At last week’s tony Design Miami reveal of the 2011 A8 luxury cruiser, we were able to corner Johan de Nysschen, Audi’s executive vice president in North America, and ask him for some tasty tibits on the brand’s upcoming products, including the A8’s sexier derivative, the A7.

In addition to giving us the first official confirmation of the A7’s existence, de Nysschen revealed that the four-door coupe model will slot in “a little bit below” the new A8 in terms of pricing, just as we expected. Of course, it’s worth noting that the 2011 A8 faces a price bump due to substantial increases in content and technology, so when the A7 finally comes to the States, the average model is likely to sticker at around $82,000-$83,000, which de Nysschen says is about the price for a typically equipped 2010 A8 (pricing starts at $74,550 plus delivery).

Based on Audi’s new longitudinal modular platform technology, the A7 will be clearly related to the A8 (and the A6 replacement that will follow it), and de Nysschen says that the 2009 Detroit Auto Show Sportback concept car serves as a “very reliable indicator” of what the production model will look like. Judging by recent spy shots from our friends at KGP, that very much appears to be the case. While parts commonality will be “substantial,” de Nysschen says that the A7 will not use the full aluminum spaceframe design of the A8, although it will have aluminum elements.

As expected, the A8 will launch Stateside in both standard and long-wheelbase formats, with the latter predicted to make up the lion’s share of the volume (the A8L presently accounts for about 80 percent of the model’s sales).

We asked De Nysschen about how the two models will interact in the full-size luxury sedan segment, and he noted that:

“This top end segment is characterized by more conservative people, and we need to clearly take lower levels of risk with a flagship model [the A8]. But we recognize too that there is a sizable enough cluster of customers in that same segment who are ready for a more avant-garde design [the A7]. So we will essentially be positioning two cars into the same segment, which means that independently, the volume each attains is not that significant, but when you put them together, it will mean that our share of that segment will grow quite dramatically.”

All-in De Nysschen thinks that the A8 will account for about 4,000 to 5,000 sales per year in the U.S., and the less costly A7 could clear 7,000-8,000 additional units.

The intrepid spy shooters at KGP have caught the 2011 Audi A7 uncovered in a testing lab in Germany ahead of its official reveal next year, and the sleek, low-slung saloon/coupe hasn’t lost much of its flavor in the transition from showcar to production.

Although the shots don’t give us a clear view of the front fascia, the headlamps and front clip have obviously been toned down from its conceptual predecessor shown earlier this year the Detroit Auto Show. However, its sloping roofline and well-integrated hatch would appear to prove that at least one automaker can create a five-door hatch that’s simultaneously attractive and functional.

If our tea leaf-reading is accurate, we’d expect to see the A7 make its production debut either in Detroit this January or at the Geneva Motor Show in March. Powertrain options should include everything from Audi’s turbocharged 2.0-liter inline four to the S4’s supercharged six, along with a V8 option further down the line. And if the BMW 5 Series GranTurismo proves to be a hit in the States, we won’t be at all surprised if Audi follows suit and by offering the A7 in North America.

While it may not be beautiful, there’s no denying the R8’s curb appeal. Subtler, but far sexier, are the understated lines of the A5/S5 — no small feat to pull off with a three-box coupe. And while the Q7 looks like some sort of prehistoric giant sloth, we’re still with P.V. 100%.

So, is this the new A8? Hard to say. The C-pillar fits the part but the rear glass really is radically sloped. And that trippy tape job really does mask the mule’s size. Could it be the new A6? Again, yes, sure, but… There’s almost something too daring about the shape to be such a meat and/or potatoes ride. How about this — it might be the long-rumored A7. You know, the swoopy “four-door coupe” set to compete against cars like the Mercedes-Benz CLS. That makes much more sense. Take a long look at the rear glass and thick C-pillars in this spy shot. We thinks we may be on to something. Especially if you stare long and hard at the tail lights — the outer ones appear real and taped off, while the inner lights appear to be fake pieces of reflective tape. A design that conforms to the blurry A7 shots we’ve seen.

Foreshadowing the production version of the A7 sports sedan that’s expected to make its arrival in late 2010 or early 2011, the Sportback Concept was unveiled at 2009 North American International Automobile Show. The large, five-door sport saloon with its coupe-like silhouette is slightly larger than the A6 measuring at 4.95 m long (16.24 ft), 1.93 m wide (6.33 ft) but only 1.40 m high (4.59 ft).

Audi says the Sportback Concept not only offers a glimpse at the Audi’s future design vocabulary, but it also signals the company’s determination not to limit fastback/ hatchback Sportback versions to the compact segment.

The Sportback’s exterior design is outright sexy with its low-slung, coupe-like roofline and the Lamborghini Estoque-inspired buttocks - though Audi unimaginatively tries to convince us that the tail of the show car is “evidently related to the A5 Coupe”. Inside, the Sportback gets a four-seat layout and a wide center console that stretches from the dashboard to the back. Passengers will be happy to know that the Sportback’s trunk has a volume of 500 liters (17.66 cubic feet).

Not surprisingly, Audi equipped the show car with a 3.0-liter V6 TDI clean diesel engine. As in the U.S. version of the Q7 3.0 TDI, the V6 also produces 165 kW (225 hp) and 550 Nm (405.66 lb-ft) of torque in the Sportback concept. Power is transferred to the wheels via Audi’s new 7-speed tiptronic transmission.

Weighing in at 1,800 kilograms (3,968.32 lb) and with a drag coefficient of 0.30, the coupe-like fastback saloon accelerates from 0 – 100 km/h (62mph) in less than seven seconds and reach a top speed of 245 km/h (152mph). According to Audi, the Sportback concept’s average fuel economy according to the European ECE standard is 5.9 liters of diesel per 100 kilometers (39.87 US mpg), and its CO2 emissions no more than 156 g/km (251.06 g/mile).