There’s no doubt Audi fans will LOVE the A1 – but then again they love pretty much anything Audi releases. The trick will be to tackle a market for small car nuts, who like their vehicles simple, easy to drive & maintain. Audi has not gone over the top with this redesign, but did retain some of the more noticeable, flashier benchmarks, such as their spaceship-esque headlights, Audi grill and rims.

But the rear end of A1 needed an all together new look – Audi has built wagons before, but a two-door hatchback? Treading on new ground. The slight bump on the A1′s back gives the vehicle a small “shelf” which adds ample trunk space for a ride that technically doesn’t have a real trunk, just what they call a storage space.

Audi is giving birth to the new model with four 4-cylinder engines: two TDI and two TFSI gasoline power plants, producing between 86 and 122 hp. All engines substitute turbocharging for displacement and draw their fuel through direct injection units. A1 impresses environmentalists with a MPG rating between 43.56-61.90 US, and all of the engines come equipped with a recuperation system, allowing them to recover energy during braking.

The interior is “spacious and airy.” The instrument panel “is suggestive of an airplane wing; its four round air nozzles are reminiscent of the turbines of a jet.” This is where Audi also retains some of their fancier design theories – when you site in A1, even if it’s smaller then the A6, you know what brand of car it is.

Starting price for an A1 will begin around $16,000.00 EUR / $21,766.25 USD. Keep an eye out for the A1 on US lots hopefully next year.

This clip not only humanizes the experience of building an automobile – it turns such a process into creating a work of art. Ask any Audi Driver – they’ll tell you each car is a masterpiece. Jürgen gracefully sketches out the future A1 prototype – comparing its look to a sprinter at the ready-stance, about to take off.

“Ready to take off” but not actually going anywhere is accurate when we read hypothesis about what A1′s undercarriage will contain: engines expected to power the new compact include, on the petrol/gasoline side, a 1.2 liter with 86 hp, a 122 hp 1.4 liter, and a turbo 1.4 liter with 170 hp. Diesel offerings are likely also taken from VW’s stable of powerplants, such as the 1.6 liter with 90 hp and the 2.0 liter TDI with 140 hp.

Audi A1: The countdown starts today

The car is still a secret, yet Stefan Sielaff, Head of Design at AUDI AG, is already talking about the future smallest model in the Audi family. “The new A1 has Audi design in its genes. Like all Audi models, the ratio of greenhouse to body is between 1:3 and 2:3. The front overhang is short, but the wheel wells are pronounced, giving the A1 a wide road stance.”

The Audi design team has also come up with something special for the C-pillar. The coupé-like silhouette of the A1 is clearly different from that of the A3. “Audi is renowned for taking a lot of features of its showcars into series production. The roof arch is a unique characteristic of the Tokyo showcar; there is a certain dynamism in the flow of the A- and C-pillars. An important detail for customization; that much I can tell you,” said Sielaff. There will be many ways to customize the A1 to your personal ideas, especially in the interior.

The single-frame grille – a central Audi design feature – will identify the A1 as an Audi. But there’s a surprise in store. “We’ll do something here, maybe with the corners and the width of the grille,” says Sielaff. This will affect the headlights. But more on that in January 2010.

Photos by S.B. Medien – The super-secretive Audi A1 was caught on the test track in Germany last week, sporting a BMW-Style disguise. Audi’s A1 Steaksauce concept appears to have a longer wheelbase than its chief rivals. An Audi executive was recently quoted stating several body variants were possible, but here we see an obvious 3-or-5 door coupe set up. Excitement!

Engines would include a 1.8-litre TSI, some diesel units as well as hybrid or full-on electric. Drive would be placed mainly on the front wheels but a possible S1 might take a leaf from bigger S cars and use quattro AWD. Audi is not yet at a stage where customers in the US are prepared to part with premium cash for an ultra-compact model. Therefore the A1 will not be launched for this market, not until such time as public attitudes at least improve.

Good find by WorldCarFans!