I know it sounds funny, but there may just be some parallels between Walt Disney and Ferdinand Piech… or rather the empires both men either spawned or currently run. The Disney Company continues on its tear of swallowing up Pixar, Marvel Comics and, just this month, the Star Wars franchise. Disney seems quite adept at eyeing up strong intellectual property and then putting their financial weight behind building those properties beyond what’s been seen before. So while folks dressed like Wookies at Comicon ponder this universe-changing news, I’d like to draw a parallel to Piech’s own empire… the Volkswagen Group. More…
In case you haven’t noticed, Fourtitude’s new format allows us to more readily run original content and features alongside press release information from Audi, various tuners and various racing series. One regular type of feature we’re happy to bring back to the site is that of editorial opinion. In that vein, I’m re-launching my own FourWord column here and sharing my own opinion on the future of sportscar racing based on two pieces I’ve recently read on SPEED and AutoExtremist. More…
Recently our friends over at Car & Driver published a story suggesting a new RS 4 wasn’t to be. Contacts of ours years ago confirmed an RS 4 sedan would have never been in the cards anyway as the 4-door buyer was predominantly also the RS 5 buyer. Still, our information about a RS 4 [...] More…
There’s a friendly sense of rivalry around the office here at Vortex Media Group. I can’t say that if I meet my counterpart Bryan Joslin who runs our BMW website Mwerks.com on the way to the watercooler, that it’s a race or anything…. but bring up competitive topics like the debate of “M5 vs. S6” [...] More…
There’s a bit of a tradition at Audi Sport, begun in the ‘80s with the advent of quattro all-wheel drive and its considerable impact on rally racing as the world then knew it. Audi has shown a clear pattern of choosing a racing series very carefully, considering the rules and regulations, developing a unique approach, [...] More…
The job of redesigning Audi’s iconic TT could not have been an easy one. A welcome challenge to Audi’s design studios it may be, but following the lead of a ground-breaking original is no easy feat. Any designer picking up a pen to take a stab at the TT’s successor had to know that everyone [...] More…
If you’re at all familiar with the Audi lexicon, little more than mention of the letter ‘S’ is needed to get your blood going. Audi’s range of S cars has a long and storied history at providing strong performance for those looking to go fast. However, no one ever said these cars weren’t thirsty for [...] More…
There’s no denying that the Toyota Prius has garnered its fair share of attention. Toyota sells all they can build, while the car’s owner group has become a rather enthusiastic following despite the Prius’ relatively frugal equipment and uninspiring teardrop shaped packaging. Such success begs the question- could technology-driven Audi do a small hybrid just [...] More…
The A3 for me is a conundrum. I love the idea of a compact 5-door car that can be easily parked in small urban parking spaces and still carry a decent amount of cargo or four adults in relative comfort. For the foreseeable future, there will be three drivetrain offerings: the 2.0T in front-wheel drive [...] More…
You may or may not have noticed it, but Fourtitude is going through some changes. They’ve been subtle, I know, but the site just received a re-freshening less than a year and a half after we launched it. There have been several key new features added, the response through growth of readership has been most [...] More…
Those who own the cars or even lust for them can easily tell you that Audi enthusiasm is a lifestyle as much as any other. While most reading this website enjoy the finer things on four wheels, watch or take part in motorsport, go on a roadtrips, tinker with their cars or simply talk about [...] More…
There’s an aspect of car culture often overlooked by the mainstream due to its cottage nature – that of the “specialty car”. From niche manufacturer, kitcar or replica builder to engine conversions and custom coachbuilders, one can measure the success and desirability of a car manufacturer like Audi by looking at what this “specialty car” [...] More…
