Audi team trains German cars to speak American

DETROIT — In the fourth quarter, Audi will deliver redesigned A6 and A8 sedans to its 303 U.S. dealerships. But before arriving in showrooms, hand-built early versions of the high-end cars will get a painstaking examination from a team of specialists in the U.S.

The mission: Ensure those finely tuned German machines are retuned for American consumers.

Every foreign automaker selling vehicles in the U.S. must homologate vehicles to meet local regulations — accommodating, for example, the U.S. red taillight vs. Europe’s amber standard. But Audi and others have learned that consumer expectations in America differ widely from those in the rest of the world. And if a brand wants to…