Alright, let’s talk about that Audi superbike thing. I remember seeing pictures of it floating around a while back. Looked absolutely wild, like something out of a sci-fi movie, not something you’d actually see on the road.
First Impressions
My first thought was, “Wow, Audi’s making bikes now? And they look like that?” It had this super aggressive design, carbon fiber everywhere, integrated lights, looked really high-tech. They were calling it an e-bike, but it seemed way beyond the usual electric assist bikes I’d seen. Talked about crazy performance modes, even a wheelie mode. Sounded nuts.
The Hunt Begins
So, naturally, I got curious. Like, really curious. I started digging online, trying to find out more. Where could you buy one? How much was it? When was it coming out? You know, the usual questions. I spent a good few evenings searching forums, reading articles, watching the few promo videos that existed.
- Checked Audi’s official sites.
- Scoured bike enthusiast forums.
- Looked for reviews or test rides.
Pretty quickly, I started hitting dead ends. The information was all kind of vague, mostly from around 2012 or 2013 when they first showed it off at some big car show, Wörthersee I think it was called. There wasn’t any info about dealerships stocking it or customers actually owning one.
Realization Dawns
Then it clicked. This wasn’t really a bike Audi was planning to sell millions of. It seemed more like a concept piece, a technology demonstrator. Like those concept cars they show off – looks cool, has cool tech, but you can’t just walk into a showroom and buy it. That was a bit of a letdown, honestly. I’d gotten myself kind of hyped up thinking this was the next big thing in cycling hitting the streets.
I talked to a few buddies who are really into bikes, asked them if they knew anything more. Same story. They’d seen the pictures, thought it looked cool, but knew it was basically a one-off or maybe a very limited prototype run. Not something a regular person could ever get their hands on.
Moving On
So, the whole Audi superbike adventure kind of fizzled out. It was an interesting idea, for sure. Pushed the boundaries of what an e-bike could look like and maybe do. But in practice? It wasn’t really a practical thing for me, or anyone else really, to pursue. It was more about the idea of it.
It did get me looking more seriously into other high-performance e-bikes though. Stuff that was actually available. Found some pretty amazing machines out there from companies that specialize in bikes. In the end, you gotta ride what you can actually get, right? That Audi thing remains a cool “what if” story, a piece of design history maybe, but not something that ever made it into my garage, or likely anyone else’s.
