Well, Dan did ask!!
I know that these comments might ruffle a few feathers, both on these pages and with Audi UK too, but I speak as I find and unlike the original A2, which is now widely acknowledged as a car at least a decade ahead of its time, this 'design study' is woeful.
Our A2 pioneered the mass-production of aluminium bodied cars and also was a triumph of packaging - there are still very few cars around that can match the amount of interior storage space for the external dimensions of an A2. It showed that you could have a genuinely luxurious car and a small car in one and the same package, but also that you could have an economical car that handled well and had a fair bit of oompff too.
The 'new A2' is really not worthy of the name - in reality, what have the designers done over the last 6 years since the original was cut from the range? They've had plenty of time to look at the competition, generate various 'e-tron' concepts and then say "right chaps - let's get to work. Let's scrap all that e-tron nonsense, use the tried and tested package of batteries connected to motors, spice it up with a funky looking interior (which we all know will never come about) and cover it with twinkly Xmas baubles in the shape of LEDs."
There is NOTHING that is ground-breaking in this car. LED headlamps? Already an option on the A6. Rechargeable battery driven powerplant? Buy a Nissan. Carbon fibre chassis? Well, let's not get carried away, it's an aluminium chassis with extra bits of carbon and polymer stuck on in various places. Electro-translucent glass? Been around for years.
Please, if anyone from Audi is reading this, can you go back to the drawing board, get a clean sheet of paper and get to work in designing a car that will be to the late 20-teen years what the A2 was to the turn of the century. What do we want? Well, the ability to carry up to 5 people in comfort, with luggage, in a stylish (but timeless designed) package. The car should be able to run off available power sources, forseeable for the next 30-50 years (so that probably means electric drive, powered by some sort of on board generator, whether it be a diesel/biofuel, gas or hydrogen powerplant) and should be geniunely cheap to run, sustainable and fun to drive.
By all means, put some gizmos on the car (on-board broadband and such) and make it easy for the driver to see and be seen (so yes, LED headlights and marker lights).
Please get back to using technology to make progression in car design instead of playing catch up with others (Audi were late to the table with stop/start implementation, late again with recuperation and seemingly now are going to produce an electric car, just when the concensus is that the ones already on the market are white elephants). The original A2 would have been a massive success if it were not for the pricing - so please take note and don't make the same mistakes again. I also want to be able to drive from London to Manchester without having to stop for a few hours to charge the car up, so don't make a car that has to be plugged in every night.
Rant over!
Cheers,
Mike