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Audi details updated 3.0L V6 TDI engine

The brands in the Volkswagen Group have shown that they can develop some of the world's best diesel engines for passenger cars. At the Vienna Motor Symposium taking place May 8 and 9, Audi has an updated one to add to its lineup. It's launching a new version of the 3.0 TDI V6 with better efficiency and more power than the version currently in the US.
The new diesel will be offered in two tunes: 215 horsepower or 268 hp. However, Audi isn't giving away all of the new engine's secrets just yet. It says "depending on model" the mill makes as much as 442.5 pound-feet of torque and gets as much as 13 percent better fuel economy. That likely means the more powerful version gets the twist, and the other one has the better consumption, but we'll have to see.
To compare, the current 3.0 TDI offered in the US produces 240 hp and 428 lb-ft of torque. In the A6, it's rated at 24 miles per gallon city, 38 mpg highway and 29 mpg combined, according to the EPA.

Audi launches 2014 TDI models with hilarious spot

Audi has unveiled a set of new television spots that seek to continue the company's proselytizing of diesel-fueled luxury cars to the American pubic. With TDI versions of the A6, A7, A8, Q5 and Q7 available for its 2014 model year range, this is a subject that's obviously near and dear to the hearts of Audi marketers.
The first commercial, The Station, makes a play on the fact that many car buyers in the US don't associate luxury cars (in this case an A8) with those green-handled pumps at the "gas" station. The second commercial, Range, is a lot more informative (albeit less fraught with screaming and slowmo), discussing just how easy it should be to find a diesel fueling station in your long-range TDI before you need to fill up.
Continue on below for a look at both new commercials, or to have Audi explain them to you in great detail, via its press release.

Researchers halfway to cutting carbon fiber costs by 90%

Carbon fiber has been utilized for decades to build racecars, as a means to cut weight while maintaining strength. But until recently, the space-age material has been largely absent from the street on anything but supercars because of the expense to use it. Recently, BMW signaled a major shift in that trend when it starting using carbon fiber reinforced plastic panels on the i3 and i8. This relatively small scale start might be just the beginning; the German company believes that a breakthrough to inexpensively manufacture the lightweight stuff is just on the horizon.
MAI Carbon Cluster Management GmbH counts BMW, Audi, Airbus, the German government and many other organizations as supporters, and it's researching how to make carbon fiber cheaper to produce, according to Automotive News Europe. The company thinks it can reduce costs by 90 percent in the near future. "We've certainly reached a halfway point on our cost-cutting target for suitable carbon-fiber parts," said project head Klaus Drechsler to Automotive News Europe.
Unfortunately, it isn't entirely clear just what MAI Carbon is doing to make such a huge leap possible. However, a recent post on the company's website talks about a new form a carbon fiber using a thermoplastic matrix that could be cured in less than three minutes. That's compared to about 90 minutes in the traditional process with an autoclave.