Weight reduction is now a major part of the game when putting a vehicle through the development process – especially for the high-performance vehicles. The current Audi S5 coupe weighs in at a hefty 3,800 pounds and the recently unveiled 2010 Audi S5 Cabriolet weighs in even heavier at 4,300.

And while the 2010 S4 and 2010 Audi S5 Cabriolet flaunt fast acceleration and an increase in fuel-economy by replacing the heavy 4.2L V8 with a lighter 333-hp 3.0 TFSI supercharged V6, there is still much more performance and fuel-efficiency to gain for these two high-performance Audis.

According to Michael Dick, Audi’s global head of product engineering, the company is testing the next-generation S5 which weighs 880 pounds less than the current model. Dick told CARandDRIVER that the next-generation model will feature more aluminum, magnesium and high-strength steel to help cut excess weight. That will applied to future Audi models including the next-generation Audi A6 and the use of those materials will increase significantly in the A4, A5, S4 and S5 in the 2014 model years.

Great – so we’ll see a slight jump in fuel-economy once again. Not exactly. The jump is expected to be quite significant since Audi is planning to replace the supercharged 3.0L V6 in the 2010 S4 and S5 with a lighter 4-cylinder turbocharged engine. That will help fuel-economy come in at the mid to high 20 mpg range. So, does that mean we’ll be giving up a faster S5 for the sake of higher miles-per-gallon?

Dick says the 3,000 pound next-generation S5 “laps Germany’s famed Nurburgring Nordschleife eight seconds faster than the current S5.”

- By: The Daily Auto Editor

Source: CARandDRIVER

Images of the new Audi A5 Cabriolet / Convertible have been leaked over the internet prior to the car’s official announcement later this week. From the images you can see that Audi is forgoing the motorized hard-tops adopted by rivals such as the BMW 3-Series Convertible, Lexus IS Convertible and the Infiniti G37 Convertible.

Audi’s soft-top A5 and S5 Cabriolets will be offered with the same engine choices as their coupe siblings. The U.S. should get an A5 Cabriolet powered by the 265-hp 3.2L V6 FSI while the S5 Cabriolet should get its 354-hp 4.2L V8 unless Audi decides to drop it for a supercharged V6 from the 2010 Audi S4.

We’ll bring you more details later this week.

Click through for more photos.

Audi A5 Cabriolet Leaked Images:

Source: hoymotor (via autoblog.nl)

Can’t say we didn’t see it coming. According to an Audi source that spoke with InsideLine, the next Audi S5 will carry a V6 instead of a V8 following in the footsteps of the recently launched 2010 Audi S4. Audi will swap the current 354-hp 4.2L V8 for the same supercharged 3.0 TFSI V6 producing 333-hp from the S4.

According to an Audi spokesperson the new engine gets nearly the same horsepower and more torque than the gas-guzzling V8. It will also improve fuel-efficiency of the S5 by 30 percent.

The source also said that the next Audi S6 will drop its V10 for a twin-turbocharged of the 4.2L V8 previously used in the S4 and S5. The V10 will be left to the high-performance ‘RS’ lineup and the V10 R8 due out next year.

InsideLine says that the supercharged V6 from the 2010 S4 may even find its way into the Audi R4, a baby version of the R8 currently in the works.

Source: InsideLine

Audi is expected to give us some official word on the upcoming RS version of its ‘5′ range at the 2009 Geneva Motor Show. However, the German automaker recently invited out a couple of press folks at the Ricardo Tormo circuit in Valencia to test drive an ‘EVO’ model of the S5.

The Audi S5 is powered by a 4.2 liter V8 engine producing 354-hp. But this experimental ‘EVO’ S5 was modified to produce a total of 420-hp. The engine was mated to Audi’s new S-Tronic dual-clutch transmission.

Now you might think this is probably just a one-off model but according to InfoMotori, Audi had four models on hand. We’re led to believe that Audi is just testing the waters for a model that will fit between the 354-hp S5 and the upcoming 450-hp RS5 (also rumored to get A 5.2 liter V10 engine that produces 500 horsepower in the Gallardo).

Source: InfoMotori (via MotorAuthority)