2002 Audi A6 Quattro Avant Wagon 4-door 3.0l on 2040-cars

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2016 Audi R8 looks like a promising second chapter [w/video]

Audi shook up the supercar market when it released the original R8 road car. Now, it's hoping to do the same with the second-generation of the handsome mid-engine star. But where the original R8 was something of an analog supercar, boasting a naturally aspirated V8 and a delightful gated shifter, this new model is something much different. Gone is the popular, high-revving 4.2-liter V8 and the snickety-snack transmission, although the 5.2-liter V10 that joined the original R8 later in its life remains. In base form, it turns out 540 horsepower in the second-gen R8, while the V10 Plus model can be had with an impressive 610 ponies. That's good for a sprint to 60 of just 3.5 seconds and a top speed of 201 miles per hour in the former and 3.2 seconds and 205-mph in the latter. A seven-speed dual-clutch transmission is the sole gearbox, sending power to a revised Quattro all-wheel-drive system that's capable of shunting 100 percent of the engine's torque to the rear axle. Meanwhile, Audi has managed to shave 441 pounds by using a new Audi space frame, with more aluminum and carbon fiber than before. Weighing in at just 3,205 pounds, the R8 is slightly lighter than the new, V8-powered Ferrari 488 GTB, although it's not quite as light as its cousin, the 3,135-lb Lamborghini Huracan. And of course, we can't forget to mention the R8's new look. It's very clearly an evolution of the first-gen's handsome styling. A strong grille and canted headlights, inspired by the TT and the concepts that came before it, highlight the front end, while Audi has opted to bisect the last-gen car's side blades with a body-color section of sheet metal. In back, slim taillights, exhausts that have been integrated into the rear bumper and a central diffuser are the main styling features. Opt for the V10 Plus, and you'll get a sizable rear wing, for added downforce. Take a look at our full gallery of live images from Geneva for a closer look at the new Audi R8.

Audi shows off the Prologue Avant Concept as a plug-in hybrid

The Audi Prologue Avant Concept goes in a different direction than the Prologue coupe, in more ways than just its five-door wagon body. The coupe was first shown at the LA Auto Show with a 4.0-liter, twin-turbo V8, then went redux at CES as a hybrid with a total of 677 horsepower and 701 pound-feet of torque. The only-slightly-larger Prologue Avant sticks with the hybrid but gets the system from the Q7 E-Tron quattro, meaning a 3.0-liter, twin-turbo V6 TDI with 353 hp and a 100-kW electric motor strapped to the eight-speed transmission. Total output is 455 hp and 553 lb-ft, pure electric range is 33 miles, and 0-62 miles per hour comes in 5.1 seconds. The forward section of cabin with its screen-based Tie Fighter displays and controls comes over from the coupe, as well as the four individual seats, but the Avant lavishes attention on rear passengers in ways not possible in the two-door. They also get a screen on the pass-through center console for convenience controls, and detachable OLED screens - a la the detachable tablets in the Q7 - with which they can send information to the front occupants. As a traditional Audi avant is to a coupe relative, the Prologue Avant is all about bringing the family along on the digital highway. We'll see it at the Geneva Motor Show next week, and Audi is again talking up how the design language will migrate to production cars. It also makes noises in the press release below about near-production many of the technologies are in the concept, so it looks like there could be all sorts of Easter Eggs on the way from the Ingolstadt brand. Related Video: Sporty and elegant, versatile and connected – the Audi prologue Avant show car - New interpretation of the Avant philosophy - Groundbreaking infotainment architecture and entertainment concept - High-performance hybrid drive with 455 hp and 750 Nm (553.2 lb-ft) of torque Ingolstadt, 2015-02-25 -- A design with dynamic elegance and the latest high end technologies: The Audi prologue Avant show car with its stretched roof which the brand is presenting at the Geneva Motor Show gives a look into the future – with the new and emotion filled design language that Audi has initiated with its study in the coupe, the prologue. A glance into the future In November 2014 at the Los Angeles Motorshow, Audi presented the Audi prologue concept car, giving a look to the brand's future design language.

Highlights from the Goodwood Festival of Speed, including the McLaren P1 and a Ford Transit running the hill

The sole purpose of this post is as a time-waster, and since you shouldn't have to work to waste time, we've done it for you. In the numerous videos below you'll find cars that have lately been in the news tramping all over the grounds of Lord March's estate in Goodwood, England.
There's the McLaren P1 heading up the hill, the Jaguar Project 7, then a casually-driven Porsche 917 followed by an even-more-casually-driven Porsche 956, topped off by a Porsche 936 that is anything but casually driven. The next round is the flame-spitting Peugeot 405 T16 Pikes Peak from Climb Dance, a camera mounted on the Peugeot RCZ R after it showing you what the whole, uninterrupted run up the hill looks like. For a real head-turner, we couldn't embed it but there's Andy Reid blasting up the hill in a Ford Transit Supervan with a Cosworth 3000 V6 engine.
The modern racing contingent has Allan McNish doing the hill in the Audi R18 e-tron quattro he used to win Le Mans and Lewis Hamilton making lots of tire smoke in the Mercedes-AMG Petronas MGP-W02. For comparison, that's followed by Nick Heidfeld's record-setting run up the hill in 1999 in the McLaren MP4/14 . The classic racing contingent is headlined by 71-year-old Giacomo Agostini on an MV Agusta.