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Audi R8, Lamborghini Huracan could get twin-charged five-cylinder

Engine downsizing and forced induction are some of the biggest trends in automotive powertrains today because. They offer the chance to reduce emissions and boost fuel economy, while possibly maintaining power. The shift is already happening to performance cars with turbocharged four-cylinders finding their way into the Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro, and future Porsches. Now, there are rumblings of a tiny chance for a similar change coming for the Lamborghini Huracan and Audi R8. Why the new powertrain? China. While the market there might have slowing growth, it's still a major country for auto sales. The annual taxes on cars there also happen to be based on engine displacement, and there's a 40 percent rate on those over 4.0-liters, according to Car and Driver. The obvious answer to this conundrum is to build a smaller displacement, forced induction engine for the R8 and Huracan. Car and Driver points to the new turbocharged and electrically supercharged, 2.5-liter inline five-cylinder from the recent Audi TT Clubsport Turbo concept as a possible solution. Audi's e-turbo technology runs off a 48-volt electrical system and lithium-ion battery to produce a total of 600 horsepower and 479 pound-feet of torque in the prototype. With this mill, horsepower would barely shrink compared to the R8 V10 Plus and Lambo, but it actually makes more peak torque than their 5.2-liter V10s. While this is all theoretically feasible, take the possibility with a big grain of salt for now. According to Car and Driver, Quattro GmbH's Stephan Reil says that there's no work currently underway to fit the twin-charged five-cylinder, "but it has been talked about." That means such a vehicle is likely years away, if ever. In the meantime, a diesel version of the e-turbo setup is on the way the in the SQ7. Related Video:

Audi planning RS Q7 performance crossover

Audi resisted getting into the crossover market altogether until it launched the original Q7 in 2005, and held back from producing a performance crossover until it caved first with the SQ5 and then with the RS Q3, both in 2013. And now that the tide has washed over it, Ingolstadt's next plan, according to Top Gear, is to launch a performance version of the new Q7. Though it remains unclear whether it would carry the S or RS badge, the performance-oriented version of the new Q7 will surely benefit from the hundreds of pounds in excess weight Audi managed to trim off the latest model over the one it replaces. Also unclear is whether said hi-po Q7 would go with a diesel or a gasoline engine. The diesel option would more likely go the S route than the full RS, but wouldn't be likely to make it to the States if it were only offered as a diesel. With the SQ5, it's worth noting, Audi offers a TDI diesel version in Europe and a gasoline TSI in North America, so we wouldn't be surprised to see it take a similar approach with the larger model as well. Whatever it does pack under the hood, though, the SQ7 or RS Q7 would be facing some stiff competition from the likes of the Mercedes GL63 AMG, BMW X5 M and Range Rover Sport SVR – not to mention corporate cousins like the Porsche Cayenne Turbo and upcoming Bentley Bentayga – while giving the Volkswagen group a bigger slice of that exclusive but expanding pie.

The 2017 Audi A6 is the great luxury sedan we forgot about

The current Audi A6 is getting old. This generation was first sold as a 2012, got a mild facelift for 2016, and is likely to be replaced for 2018 or 2019. So 2017 may be its last year, but it's still my favorite mid-size Germano luxury thing. I just had to be reminded of its existence. BMW and Mercedes-Benz have been making big noises in this segment recently, with a new 5 Series on the way and the recently launched E-Class, and that apparently distracted me enough from the A6. There's also the fact the Audi is starting to look a bit anonymous on the road. It's still handsome, sure, but it doesn't stand out like the related A7. The 2016 refresh did just enough to keep it looking contemporary, though, and for 2017 all A6s come standard with the S Line appearance package. That helps. What struck me about the A6 was that it doesn't feel dated inside. Everything is laid out nicely, it's just comfortable, and you can see out of it. The one I drove had the beautiful layered walnut trim – it looks like pin-striped wood. (And no, it wasn't painted this bright blue, although you can get that on a special-order car if you pay $3,900 for Exclusive paint.) There are no huge screens inside, and the A6 won't get Audi's Virtual Cockpit until the next generation, but I didn't miss any of that. All of the excitement of Virtual Cockpit's beautiful reconfigurable screens, and I had forgotten that the display between the gauges it replaces had a perfectly pleasant Google Maps view already. It's the same basic functionality as Virtual Cockpit here, you just can't press a button to minimize the real-life gauges. And I'm fine having actual gauges. I was somewhat surprised, however, to see Apple CarPlay pop up when I plugged in my phone. (It's included for 2017 as part of the Audi smartphone interface, which comes with the Premium Plus trim and above.) Using CarPlay is a bit weird without a touchscreen, just like it is on other Audis and Mercedes products, but the nice thing about CarPlay is that you really don't need to interact with it much, since there isn't much to interact with. Oddly, the touchpad on the center console doesn't work to navigate from CarPlay tile to tile. I got over that pretty quickly and just turned the dial when necessary. There's also a feeling that nothing's missing when you drive it, that Audi couldn't really add much to improve the experience. The car is incredibly smooth and comfortable going down the road.