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Witness the Prologue to Audi's design future [w/videos]

Audi went Hollywood for its debut of the forward-looking Prologue concept car last night, pulling the silks back at a sprawling LA manse in the hills. The cost-no-object unveiling of the car, as well as its prominent positioning at this year's LA Auto Show, speaks to the importance with which the company views the styling you see here.
Prof. Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg, maharishi of development for the three-rings brand, made two important announcements at the presentation: reiterating publicly his endorsement of new styling chief Marc Lichte, and telling us that Prologue design will be found on upcoming production versions of the A6, A7 and A8.
Take a close look at that imposing face on the Prologue - an amped up revision of the single-frame shield grille that has appeared on new models like the TT already - and get used to it. Lichte called out the grille as the new face of the brand, so we fully expect its deployment across the range as the 2016 models roll out.

The 2017 Acura NSX will cost $156,000

Back in October, when our Editor-in-Chief Mike Austin drove the 2017 Acura NSX for the first time in the Bay Area and at Sonoma Raceway, we guessed that the hybrid supercar would start at around the $170,000 price point. We weren't that far off – it starts at $156,000, and tops out around $205,000. But now that we have a solid sense of what Acura thinks this car is worth, and we know what they benchmarked the NSX against, we can compare apples to apples. Let's be clear: we like this car. Austin described it as "makes you giggle" fast, everyday-comfortable, and chock full of impressive party tricks like seamless shifting – with only a few foibles, like numb steering, to spoil the illusion of perfection. Back to the benchmarked cars. Acura says the NSX will compete with the Audi R8, and was developed to compete with the now-superseded 458 Italia. Let's start with the 2017 R8 V10 Plus – pricing hasn't been released, and a direct Euro-to-USD conversion isn't the whole story, but it starts at the equivalent of $179,000 in Europe. For that, the R8 V10 Plus provides 610 horsepower, a seven-speed DCT, and a 3.2-second sprint to 60 mph. The 458's successor, the 488 GTB, should be more expensive than the $243,000 the old model started at, and provides 661 hp, a seven-speed dual-clutch, and a 0-60 time of around three seconds (official numbers haven't been released for acceleration). For less money than either of these cars, the NSX delivers ... less. Total system output is 573 hp. It has a slight edge in gear count, at nine speeds, and should beat the R8 to 60 mph. But there's no V10, let alone Ferrari's feral turbocharged V8. It'll be up to buyers to determine if the compromises involved are worth a few thousand dollars in savings, if no options are selected. It should also be noted that Acura describes this as its first "built-to-order" vehicle, but the limited external color options and interior schemes don't appear to be much different than the extent to which you can customize an Accord. The configurator goes live on February 25th, if you want to see for yourself. Lastly, in what now seems to be a necessary part of a new high-end car launch, Acura will auction off VIN 001, the first production NSX, at Barrett-Jackson in January. All proceeds from that auction will benefit two charities: the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation and Camp Southern Ground. Related Video: Acura Shares Details of Next-Generation Acura NSX Sales Plan - 2017 Acura NSX U.S.

Audi S1 nearly ready to rocket euros out of your pocket

Audi was out testing its upcoming S1 on the streets of Germany when our trusty spy photographers snapped the new, all-wheel-drive hot hatch that's set to succeed the limited-edition A1 Quattro.
Unlike the A1 Quattro, the S1 should sport a much less aggressive look overall. As shown in the spy shots, its wheel wells lack the meaty flairs of its predecessor while its rear wing is much more subdued. The wheels are more in line with what we expect from Audi's S models and its higher ride height is more conducive to common things like steep driveways and speed bumps that the 333-unit A1 Quattro might not encounter.
According to our spies, the S1 should hit the European market with anywhere from 220 to 250 horsepower, making it considerably more potent than competitors like the Ford Fiesta ST or Polo GTI from its parent company, Volkswagen (although it'll likely arrive at a considerably higher price than either of those pocket rockets). On the high end, that's roughly equal to the 252 ponies generated by the 2.0-liter, turbocharged four in the A1 Quattro