What is ultra?
- ultra is to Audi what EfficientDynamics is to BMW – the catch-all title for the brand’s greener performance models.
- The technology focuses on extending fuel economy, cutting emissions and therefore BIK rates.
- Audi intends to achieve these aims with no loss of performance, price penalty or reduction in specification.
- Technically the measures include leaner-burning engines, more effective catalysts and increased efficiency from the gearboxes.
THE business car favourite Audi A4 is the latest model to gain the German brand’s eco-focused ‘ultra’ format.
In what could well be a tempting proposition for business motorway-munchers, the A4 is now on offer with a 2.0 TDI 163PS ultra engine, matched to a six-speed gearbox. The A4 saloon and Avant models and the A5 Coupe gain the new unit which was first seen in the A6 in February.
The new unit – whether mounted in the Audi A4 saloon or A5 – boasts a 0-62mph time of 8.3 seconds, a tenth faster than the stock 163PS 2.0 TDI already offered in the A5 range.
Yet it is also more frugal and cleaner – combined cycle mpg figures are quoted at 67.3mpg, compared to the 64.2mpg of the stock 2.0 TDI, with CO2 emissions shaved by six grams to 109g/km.
The A4 Avant is a little slower, hitting 62mph in 8.6 seconds and going on to 134mph, and recording 64.2mpg and CO2 emissions of 114g/km.
According to Audi the ultra engines are re-engineered to ‘lean out’ the burning while not affecting performance, and are combined with a Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) system that removes nitrogen oxides from the exhaust and ensures that the new models meet the stringent new Euro 6 emission standards.
Peak power arrives 1,200rpm earlier at 3,000rpm in the new ultra engine, and maximum torque increases from 380Nm to 400Nm and is available over a wider spread from 1,750rpm to 2,750rpm.
