Forget high beams -- lasers are coming

Audi has kicked off 2014 with the unveiling of an updated version of its Sport quattro concept car -- as first revealed at last year's Frankfurt motor show.

Set to underpin the German carmaker's stand at the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, the latest incarnation of the bullish-looking two-door coupe showcases distinctively styled matrix LED headlamps with new laser light technology that, Audi officials suggest, will soon begin appearing on regular production models as a high-cost option.

Already confirmed for the Audi R18 that will compete at the Le Mans 24-hour race later this year, the new headlamps use matrix LEDs and an aperture mask for low-beam mode. Newly developed laser lights are then introduced for high-beam mode, providing greater illumination and range than today's LEDs.

Audi claims the laser-light headlamps possess three times the luminosity of regular LED headlamps in high-beam mode and are capable of illuminating the road for approximately 1,640 feet.

Audi
The Audi Sport quattro concept updated for the International CES

Laser-imbued headlamps were initially previewed by BMW on its Vision Efficient Dynamics concept car and are expected to become an option when it reaches showrooms badged as the i8 in 2014.

The 700-hp gasoline-electric hybrid-powered Sport quattro concept, which will head to the Consumer Electronics Show next week in a new red paint scheme, also previews an updated three-dimensional display powered by a Tegra 30 processor from Nvidia and updated interface for Audi's MMI infotainment system.

Audi is also expected to announce an extension to its existing co-operation with Google that will see its next-generation MMI infotainment system based on a further-developed version of Google's widely used Android operating system.

By Greg Kable