World's largest Audi centre opens on a high note

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R and B star Lemar joins the party to mark opening of new five-acre, 15 million-pound Audi Centre of Excellence in Scotland

• New 56,000 square-feet Audi retail venue to be officially ‘christened’ at a VIP opening party on Thursday November 25, 2004
• New location for Lomond Audi, which moves from Kyle Street, Glasgow to Braehead (off M8/A8) and is renamed Glasgow Audi
• £15 million premises combines extensive sales and service space with outdoor off-road test track, cafés, kindergarten, 160-seat restaurant, museum, art gallery and conference facilities for up to 178 delegates

VIPs and celebrities from the worlds of sport, music and motor racing are gathering on Thursday November 25 to celebrate the official opening of the world’s largest Audi retail site in Glasgow, Scotland.

In front of around 150 guests, the celebrated voice of R and B star Lemar will ring out across the 56,000-square-foot venue, which is the new home of Glasgow Audi (formerly Lomond Audi) and is set to become a new landmark in Scotland. The occasion will also mark the British public debut of the stunning V10 biturbo-powered Nuvolari quattro concept car.

Set in five acres of landscaped grounds incorporating 300 parking spaces, the three-storey, 110ft high Glasgow Audi building offers plentiful new and used sales space and an exceptionally accommodating service area with 23 inspection bays, but it also goes far beyond this. Customers are able to visit an Audi museum housing legendary Audi models such as the R8 Le Mans prototype racer, browse in a spacious art gallery showcasing up-and-coming artists and enjoy regular fashion shows, film premiers and bespoke special events.

An Audi brand experience
Internet access is also offered in the free internet bar, and breakfast, lunch or a quiet coffee can be enjoyed in the bistro-style Le Mans Café. While adults relax in the café, children can safely let off steam in the TT Children’s Play Area, which incorporates a miniature racetrack, PlayStation consoles and a two-tier climbing frame. Adults also have their own play space in the grounds of the Centre in the form of a purpose-built off-road track where the allroad quattro and forthcoming Q7 Sports Utility Vehicle will come into their own.

Glasgow Audi also offers extensive and fully equipped conference facilities for hire by independent local and national organisations. The largest of the Centre’s three dedicated state-of-the-art conference rooms is located on the Avus deck on the top floor of the building and is capable of accommodating up to 140 people.

During corporate events delegates can enjoy lunch or dinner from a full à la carte menu in the 160-seat silver service restaurant on the top floor dedicated specifically to conference and event use.

The Centre is also a place of learning, housing its own Audi Academy training facility to help Audi employees from all over the UK to familiarise themselves with the latest techniques and processes.

Commenting on the new Centre of Excellence, Managing Director of Audi UK Kevin Rose said: “Glasgow Audi combines a new name with an exciting new approach to retailing that fully represents the brand’s core values, and will allow us to develop further our service to our Glasgow customers. It is not only an extraordinary showcase both for Audi cars and for the philosophy of Vorsprung durch Technik, but also a £15 million vote of confidence in the powerful future of the Audi brand in Scotland.”

THE AUDI NUVOLARI QUATTRO CONCEPT STUDY

The Audi Nuvolari quattro concept study makes its British public debut at the official opening of Glasgow Audi on Thursday November 25. The car which first signalled the new Audi styling direction now characterised by A3 Sportback, A4, A6 and A8 models is a two-door coupé with 2 + 2 seating and classic GT proportions. Its all-aluminium body panels are mounted on an aluminium Audi Space Frame (ASF), following the exceptionally successful example first set by the road-going A8 luxury saloon, resulting in an excellent power-to-weight ratio and high rigidity.

The Nuvolari quattro features the most powerful engine so far developed by Audi for use in a roadgoing vehicle: a 5.0-litre V10 ‘biturbo’ with FSI direct fuel injection, a power output of 600PS and maximum torque of 750 Newton-metres. The Nuvolari quattro concept car accelerates from 0 to 62mph in just 4.1 seconds and has a governed maximum speed of 155mph.

Power and torque are delivered to the wheels according to traction needs via a six-speed automatic transmission using shift-by-wire technology. The driver can also select the gears manually using paddles mounted on the steering wheel.

As a matter of course, an Audi as powerful as this features quattro permanent four-wheel drive and a motor-sport brake system with appropriately large, drilled brake discs set behind the 9-arm wheels.

Following the unveiling of the Nuvolari quattro at the 2003 Geneva Motor Show, Walter de’Silva, Head of Design for the Audi brand group, commented: “The Nuvolari quattro outlines the direction that Audi’s exterior and interior design will take. We are aware of our brand’s heritage and will continue this success story in evolutionary steps.”

Nuvolari quattro sets the trend - The Audi Nuvolari quattro concept study makes its British public debut at the official opening of Glasgow Audi on Thursday November 25. The car which first signalled the new Audi styling direction features a lightweight all-aluminium body shell and 600PS from a biturbo V10 engine.


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