It’s Audi’s goal to produce cars that are not merely luxurious and powerful, but also long-lasting. To ensure this longevity, the company created the Ingolstadt Corrosion and Aging Test (INKA) to examine the wear and tear on a car over 12 years of life. This particular test is the most rigorous of Audi’s processes, and after observing the test for 100 administrations, the team at Audi knows exactly how each car will age over more than a decade of use.
This INKA endurance test considers a car’s performance in five phases:
- The car undergoes a misting process that sprays the vehicle with salt in a climatic chamber set at 95 degrees Fahrenheit.
- The car endures the weather in a warm tropical climate—112 degrees and 100-percent humidity.
- The car experiences extreme heat (194 degrees), and it must not fade or crack on the interior or exterior.
- The car virtually visits the arctic circle, complete with rocky road conditions and -30 degree temperatures.
- Finally, the car jets through pre-prepared courses (covering over 7,000 miles) intended to present an array of potential road and weather conditions.
The INKA process began in 2002, and because of the its ability to reveal any potential problems in Audi models, the company is excited to continue to test their cars with this method.
To sit behind the wheel of a new Audi, visit indiGO Auto Group’s Audi Rancho Mirage on the Desert European Motorcars Campus.
