Production of the new Audi e-tron GT, the electrically powered Gran Turismo, will begin at Audi Böllinger Höfe at the Neckarsulm site at the end of 2020.
Craftsmanship
The e-tron GT is Audi’s first fully electric car to be built in Germany. The Neckarsulm small-series production facility has been expanded, upgraded, and converted for its new role. The skilled craftsmanship from the previous facility has been retained and is supplemented by smart technologies. During the expansion, production planners used new virtual methods, so production of the e-tron GT was designed without physical prototypes – a first at Audi.
Large areas of the body of the all-electric Gran Turismo are constructed from ultra-high-strength steel and aluminium. To produce this material mix, a body shop was established that combines the skilled craftsmanship of the employees with automated production. It consists of an assembly line along which each body passes twice. It is constructed around ‘the two-way framer’, in which 10 robots attach the inner and outer side panels. It combines all manufacturing steps involved in joining the sides in a single system – thus making production of the Audi e-tron GT possible on the existing floorspace
The e-tron GT shares the production facility with the R8 – this integration of two technically completely different cars is unique in the Volkswagen Group. Both models are moved using the same driverless transport vehicles and an electrically powered monorail system. At one station of the line, humans and robots work side by side. A 3D printer produces customised assembly aids at the employees’ request.
The e-sound of the e-tron GT
Engineers conceived and designed a progressive electronic sound for the e-tron GT in a laboratory, inside the moving car, and in customer studies.
As with every electric car, the e-tron GT also features the statutory acoustic vehicle alerting system (AVAS), although embedded within a broader acoustic spectrum. A loudspeaker fitted in the front of the vehicle emits the AVAS sound. For customers ordering the optional sound package, a second, large loudspeaker is added in the rear.
In parallel, two loudspeakers in the interior provide an emotional sound experience. Two control units continuously remix the e-tron GT sound based on variables such as speed or accelerator position. The Audi drive select system allows drivers to set whether and how intensively they wish to experience the sound.
Do you want to hear the e-tron GT, too? Then watch the video below
