* New record set: from Africa through Europe to Asia in just 72 hours
* Extreme driver Gerhard Plattner drives Audi A3 1.9 TDI e 4,949 kilometers (3,075.17 miles) from Rabat to Istanbul
Gerhard Plattner has achieved yet another astounding feat. This record-breaker and his co-pilot Franz Doppler drove an Audi A3 1.9 TDI e from Rabat, Morocco clear across Europe into the Asian side of Istanbul, Turkey in just 72 hours. Plattner and Doppler became the only people to drive on three continents in a mere three days.
Ingolstadt / Istanbul – Just in time after driving 4,949 kilometers (3,075.17 miles)! Precisely 72 hours after Gerhard Plattner and Franz Doppler had departed Rabat, Morocco, they crossed the finish line — the Bosporus — in Istanbul, Turkey last Thursday. These two drivers thus adhered to the three-day deadline and succeeded in their record-setting journey on three continents.
Plattner and Doppler traversed 13 countries en route from Africa to Asia. After beginning their quest in the Moroccan capital on June 8, the duo took a high-speed ferry to Europe. Plattner and Doppler then proceeded along the Mediterranean coast of Spain, France, and Italy. These record-setters piloted the A3 over the Alps and stopped briefly at the Munich Airport Audi Forum before driving straight through the Balkans — and onto the finish line on the Asian side of Istanbul.
With its output of 77 kW (105 bhp), the Audi A3 1.9 TDI e once again exhibited its dependability and efficiency during this extreme stress test. Whether sand drifts in the Moroccan desert, meter-high snowbanks on the Gotthard Pass or outside temperatures of 38 degrees Celsius (100.40 degrees Fahrenheit) in Bulgaria: this sporty premium compact delivered optimum propulsion under all conditions.
