Electric Dreams Helps Audi Canada Reinvent The Test-Drive

Audi Canada Reinvents The Test-Drive With World’s First iPad Controlled Slot Car Race

Last year we we were involved in a project that pushes out the boundaries of what can be done with slot car racing. It mated up a Slot Mods custom-built track with advanced computer technology to create a mobile interactive exhibit that allows members of the public to drive a slot car controlled by an IPad. The project, commissioned by Audi, was created as a promotion for the introduction of a new Audi car. It is being used at car shows and other public events as a part of Audi’s North American marketing effort.

The company putting the project together used a 3-D printing process to make the bodies for the slot cars from CAD data of the actual car. They designed a control module for the cars that incorporates a tiny forward-facing TV camera so the driver of the car can drive it via the Image on the IPad screen, just as if he or she were sitting in the car. But they needed a running chassis for the bodies and control modules to make complete cars. For that they called the Electric Dream Team.

We worked with them to identify a chassis that could be purchased as an assembled running unit and could be adjusted to fit the car bodies. It had to be suitable for extensive use without excessive maintenance and provide the necessary performance level. It also needed to come with wheels that looked something like the wheels on the actual car being modeled and tires that worked well with the Slot Mods track surface. And, on top of that, they wanted the chassis to be all-wheel drive, as the full-sized car is. We finally selected an MSC rally car chassis that came complete and ready to run but without a body. We supplied a substantial quantity of the chassis which then had the control modules installed and the bodies mounted at the customer’s facility in the Toronto, Canada, area. Throughout, we provided technical information and advice as needed.

The Audi quattro® Experience

Painting Coconuts – The Audi quattro® Experience

Go behind the scenes of the Audi quattro® Experience – a one-of-a-kind interactive installation that put participants in the driver’s seat of a custom-made 1:32 scale Audi A4 to test their on-track skills using the world’s first iPad enabled slot car controller.

Captured through the eyes of track maker David Beattie of Slot Mods USA, the film offers a unique look into his personal story, passion for the art of custom track design and the sport of slot car racing. It also delves into the process and challenges his team faced to execute a project with so many innovative features.