2018 Audi A4 on 2040-cars

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Lexus gets top brand marks from Consumer Reports; Ford, Jeep hit hard

Consumer Reports has released its 2014 Car Brand Report Cards, with Lexus again reigning at the top and doing so with the same industry-topping score of 79 that it registered in last year's Report Cards. This year, the institute credited its lineup for being "usually quiet, comfortable, and fuel-efficient," noting it's the only brand on the list "to achieve an excellent average overall reliability score." The Car Brand Report Cars list is meant to rank the best all-around vehicles based on CR testing and reliability results tallied by subscribers it surveyed. Each brand included must have sufficient test and reliability data for at least three models, a standard which left out 11 marques including Fiat, Jaguar, Land Rover and Porsche.
This 2014 Brand Report Cars edition is the first of a new format in which sub-brands have been broken out from their parent brands, with Acura using this year to move up the leaderboard into second place with a score of 75 for its "reliable, well-finished and somewhat sporty models." The top three was rounded out by Audi, climbing from eighth to third by scoring a 74 for "well-crafted interiors, nice handling and good gas mileage." Audi scored highest in the road-test portion, its improved reliability aiding its rise. The top nine was completed by Subaru, Toyota, Mazda, Honda, Infiniti and Mercedes-Benz.
Ford and Jeep weighed in at the other end of the rankings, Jeep taking the lowest overall score in the road tests and hampered by "a mix of spotty reliability." Ford was sunk by reliability issues with its MyFord Touch infotainment system which consumers found troublesome enough to negate its cars earning "solid test scores" for being "very nice to drive." Perhaps the rumored switch from Microsoft to Blackberry's QNX for the next generation SYNC will help them out. Cadillac's score also took a hit for infotainment reasons after it was the leading US brand last year, the CUE system in the XTS dragging Cadillac to the bottom of all General Motors brands.

Audi to launch 600-hp RS6 Avant Plus?

Much to the dismay of many - but apparently not enough - there's a whole category of power wagons available overseas that we just can't get our hands on. While the Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG Estate and Cadillac CTS-V Sport Wagon are both available Stateside, the recently revised Mercedes-Benz CLS63 AMG Shooting Brake, the Jaguar XFR-S Sportbrake we recently drove at the Nürburgring and the Audi RS6 Avant remain out of reach for American buyers. They all stand on more-or-less equal footing, with forced-induction V8s producing around 550 horsepower. But Audi is apparently taking things over and above with a new RS6 Plus.
Revealed ahead of schedule on a British dealer's website (which leaked details accompanied by a stock photo of the existing model), the RS6 Avant Plus will apparently keep the same 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8, but upgrade from 560 hp to a nice, round 600 to put it ahead of the competition and in league with supercars. Considering that the existing RS6 Avant is already capable of cracking the four-second barrier to 60 and tops out at over 190 miles per hour, we're sure the Plus version will positively annihilate the Autobahn, all while bringing your whole family along for the ride.
Unfortunately it doesn't look any more likely that Quattro GmbH's latest Plus model will make the transatlantic journey to American showrooms, but we can hope that maybe Audi will perform similar modifications on the RS7 Sportback we do get here.

Audi targeting hipsters with A3 launch parties

Audi is planning quite a shindig for the launch of the A3 sedan, and it only wants young folks to show up. The Four Rings' new entry-level model will begin hitting showrooms later this month, and it is planning a launch party on April 3 at all of its roughly 280 dealers aimed at youthful, influential buyers - hipsters, for lack of a better word.
According to Automotive News, the company has sent a 64-page party-planning guide to its dealers on how to appeal these tastemakers in their late-20s to early-40s. The guide says the audience "should reflect an uncompromising spirit in a generation that refuses to settle or sell out." Audi never specifically uses the h-word in its marketing, which is good because it carries some negative connotations. However, recommendations like serving craft beer and bacon doughnuts and playing indie bands like Chvrches, Empire of the Sun and M83 certainly show that the automaker would love to gain some hipster-cred.
It may seem odd for a free spirits to desire a new Audi, but the carmaker might be playing the long con with these parties. Maybe they can't afford an A3 yet, but the $30,000 compact is likely close enough within their financial reach to at least be realistic. If the brand can appeal to them early, then they could be more likely to come back later when it's affordable.