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Audi to spend $17 billion to fight BMW

It's no secret that VW Group, parent company to not only Volkswagen but also Audi, Bugatti, Bentley, Lamborghini, Porsche and Ducati brands sold in the US, is determined to become the world's largest automaker. Even more impressive is that VW is prepared to spend billions to make it happen.
With that comes word that VW Group will be spending $17 billion on its Audi brand over the next three years to push itself above rival BMW. The money will be invested in both vehicle development (including lightweight auto design and alternative powertrains) and facilities (including expansion in Hungary, China and new operations in Mexico). The luxury brand is focused on global manufacturing infrastructure.
Already Europe's best-selling luxury brand, Audi's objective is to overtake BMW by the end of the decade by selling more than two million cars per year (BMW is shooting for 1.54 million sales in 2013). If those objectives are met, VW Group should be on track to be the industry's volume leader by 2018.

Munich prosecutors expand Audi investigation

Munich prosecutors said they have widened an investigation at Audi to examine the carmaker's sales in Germany and elsewhere in Europe after the federal government accused the Volkswagen division of cheating on emissions tests in its home market. Audi on Thursday recalled around 24,000 older A7 and A8 models in Europe, 14,000 of which were sold in Germany, to update transmission software, which it said was causing nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions to exceed EU limits. Munich prosecutors have been investigating Audi on suspicion of fraud and criminal advertising in the United States where parent Volkswagen's emissions scandal broke in September 2015. They have expanded the inquiry to include vehicle sales in the brand's home region, a spokesman for prosecutors said. Audi said late on Thursday that it would continue to fully cooperate with authorities and Germany's KBA motor vehicle authority, which the carmaker had notified about the latest emissions irregularities. The affected Audi models with so-called Euro-5 emission standards, and built between 2009 and 2013, emit about twice the legal NOx limits when the steering wheel is turned more than 15 degrees, the German transport ministry said. Prosecutors said the suspicion in the Audi investigation still centered on fraud, adding they have not yet received updated information from the KBA on the situation in Germany. Their investigation came to a head in March when prosecutors searched Audi's headquarters in Ingolstadt in connection with the emissions scandal, as well as a second German plant and subsequently even the law firm that VW had hired to clear up dieselgate.Related Video: Government/Legal Green Audi Emissions volkswagen diesel

Best and worst car brands of 2022 according to Consumer Reports

It's that time again, Consumer Reports this morning lifting the curtain on its 2022 Annual Car Brand rankings and its 10 Top Picks in the car, crossover, and truck category. Drumroll, please: This year, Subaru climbs two spots to claim the winner's circle, having come third the last two years. Last year, Mazda climbed three spots from 2020 to take the crown. This year, Mazda slipped to second, BMW taking the last spot on the podium, also a one-spot drop from 2021. Six automakers in the top 10 hailed from Japan, which is one more than last year, and five luxury makers occupied the top 10, which is two more than last year. And South Korean representation didn't crack the top this year, after Hyundai managed tenth last year. The seven makes after BMW are: Honda, Lexus, Audi, Porsche, Mini, Toyota, and Infiniti.  The magazine and testing concern says its Brand Report Card "[reveals] which automakers are producing the most well-performing, safe, and reliable vehicles based on CR’s independent testing and member surveys," and that "Brands that rise to the top tend to have the most consistent performance across their model lineups." The domestics also took steps back among the 32 OEMs ranked on the 2022 card. Chrysler and Buick were the domestic carmakers who made last year's top 10 in eighth and ninth, respectively. This year, Buick dropped to eleventh, Chrysler to thirteenth. Dodge went from fourteenth to sixteenth. CR continues to ding Tesla's yoke steerer, the not-exactly-natural handhold responsible for the electric carmaker going from sixteenth last year to twenty-third this year.