summer launch. Apparently the brand sees its U.S image as a serious competitor to BMW and

The new Audi A1 was introduced at the Geneva Auto Show and Audi clearly has big plans for it. They've given it a high-profile spokesman in the form of Justin Timberlake and clearly expect it to form a big part of Audi's sales growth. BMW has the MINI, Audi has the A1 - or so they hope. We aren't sure if the car is coming to the United States but the A1 is going full-throttle in Europe. Audi hasn't wasted any time putting out pictures of the car with the S-Line package(s). There are two S-Line packages available for the A1. The exterior package starts off with a new front fascia with a different bumper and side air vents, a larger roof spoiler, chiseled sill tops and

Audi just took the wraps off its new small car, the A1, at the Geneva Motor Show. It has been in the works for quite sometime as a competitor to BMW's highly successful MINI lineup. BMW has been intent on expanding the MINI's success with new variants like the Clubman, Coupe and most recently the Countryman crossover as well. Audi has similar plans in the works as well (already!) if new rumors are any indication. Audi plans to sell over 100,000 A1s a year to help further its plans for growth. The new A1 is a three-door model, like the MINI, but a five-door hatchback is slated to offer a bit more room (and doors) for those who wanted. In addition, a cabriolet is planned. To keep cost and

Is it March already? It sure seems like it, because the releases from the Geneva Motor Show have been coming out fast. One of the most important was released just today as well, the new Volvo S60. It is Audi's turn now though, and the Audi A1 is here - finally, and yes it is the official production model. Audi has seen to fit to tease the car endlessly over the past few months -  we even already know its official spokesman in Europe, Justin Timberlake. If you've seen the Audi Metroproject Quattro Concept, you've seen the A1 - even down to the red and silver-on-the-roof paint scheme, which is Audi's take on the classic MINI white roof, and a look we quite like. Groundbreaking the A1

Last we heard about the A1, it was caught at a photo shoot with its spokesman, Justin Timberlake. Anyone up for a boring teaser video? Audi just released a new teaser aiming to show the company's commitment to quality. Audi has gotten widespread recognition for its excellent interiors, and the brand plans to continue that with the A1. Most interestingly though, the brand makes the claim that the A1 is the "first premium automobile in the compact class". Judge for yourself (if you can) from the video below. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cn3i4gCYVuI

Justin Timberlake isn't something we often have anything to do with at CarThrottle, but there's a first time for everything right? No, we haven't turned into a celebrity gossip blog - Timberlake has been selected to lead Audi's advertising campaign for their new small car, the A1. An Italian car blog, BlogMotori has obtained one picture of what they are claiming to be the production A1, captured at a photo shoot for the car with the American singer. It hasn't been confirmed that this actually it, but it looks pretty close to our mental image of the A1. Don't expect Audi to do anything radical with the styling of the new car - they don't have to.

Audi is coming off a record year in 2008, with over 1,000,000 cars sold for the first time. While the company is likely to give up those gains this year, the brand is poised for more success in the future. The goal is for 1.5 million units by the year 2015 or 2016 (originally the goal was 2015 but they delayed it by a year just recently). With that in mind, Audi is working on expanding their lineup with a lot of new models, and is trying to play every release for maximum sales. Cadillac needs to do the same thing; right now their lineup is looking pretty bare. Some of the all-new models and model lines to be released include the A5 Sportback, A7 Sportback, R8 Spyder, Q3 Crossover, A1, potentially