Audi A7 Test Mule Spied

Seen here during road testing in Ingolstadt, the city that plays home to Audi HQ, this Audi A7 mule has been buried under the body of the A6.  We can see some elongating done at the rear wheel wells.  The interior looks different from the A6 as well, with the navigation system integrated in between the air vents.

Knocking down the recently-facelifted Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class will be no easy task for Audi.  Many say the CLS has shown that there is a demand for customers who want a coupe, but with four doors instead of two.  The executive sedan, basically a stretched E-Class, will soon be met by heavy competition from the Aston Martin Rapide, Jaguar XF, Peugeot 608, and Porsce Panamera.  Even BMW is jumping into the fray with the LC5, a stretched version of the 6-series.

Amongst this field, the proposed Audi A7 will try to play King of the Hill when it comes out at the Frankfurt Auto Show in 2009.  Engine choices will reportedly include 3.0 and 4.2 liter petrol machines, a 2.7 liter TDi, and a 4.2 liter diesel V8.