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2015 Audi S3 configurator goes live with all the black and silver paint you've hoped for

It has already been nearly a year since we completed our First Drive of the premium pocket rocket Audi S3, with official pricing for the car detailed earlier this summer. Those are facts, but facts won't help you while away your lunchtime in blissful, car-dreaming reverie, will they?
No, for help with imagining just exactly the kind of Audi S3 that you'd like to put in your garage, the freshly launched configurator is just the thing.
Every 2015 Audi S3 will come with 2.0T power under the hood - to the tune of 292 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque. The most basic Premium Plus trim (an interesting renaming of "entry level" we'll grant you) starts at $41,100 before destination, while the higher-content Prestige asks $47,000. The extra six grand buys you full LED lighting, tri-zone climate control, S model appearance upgrades like quad exhaust tips and a more advanced infotainment suite with Bang & Olufsen sound.

Audi service tech joyrides customer car, allegedly takes drugs on the way [UPDATE]

UPDATE: We've received and added an official statement from Audi Palo Alto. Dealerships get a bad rap. Stories about sleazy salespeople and overpriced service procedures abound, even though the reality is that most dealers are run by and employ honest, fair folks. But just because the bulk of dealers and their employees are good people, it doesn't mean some bad eggs won't slip through the cracks. Audi Palo Alto, in the heart of Silicon Valley, is finding this out the hard way after dash cam video of a service tech abusing a customer's car started blowing up on YouTube. In the video, which you can watch above, the unnamed service tech took YouTube user Carrera Chris's Audi – it's not clear what model, but it sounds like one of the company's higher-performance 3.0-liter, supercharged V6 models – for a rather spirited test drive. There are plenty of wide-open-throttle runs mixed in with some speeding – the dash cam's lower display shows 90 miles per hour at one point on the freeway – and you can hear the driver laughing throughout. None of this is too remarkable on its own, and maybe not enough to get the tech fired. Until, that is, he pulls into a parking lot and begins snorting something. The dash cam doesn't show the technician, so it's impossible to determine what substance – if any – the driver is allegedly taking. It could be coke, could be crushed up pills, or, hey, it could be a prescription nasal spray (it is allergy season, even in perpetually lovely northern California). Carrera Chris does say he found white powder in the seams of the driver's seat, so take that for what it's worth. There are five videos that include 12 minutes of footage – the one up top is a summary, while the four below show the alleged drug use and some more mundane footage. We've reached out to Audi Palo Alto's general manager, Jason Mattia. He wouldn't answer our questions over the phone, but did forward an official statement from the dealer. An unfortunate incident was brought to our attention earlier this week. We immediately began our investigation and have already taken action. We are working with the customer involved and have thanked them for bringing this matter to our attention. At Audi Palo Alto, we are proud to be a part of the San Jose community. We value and respect our customers, and our team of 75 employees strives to deliver the highest level of customer service.

Volkswagen, Bosch reach diesel settlement worth $1.6 billion

Volkswagen Group of America and automotive parts maker Bosch reached a settlement in which the two companies will pay a combined $1.6 billion because of their roles in the automaker's diesel-emissions scandal. VW, Europe's largest automaker, will pay about $1.2 billion to either repair or buy back vehicles. Bosch said separately that it will pay more than $300 million to owners of diesel-powered Volkswagens, Audis, and Porsches. The settlement stems from emissions issues related to about 78,000 VW-made cars and SUVs with 3.0-liter V6 diesel engines that were sold in North America. VW will recall and repair about 58,000 vehicles made for the 2013-through-2016 model years. The company will also buy back, offer a trade-in credit, or terminate the leases for about 20,000 cars for the model years 2009 through 2012. The older impacted models are the Volkswagen Touareg and Audi Q7, while the newer ones are the Touareg and Q7 as well as Audi's A6, A7, A8, A8L, and Q5 models, and finally the Porsche Cayenne Diesel. Previous reports estimated the payout at closer to $1 billion. The US settlement follows one reached last year between VW and US regulators in regards to VW's 2.0-liter diesel engines. That settlement was estimated to cost VW about $15 billion and impacted owners of about 500,000 vehicles. VW has had a stop-sale on its diesel vehicles in the US since late 2015 after it was discovered that VW installed software in its diesels that allowed those vehicles to cheat emissions-testing systems. VW on Wednesday also reiterated that it would contribute $225 million towards environmental-remediation efforts in the US. Volkswagen of America CEO Hinrich J. Woebcken, in Wednesday's statement, said that "we will continue to work to earn back the trust of all our stakeholders and thank our customers and dealers for their continued patience as this process moves forward." Related Video: News Source: Volkswagen via Automotive News-sub.req.Image Credit: Shannon Stapleton / Reuters Government/Legal Green Audi Porsche Volkswagen AutoblogGreen Exclusive Emissions Diesel Vehicles vw diesel scandal scandal settlement