2001 Audi Tt on 2040-cars

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Audi Quattro concept production hopes still alive, could be more radical

Remember the gestation period of the Lexus LFA, the one that, in automotive time, took so long that its origins could have been carbon dated? We feel like it's deja vu all over again, as Yogi Berra would have said, this time featuring the Audi Quattro and Audi Sport Quattro. It was 2010 when our cameras first glimpsed the Audi Quattro Concept (pictured right) at the Paris Motor Show, and we tasted its turbocharged 2.5-liter, five-cylinder powerplant not long after. Last year we met the hybrid, 700-horsepower Audi Sport Quattro concept at the Frankfurt Motor Show, but we got no closer to finding out if there'd ever be a version we could buy. A report in Autocar keeps the flame of hope burning, quoting Audi design chief Marc Lichte at the LA Auto Show saying, "We are working on Quattro, it is still alive." Lichte went on to say, however, that the next imagining is "more extreme" than those we've seen, and, "There will be surprises." Those words alone are a surprise. The last we heard about the Quattro revival was Audi boss Ulrich Hackenberg saying he wanted a more accessible homage to the original, and we don't know how "more extreme" jives with that. Seeing that Audi is serious about the idea, at least, we shouldn't have to wait long to find out. Just don't get your hopes up about its affordability yet.

Audi's next-gen "matrix beam lighting system" under threat from Washington

Automotive News reports Audi may have a hard road ahead of it when it comes to convincing federal regulators to allow the company's new matrix beam lighting. The system uses small cameras to detect other vehicles on the road and darkens specific elements of the high-beam pattern to provide maximum nighttime visibility without blinding other drivers. Audi has been displaying this technology on its concept cars for a couple of years now (including the Crosslane Coupe Concept shown above at its 2012 Paris Motor Show reveal). Audi hopes the technology will effectively do away with the industry's current high and low beam settings, but the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration doesn't allow such a system under its current laws. Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 108 specifically says headlamps are not to shine in this dynamic of a way.
Audi has asked has asked NHTSA for more clarification to determine what, if any elements of the matrix beam lighting technology can legally be used on US-specification vehicles. But American buyers may have to settle for systems that automatically dim their high beams until the rules get a bit more clarification.

EVO takes flight in BMW's sultry i8

Electric cars and hybrids are here to stay, much to the apparent dismay of some auto enthusiasts, but that doesn't mean they have to represent the death of enjoyable driving. Granted, the initial run of hybrids in the US like the Honda Insight and Toyota Prius weren't exactly tailor-made for aggressive folks behind the wheel, but things are clearly changing. In its latest video, Evo takes a look at three examples from Europe's new crop of electrified vehicles to show that the future of fun motoring is safe and sound.
Evo editor Henry Catchpole kicks things off with one of the most bizarre EVs of the bunch, the tiny Renault Twizy. Its low power and 50-mile-per-hour top speed might make it miles away from a hot hatch, but there's still fun to be had in extracting the most from this little city car. Next up is the Audi A3 E-Tron, which isn't technically available yet. It's a step in the right direction of eventually creating an affordable, fun-to-drive hybrid hot hatch.
However, the main event is Catchpole getting some seat time in the BMW i8. The Bimmer can really fly -literally in this case - and the butterfly-door coupe offers a clear look at the prospects for electrified sports cars. It might not have the power of hybrid supercar contemporaries like the LaFerrari or Porsche 918 Spyder, but the BMW doesn't cost nearly as much, either. See? Improved efficiency doesn't have to mean boring.