Audi - Upgrade with a click

Not so long ago, if you wanted to improve your car’s lights to cope better with the dark winter nights, you might have thought about going to a garage and having some additional rally-style spot lamps fitted. But imagine if you could upgrade your car’s headlamps in just a few minutes without going anywhere near a garage – or, indeed, without leaving the comfort of your car seat or living-room sofa.

It sounds impossible, but soon owners of Audi’s new all-electric e-tron models will be able to do just that, thanks to Audi’s new Functions on Demand technology. This innovation was first shown at the CES (Consumer Electronics Show) in Las Vegas just last year, and now it is set to be a production reality. Functions on Demand will enable customers to add features to their car months or even years after they’ve left the showroom.

And you don’t have to commit to buying the upgrade forever. Instead, you can choose the option that suits you – be it for a month, six months, two years, three years, four years, or indeed for the lifetime of the car. And, in the future, this offering will be rolled out on other Audi models.

So how does it work? Well, when you buy a Functions on Demand enabled vehicle, specific features that come as standard on higher trim levels are physically fitted to it but are not yet ‘live.’ These include Audi’s Matrix LED Light Package, Park Assist and Light Function Package.

‘The beauty of Functions on Demand is that it enables customers to try features out with a trial for a period of one month at a nominal cost,’ explains Audi UK Commercial Manager Jack Whittle. ‘Customers can order functional upgrades by using the myAudi app on their smartphone, and shortly afterwards the function will be live and activated on the car.’

If customers choose to activate the Matrix LED lighting package, for example, their e-tron will be upgraded from powerful LED headlamps to even more advanced Matrix LED headlights. Once the Matrix technology is made ‘live’, there is no need to switch from full to dipped-beam manually, as the system automatically does that for you. The high-beam unit consists of 25 individual segments. These small light-emitting diodes are activated and deactivated or dimmed individually according to road and traffic conditions, and respond in the blink of an eye to information fed from a camera, the navigation system and other sensors. Dynamic indicators, which ‘sweep’ in the direction indicated, are also part of the package.

Audi’s Park Assist is also available in Functions on Demand. This technology eliminates the stress from parking in tight spots by taking full control of the steering. All you have to do is operate the brakes and accelerator, and change gear.

Park Assist is also a very good example of where the flexibility offered by Functions on Demand will come into its own. For instance, if you spend most of your time in the countryside, but you need to take your Audi to the city for a short trip, you could subscribe to Park Assist for just one month, to help with the demands of parking in a busy built-up area.

‘Customers are welcome to a month’s trial for each Functions on Demand option available on their car,’ says Whittle. ‘This enables them to experience the item and see how it improves their vehicle and their ownership experience before deciding if they wish to purchase an option for a longer period. The key to Functions on Demand is not just the near-instant manner in which they can be activated, but also the flexibility they give customers to try before they buy.’