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VW could look outside its own ranks for next CEO

Companies have two options when coming up with succession plans – hire within, or go outside its ranks. Either choice comes with advantages and disadvantages, to be sure. Hiring within means generally getting someone familiar with the company and its culture and traditions, while going outside is ideal if you're looking to shake things up and bring in fresh ideas. It's unclear which avenue the Volkswagen Group will go down when it comes time to replace its head man, Herr Professor Doctor Doctor Herr Martin Winterkorn, but he isn't ruling out a trip outside of Wolfsburg. Winterkorn has already given the reins of the VW brand to former BMW board member Herbert Diess, while Andreas Renschler, a former Daimler board member, is heading up VW's truck group. Now, Winterkorn has made some statements to a German weekly that indicate the most important thing about his successor isn't necessarily his (or her, though no women appear to be on the short-list) previous employer, Motoring.com.au is reporting, so much as his qualities as a leader and an engineering background. "A Volkswagen boss has to have a big affinity to our products. He needs to be close to customers and he needs to have a relationship with dealers," Winterkorn told Stern. "Like always, it depends on the personality and it also helps if the candidate is an engineer." Motoring throws out a couple of potential candidates from within, including Porsche boss Mathias Muller, Audi Chairman Rupert Stadler and engineering guru Ulrich Hackenberg, in addition to both Diess and Renschler. And while each candidate has a lot of potential, the only thing that's guaranteed right now is what Winterkorn has already said: "The decision about who will succeed me is not an easy one for the supervisory board."

Project CARS vs reality at Laguna Seca shows amazing potential

Project CARS is aiming to be the next great racing sim. Offering a mix of modern and classic cars on famous tracks, developer Slightly Mad Studios is trying to inject a fresh energy into the genre, and at the moment its game looks ready to take on Forza and Gran Turismo.
The game is still about six months from release, and the graphics already look practically photorealistic. The video below shows side-by-side laps of Laguna Seca in a BMW - real life on the left and the game on the right. It's absolutely astounding. Other than some changes to the sponsorship around the track, they are almost identical.
Of course anyone with quality seat time in a racing sim knows that graphics are just one factor. How the game feels is even more important, and without getting hands on, it's impossible to judge yet. However, consider our interest piqued. Project CARS is scheduled to launch in November on the Sony PlayStation 4, Microsoft Xbox One, Nintendo WiiU, Windows PC and Steam OS. Scroll down to check out the video.

2015 BMW M4 Coupe

Launched out of the seat by a huge, unexpected dip in the road, yet still held largely in place by the smooth webbing of my safety belt, I clench my teeth waiting to come back to earth. A tenth of a second later, the M4 Coupe touches down and my body is slammed into the leather seat cushion. All of the air is forced out of my lungs upon landing, but the BMW's chassis, suspension and steering appear unfazed. Pleasantly surprised, I mash the accelerator to the floor in giddy pursuit of the car in front of me - an absolutely identical 2015 BMW M4 coupe.
A cavorting game of cat-and-mouse on a desolate twisty canyon in southern Portugal is an excellent way to explore the real-world driving dynamics and performance of BMW's all-new M4 Coupe. But to truly push it to the limit - without having to worry about oversize depressions in the asphalt - requires a dedicated racetrack. Graciously, my hosts have rented the famed Autódromo Internacional do Algarve racetrack, or Portimão circuit, for an afternoon of automotive debauchery.
It's hard to believe this passes for work.