By Natalie White | Photos by John Tan
SINGAPORE – The new Audi Centre Singapore was unveiled at 281 Alexandra Road amidst much glamour and fanfare, representing a new beacon of progress. Officiating the opening were Guests-of-Honour Dr Chia Shi-Lu, Member of Parliament for Tanjong Pagar GRC, and Her Excellency Ms Angelika Viets, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Singapore.
On the auspicious date of 12-12-12, the traditional ribbon cutting ceremony kicked off the evening followed by a guided tour of the building for all guests. Occupying 32,903 square feet of space with eight stories aboveground and three stories underground, the Audi Centre Singapore is the tallest Audi facility in the region.
To mark this significant milestone in Audi Singapore’s history, the Audi R18 e-tron quattro was specially flown in for the event. This celebrated racecar is the first-ever diesel hybrid vehicle with regenerative technology and quattro all-wheel drive to win at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the world’s most important endurance race.
The evening also marked the Southeast Asian preview of the Audi RS4 Avant, a car that has received rave reviews by the international press. The car was accompanied by the local launch of the new Audi Q5 which went on sale on Saturday, 15 December 2012.
Celebrities joined in the festive occasion, including Michelle Chua, Chen Han Wei, Jacelyn Tay, Zhang Yao Dong, Paige Chua and Ann Kok, amongst the VIP Audi customers. The "Audi Centre" mobile application using Augmented Reality technology allowed guests to see and interact with various sections of the Audi Centre virtually as well as "race"virtually around the city of Singapore in the Audi R18 e-tron quattro.
The evening was capped off with a private performance from English singer-songwriter James Morrison. The Brit hit belted out the familiar tunes of "You Give Me Something", "I Won’t Let You Go", "Broken Strings" and more as the guests enjoyed the Audi Centre Singapore's Gala Opening into the night.
