At that time, Audi Sport boss Wolfgang Ullrich started to evaluate the options of joining.

With the upcoming American Le Mans Series also providing a stage for the US-market, Audi announced plans in 1998 to compete in 1999, with the R8R and powered by a 550 hp (410 kW) V8 turbo. As it was considered the better choice for a whole race due to less weight and wider tires, Audi ordered an open top roadster from Dallara, to be developed and run by Joest Racing.

Yet, during the fall of 1998, after the necessity of GT1 homologation was dropped in favour of LM-GTP prototypes, regarding the speed and success of these closed GT coupés like the Porsche 911 GT1, Mercedes-Benz CLK-GTR, and the Toyota GT-One, Audi also ordered their newly acquired Norfolk based RTN (Racing Technology Norfolk, led by Tony Southgate) to build a closed-cockpit car using the same drivetrain.

Audi R8R (open top LMP) and Audi R8C (closed top LMGTP) used in 1999. It is one of the most successful sports cars ever (alongside such greats as the Porsche 956/962) having won the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, and 2005 (five of the seven years it competed). A streak of six straight Le Mans victories was broken-up only by the Bentley Speed 8 (powered by the same V8 twin-turbo engine) in 2003, when the R8 finished 3rd.

Bavarian tuner Motoren Technic Mayer, best known for its high-performance Audi models, has turned its attention on the German firm’s new 3.0-liter supercharged V6 engine. On the Audi S4 sedan and Avant models, MTM’s treatment lifts output from 333HP and 440Nm (324.53 lb-ft) to 430HP and 515Nm (379.8 lb-ft) of torque which is even more than the previous generation RS4 that churned out 420 horsepower and 430Nm of torque.

A new photograph of the Audi A5 Sportback has hit the web fully revealing the five-door coupe’s profile. The styling comes to no surprise as Sportback follows in the lines of the A5 Coupe with the wavy belt line and the low roofline, but it does feature a distinct C-pillar design with a more dramatic kink at the back. Despite its sportier looks, Audi promises ‘comparable headroom and legroom’ with the A4 sedan.

Hopefully our second batch of photos on the Audi A5 Sportback won’t turn out to be another photoshop job as was the case with the picture of the five-door coupe we showed you earlier today. According to our reader Florent who sent us these images, the article on the A5 Sportback was scanned from the latest issue of French Car magazine L’Auto Journal (allegedly No781). There’s a good chance that the pics are official since Audi said it will reveal a new model during this Thursday’s 100th anniversary.

The wait is finally over for the all-new A5 Sportback as Audi unleashed a full photo gallery of its high-anticipated five-door coupe which will be formally introduced this fall at the Frankfurt Auto Show. The German firm claims that new member of the A5 family “combines the best of various vehicle genres such as the emotion and elegance of a coupe, the comfort of a sedan and the practicality of a station wagon.” Of course most will see a five-door, liftback version of the A5 Coupe with a sleek roofline, but still, we must admit that our first reaction on the Sportback’s styling is positive.

Here’s the first video of the all-new Audi A5 Sportback that joins the ever-expanding cast of the so-called four-door coupes or if you prefer, sport sedans with coupe-like styling details such as slick rooflines and frameless doors. Scheduled to arrive in European showrooms in September, the latest addition in Audi’s A4 - A5 family will offer buyers an initial choice of six engines - three diesel and three gasoline, ranging from 170HP to 265HP. At least for now, Audi says that the A5 Sportback won’t be coming to the U.S. market.

In a recent interview with Belgian daily newspaper Le Soir, Alfons Dintner, head of Audi’s Brussels plant, confirmed that the factory will start series production of the new Audi A1 mini in October. Dinter said that the German automaker will close the plant in August for five weeks in order to prepare for production of the A1 which will begin to arrive at Audi’s European showrooms in the beginning of 2010.

The Audi TT RS 2.5 TSI may only have just been released, but tuners have already began work on the most potent version of the German sports car that is powered by a 2.5-liter turbocharged five-cylinder engine delivering 340HP and 450Nm of torque. One of the first kits available for the TT RS comes from MCCHIP that has retuned the 2.5 TSI’s ECU for a total output of 380HP and 550Nm of torque.

Hidden somewhere in the press material for Audi’s 100th anniversary were two teaser photos of the next generation A8 sedan that is scheduled to be unveiled after the Frankfurt Auto Show, sometime towards the end of November. The first shot shows the 2010 A8 covered in a black sheet, outlining the limousine’s body and revealing the LED day time lights as well as the shape of the grille while the other picture is a teaser sketch of the sedan’s front-end.