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Audi TT spy shots reveal revised lighting elements

As we inch closer to an expected Geneva debut for the next-generation Audi TT, our latest round of spy photos are starting to give us an even better look at Audi's latest sports car. This time out, we're getting more details on the car's head and taillights.
It's safe to say that the new headlight design will not incorporate the twin rally lights we see mounted on the next TT's grille, but our spy photos do show off the wide, angular new lights in even greater detail than previous photos. The rear lights, meanwhile, look like they'll retain a similar shape to what's seen on the current car, while new LED details lend a degree of freshness to the look.
As we mentioned, we're predicting Audi will debut the next TT at the 2014 Geneva Auto Show in March. We expect, though, to have more on the car before that time. Stay tuned.

Audi A5 and S5 freshen up for 2017

UPDATE: A previous version of this story mischaracterized the 2017 S5's engine configuration. The article has been updated. Well, here's the new Audi A5 and S5. They look a lot like the old ones, but just a tiny bit better. In other words, the redesigned coupes received the same treatment as their four-door counterparts, the A4 and S4. While the German press materials mention both gas and diesel engines, we expect the A5 to carry on in the US with petrol power only. Like the current A5, a 2.0-liter, turbocharged four-cylinder will serve as the base engine, but will probably get a similar power bump as the A4 – Audi hasn't released official figures yet. The four-door had its base output bumped from 220 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque to 252 hp and 273 lb-ft of torque. The S5 is a more interesting proposition than the S4. Where the old S5's 3.0-liter, supercharged V6 produced 333 hp and 325 lb-ft of torque, the new, turbocharged, 3.0-liter six-cylinder pumps out 354 ponies, according to the global press materials. That figure, fans of the old 4.2-liter V8-powered S5 will note, is identical to the original S5 that came out for model-year 2008. Torque figures aren't available yet, but we'd bet on at least a small increase in torque. Still, the increase in power is good for a 4.7-second run to 62 miles per hour, a 0.2-second improvement over the current car's 0-60 time. Audi claims it will offer the A5 with both six-speed manuals and seven-speed dual-clutch transmissions, but we wouldn't be so sure about that stick here in the US. The only available gearbox on the A4 is a seven-speed S-Tronic – coupes are inherently more sporting than sedans, but we aren't sure that's justification for Audi to offer a manual-trans A5 here in the US. Audi only mentions an eight-speed automatic for the S5. So no, the German press materials aren't a good indicator of the US-market A5. What we can rely on, of course, are the official images. The original A5/S5 was a handsome car, but Audi's designers have done a swell job styling the 2017 model. It looks good, and is somehow even more refined than last year's car. Audi's new corporate grille works well on a coupe body, although the powerful creases in the hood might be a little too powerful. The tail is lovely, like a prettier A3. The bodies are better looking, but they're also lighter and more aerodynamic, too. The A5's coefficient of drag is down to a slippery 0.25, while Audi's engineers lipo'd 132 pounds of fat.

Audi R8 lines up as safety car for Rolex 24 at Daytona

This weekend a new era begins in American sports car racing with the Rolex 24 at Daytona to kick off the new United SportsCar Championship, the freshly inked union between the Grand Am and American Le Mans Series. There'll be a wide variety of machinery lining up on the grid at the Florida speedway, including race-ready versions of the sports cars you can drive on the road, plus Daytona Prototypes, Le Mans Prototypes and even the DeltaWing. But at the front of the pack will be the Audi R8 5.2 FSI.
That's because Ingolstadt's flagship has been named as the official safety car for this, the 52nd annual Rolex 24 at Daytona. And so the R8 becomes the first pace car pressed into service for the United SportsCar Championship, although the model also paced last year's race (pictured above) when it was under the auspices of the Grand Am series.
The car in question appears to bear little in the way of modifications over the showroom version, save for some requisite graphics and maybe some emergency lighting to make it more visible - because while you wouldn't miss an R8 slicing its way through ordinary traffic on the road, it's another story entirely in a field full of competition machinery. Audi points out that the road-going R8 shares a good 50 percent of its components with the R8 LMS competing in the race, including its 5.2-liter V10 engine that's available this year with a new seven-speed dual-clutch transmission.