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Honda China struggling with high-end Accord because Chinese covet German cars, too

It's not particularly unusual to see cheap cars in China, or those with designs stolen from foreign competitors, but increasingly the best-selling vehicles there would be very recognizable to just about any auto enthusiast. There appears to be one fact of life whether looking at car buyers in Sacramento, Stuttgart or Shanghai: People who can afford to buy premium cars often look first at the Germans.
Honda recently thought that it could challenge this perceived wisdom by including a premium Accord in the ninth-generation sedan's Chinese launch last year. The market-exclusive version was priced against the Audi A4. The venture failed, miserably.
According to Automotive News China, sales for the new Accord in China are down 37 percent through May of this year. Honda's overall sales are actually up by about 11 percent there on the strength of smaller, less profitable models. However, the company is still off its forecast 19-percent rise.

Audi's latest design is a table clock

Audi and Porsche have more things in common than we can count. They're both German, of course, and have both enjoyed considerable winning streaks at Le Mans. Both have a tendency to put their (often turbocharged) engines at one extreme of the car or another, driving either the closest wheels or all four. Both tend to follow a brand-wide evolutionary design approach, focusing their energies instead on the engineering that goes under the bodywork. Both now find themselves under the same corporate umbrella, and now that they are, Audi has followed Porsche's lead in setting up its own design consultancy.
Like Porsche Design, Audi Design is now taking on projects for all manner of clients, from pianos to foosball tables. In this latest collaboration, Audi has designed a table clock for Munich-based watchmaker Erwin Sattler. The table-top clock houses a high-frequency mechanical movement in a foot-tall glass case that lets you see the intricate clockwork, held in place by two ruthenium clasps.
Unveiled in Switzerland at the Baselworld watch and jewelry show, the clock is now available to order. But while prices haven't been announced, don't expect it to come cheap: other Erwin Sattler table clocks typically sell for upwards of $10,000, and we wouldn't expect the new design to come at a discount. Scroll down below for the official press release.

Audi to enter third R18 following Loic Duval's huge crash

When we saw the picture above yesterday, our first thought went to driver Loic Duval. After hearing that he, miraculously, walked away from the annihilated heap that had been the number one Audi R18 e-tron Quattro, our next thought went Audi's hopes in this year's 24 Hours of Le Mans. With the race kicking off on Saturday, we couldn't be sure if the team would run a two-car effort (that would put them on even footing with the two-car teams of Porsche and Toyota), attempt to rebuild the decimated racer or bring in a new tub and start from scratch.
Turns out, Audi opted for door number three, importing an all-new chassis to replace the destroyed R18. According to Audi, the team pulled an all-nighter to ready the new car in time for scrutineering and the second round of qualifying.
After a lot of hard work the rebuilt #Audi R18 e-tron quattro No. 1 is almost complete #R18 #LM24 @FIAWEC pic.twitter.com/xicPj0wScW