Audi will present a new concept car at this week’s 2014 Los Angeles Auto Show to showcase a new design language crafted by Marc Lichte, who took over the design reins at the German automaker late last year. The concept was initially thought to be in the form of a grand four-door coupe, but some teaser sketches revealed over the weekend suggests that it may have just two doors.

The teaser sketches were published by Auto Bild, which also reports that Audi has picked the Prologue name for its new concept. The name is certainly apt considering the concept previews Audi’s new design language, but there might be more to the story.

Audi has long been rumored to be considering a new flagship model positioned above the A8, the alleged A9, so could the Prologue also be a preview of this flagship, a potential Mercedes-Benz S-Class-rivaling A9 coupe? We certainly hope so as the clean lines and dynamic proportions of the concept are just begging to be transferred over to a production model.

Three key vehicles have influenced the design of the Prologue, and thus Lichte’s vision for future Audis: the Audi 90 quattro IMSA GTO race car from 1989 as well as the original A8 and TT. Previously describing the new design language, Lichte said the focus has been on sportiness and emotion. There will also be a more technical look to reflect the advanced engineering that underpins Audi’s vehicles, especially when it comes to quattro all-wheel-drive technology.

We’ll see the new look first applied to the next-generation Audi A8, which recently started public road trials in test mule form and is expected to debut in 2016. The platform underpinning the new A8, a stretched version of the flexible MLB Evo, is also the basis of the Prologue, which stretches almost 17 feet in length.

Stay tuned for the full reveal in the lead up to the 2014 Los Angeles Auto Show, press days for which run November 18-20.

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