German luxury car maker, Audi, on Wednesday, launched its second generation Audi RS 5 Coupé in India priced at Rs 1.1 crore and ace cricketer, Virat Kohli graced the launch. Virat took some time out from his busy schedule to unveil the second generation Audi RS 5 Coupé in Bengaluru, the hometown of his IPL team on the 11th of April. The model powered by a 2.9-litre petrol engine is capable of accelerating from 0 to 100 km in just 3.9 seconds and it has a top speed of 250 km/h. Impressive, right? "We are not looking at volumes for the RS 5 Coupé. Audi is perceived as a young sporty brand and this model will be a main contributor to that image building," commented Mr Rahil Ansari, Head, Audi India. "The all-new Audi RS5 Coupé has the performance of a sportscar while providing the comfort of a sedan, thus appealing to enthusiasts who love driving," he added.
Virat Kohli apparently fell in love with the Audi RS5 as he unveiled the car. When asked whether he liked the car, Virat cheekily commented, "I am taking it (Audi RS Coupe) now from the dealership there is no doubt about it." "The Audi brand attributes are sporty, progressive and sophisticated and Virat Kohli embodies all these attributes perfectly. The brand with the four rings attracts achievers that are young or young at heart. We are therefore happy that Virat is our customer as well. This displays our appeal for achievers in the country," commented Ansari.
Looking all things relaxed at the occasion, Virat opened up about his love for luxury cars. "I am a big fan of luxury cars, both sedan and SUVs – and depends on really where I am going and what occasion I am attending. Usually, for everyday travel, I prefer to be sitting behind in an SUV but on other occasions, I prefer sedans more, I definitely do like luxury cars," said Virat.
Commenting on his association with Audi, Virat said, "The association has been really really good since the time it began. Audi has made me feel like I am involved in all the innovations that come through which I think is the most important thing. They have given me respect, they have given me the feeling of being involved with the brand thoroughly which I am thankful to them for. I am launching all the new cars, can’t ask for anything more. Sometimes they let me drive it back home as well without doing anything apart from that. So it’s been really cool."
When asked about his favourite weekend getaway, Virat said, "To be honest, I haven’t had many opportunities to have a weekend getaway because if I have a weekend off, I prefer to be at home and just relax. It’s not often that I get so much time that I can plan a weekend getaway. Right now the weekend getaway scenario for me is chilling at home watching TV but in an Ideal situation I think driving to maybe an outhouse that you have in your favourite car in a very nice road listening to great music would be an ideal scenario." Commenting on his favourite hero on and off the field, Virat said, "My favourite hero on the field is obviously Sachin Tendulkar. I got inspired by him and off the field – There are so many inspiring people all over the world – Although they are making a great living out of their lives and earning so much but they still think about charity and they give a major chunk to that. There are many in history who have respected that factor that you only require so much money after a certain stage in your life and it’s about helping others as well so yeah, all of them are my hero."
Take a look at what Virat had to say whilst at the launch:
Audi India had reported 2 percent increase in its total sales at 7,876 units in 2017 as against 7,720 units in the previous year. The company completed ten years of operations in India in 2017.
