Abt Sportsline is a motor racing and auto tuning company based in Kempten im Allgäu, Germany. ABT mainly deals with Audi and the related primary Volkswagen Group brands—Volkswagen, Škoda, and SEAT—modifying them by using sports-type suspensions, engine power upgrades, lightweight wheels, aerodynamic components and more. It has been active in DTM for more than a decade. After the death of their father Johann in 2003, the company with 170 employees in their headquarters in Kempten was run by the brothers Hans-Jürgen Abt and Christian Abt. Since 2011, Hans-Jürgen Abt has run the company. Starting in 2014, they run a team under the Audi Sport banner in the FIA Formula E Championship for drivers Lucas di Grassi and Daniel Abt. At the 2014 Beijing ePrix, di Grassi became the first driver to win an open-wheel motorsport race in an all-electric car. Ultimately, the team finished third in the first teams' championship.
History
Johann Abt, who continued a horseshoeing tradition of his family with motor cars, was a motorcycling and hillclimbing racer for the Abarthfactory team until 1970. He is the father of Hans-Jürgen Abt and Christian Abt. He later entered cars with his own team, winning the "Trophée de l'Avenir" and many other series. Johann Abt's father founded the first Abt company in 1896. In 1991 Abt Sportsline GmbH was founded following "Auto-Abt". The headquarters moved to Daimlerstrasse in Kempten-Leubas and first offered about of space. In October 2002 an extension building was opened offering about extra of work space. Since November 2013 there is a third building giving the Abt Motorsports Department a new home. In summer of 2011 Abt celebrated their 115th anniversary since the first formation of the company in 1896. About 170 employees are working in the company's headquarters in Kempten, Germany, the products are sold in more than 50 countries worldwide. Since 2011 the Abt Lifestyle GmbH, run by Daniel Abt, organizes events for private or business customers.
Motorsport
After participating in a motorcycle race the company's founder Johann Abt started his racing career and the motorsports career of the company in general. Today Abt Sportsline is one of the most successful motorsports teams and has won several championships in the most important German racing series, like the Super Touring Car Cup, the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters and the ADAC GT Masters. Since 2004 Abt Sportsline is one of the official factory teams of Audi under the name of Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline. The most successful year in motorsports for Abt Sportsline was 2009, receiving honors in three racing series at once: the DTM with Timo Scheider, the ADAC GT Masters with Christian Abt and the ADAC Formel Masters with Daniel Abt. In 2013, Daniel Abt was active in the GP2 Series and – beginning in September 2014 – he joined Lucas di Grassi as the second driver in the FIA Formula E Championship, where Abt participates.
Aftermarket
Abt has taken much of their racing knowledge and adapted it for the street, making the company a successful tuner for the full Volkswagen Group line of products. Abt Sportsline has announced in 2015 that they are going to introduce their new tuning program for the European Volkswagen Passat at the Geneva Motor Show. While hosting the new Passat, their goal is to showcase a more aggressive kit that includes a front lip spoiler, revised side skirts, a tailgate-mounted spoiler, Abt-branded floor mats, 20- or 21-inch alloy wheels with Continental "sport-type" tires, optional mirror caps, sport springs and sports exhaust system, and a body kit that is more aerodynamic than the standard model. Aesthetics aside, changes in the Passat's performance include limited yet different 2.0-liter TDI four-cylinder engine with the capacity to be tuned to produce – an increase of over the previous model.
Notable cars
AS4-R – A highly modified B7 A4 Avant, the ASR-R makes use of the bi-turbo 2.7L V6 to produce at 6800 rpm, and of torque at 3300 rpm. Modified Luxury & Exotics magazine called the AS4-R, "a grocery getter that delivers," and said it, "handles like a toy..."
TT-R – A supercharged second generation V6 Audi TT.
R8-R – Not yet released Abt's R8 will feature a supercharger mated to Audi's 4.2L V8 for a total horsepower output of.
R8 GT R – A highly modified version of the Audi R8 V10 turning it into what Abt Sportsline calls a "motorsport champion for the road." The Abt R8 GT R features a tuned version of the 5.2-liter V10 engine, boosting the power from to. Many new exterior parts are made from carbon fiber, dropping the car's weight by. The interior features many modifications to make it more like a race car, including racing seats, a fire extinguisher, a 4-point seat belt, a rollover bar, and new steering wheel. Various other modifications make this a high performance road-legal race car.
Racing Results
Formula E
;Notes:
– In the inaugural season, all teams were supplied with a spec powertrain by McLaren.
† – Driver did not finish the race, but was classified as he completed over 90% of the race distance.
