2010 Audi A5 Quattro Base Coupe 2-door 2.0l on 2040-cars

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Audi A3 Cabriolet leaked ahead of Frankfurt

Leaked images of the new Audi A3 Cabriolet have emerged ahead of the compact droptop's debut at next week's Frankfurt Motor Show. Audi has sold a convertible A3 in Europe since 2008, although that car has never made it to the US market. Still, with Audi already bringing an A3 and S3 sedan across the pond, there's hope for this small convertible to arrive here.
The looks of the A3 Cabrio aren't a huge departure from the A3 sedan, besides the obvious deletion of rear doors. We can't tell from the images shown, but considering Audi still hasn't brought a folding hardtop to market, we don't imagine it'll start with an entry level model like the A3. Expect a fast-folding canvas roof, much like the A5 Cabriolet.
From the leaked images, we can see TFSI and Quattro badges on this A3. It seems natural that the Cabrio will sport the same range of four-cylinder engines as the sedan - a 2.0-liter TDI, a 1.4-liter turbo and a 2.0-liter turbo. Of course, we'll have much more on the new A3 Cabrio when it makes its debut in Frankfurt.

Google poised to release Apple CarPlay rival this month

Apple and Google. They're the Michigan and Ohio State of the tech world. They're New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox, Real Madrid and Barcelona, or whatever sports-based rivalry you want to cook up. Bottom line, if one company expands into a segment, it's only a matter of time before the other follows suit. And now, that rivalry is about to carry over to your car's dashboard.
Unnamed sources are reporting to Automotive News that Google will unveil its very own challenger to Apple's new CarPlay in-car operating system later this month at the Mountain View, CA company's annual developer conference. The system, allegedly called Google Auto Link, will be the first product to come from the Open Automotive Alliance, a partnership between Google, General Motors, Hyundai, Audi, Honda and hardware manufacturer NVIDIA.
The official announcement is expected to be made on either June 25 or 26, at the Google I/O conference in San Francisco. Expect to hear a lot more about Google Auto Link then.

Former Ferrari F1 chief could be new Lamborghini CEO

The word on the street in Bologna is that Lamborghini is in for a changing of the guard. Current CEO Stephan Winkelmann is tipped to step down after 14 years at the helm in Sant'Agata, likely to move to another role at Audi. And in his place, the German automaker is anticipated to appoint Stefano Domenicali. Domenicali was formerly the head of Scuderia Ferrari, rising through the ranks at Maranello to succeed Jean Todt as team principal in 2008. He resigned in 2014 to be replaced first by Ferrari US chief Marco Mattiacci and then by Marlboro man Maurizio Arrivabene as the team has struggled to find its form again. Shortly after leaving Maranello, Domenicali took up a new position at Audi, where he was rumored to be working on the company's anticipated foray into Formula One with Red Bull. But after that program was shut down in the wake of the diesel emissions scandal, Domenicali is now tipped to move back to Italy to take over the supercar business. Stefano would be the second Domenicali to head an Italian performance brand under the VW/Audi umbrella, joining Ducati CEO Claudio Domenicali (they not believed to be related). The move would also be a particularly emphatic gesture to Sergio Marchionne. The Fiat Chrysler Automobiles chief has previously lost top lieutenants to Volkswagen, most notably Luca de Meo, who headed up VW brand's passenger car marketing department before taking over at Seat. While previous Ferrari chiefs Todt and Montezemolo came up through the racing department, Marchionne assumed the chairmanship in Maranello and brought in outside talent instead. Meanwhile Winkelmann has been in charge of Lamborghini since 2005, when he was appointed by Audi to run the company it had just acquired a few years prior. Under the tenure of the German-Italian executive, Lamborghini sales have risen from 1,600 units per year to over 2,500 last year. The introduction of the forthcoming Urus crossover, birthed under Winkelmann's leadership, is expected to more than double that overall figure. Given his success in transforming Lamborghini, it isn't likely that the Volkswagen Group will simply show Winkelmann the door. Word has it that he'll receive another posting at Audi, potentially taking over the growing Quattro GmbH division in Neckarsulm. The division is responsible for all of Audi's RS models as well as the R8 – the latter of which Audi sells as many units as the entire Lamborghini division does in a year.