2008 Audi A6 Quattro Avant Wagon 4-door 3.2l on 2040-cars

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Audi Q7 honored with IIHS Top Safety Pick + rating

Audi's new, second-generation Q7 crossover is officially one of the safest vehicles on the road, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The non-profit has named the revamped CUV to its Top Safety Pick + list, making it the fourth Audi branded product to be so honored. As we've said before, the TSP + rating is no laughing matter for automakers. Getting it requires not just top-of-the-line crash-test ratings, but at least an "Advanced" rating for its crash-prevention systems. Audi went a step above, though, scoring a "Superior" for its safety systems, alongside an entire array of "Good" ratings on the physical crash testing. This is something of a unique case, though. See, IIHS doesn't typically test vehicles as large as the Q7. The only reason it did was because Audi "nominated" it and even paid for the test vehicles. The last time a "Large SUV" – which is what the Q7 is categorized as – even made a IIHS list was 2013, when General Motors Lambda-based CUVs and the Volkswagen Touareg were honored. Of course, the reason you all probably click on these stories is to see the crashing. Check out how the Q7 fared in the small-overlap test at the top of the page – there's gratuitous slow-mo, so enjoy. Related Video:

Recharge Wrap-up: Atieva making EV with former Tesla talent, Holland lowers PHEV incentives

A reduction of tax incentives on company cars in Holland is expected to put the brakes on plug-in hybrid sales. Cars are taxed at an average of 25 percent, with plug-in hybrids taxed at just seven or 14 percent, depending on emissions. Taxes on PHEV company cars will increase to 14 and 21 percent. With company car leases making up a third of vehicle sales in 2014, the uptake on PHEVs "will likely go back to regular volumes," according to Volvo's Christiaan Krouwel. It could be a boon for battery electric cars, as their tax rate will remain at four percent for company cars. Read more at Automotive News Europe. Ford is testing cylinder deactivation in its 1.0-liter EcoBoost engine. On-road prototype testing has shown improvements in fuel economy of as much as six percent. Ford engineers developed a system using a new dual mass flywheel, pendulum absorber, and tuned clutch disc to allow cylinder deactivation under a wider range of speed and engine loads with less NVH. "The highest priority in the development of new combustion engines for automotive applications is the ongoing reduction of fuel consumption," says Ford's Andreas Schamel, presenting Ford's findings to the Vienna Motor Symposium. Read more at Green Car Congress or in the press release from Ford. Atieva is building an EV with the help of numerous former Tesla employees. The Silicon Valley-based startup was founded in 2007 by a former Tesla vice president, and its roster includes 12 other former Tesla employees. Already well funded, Atieva is now looking to fill its ranks with more talent, with 32 engineering positions, two recruiter positions and other job openings posted at its website. As for the EV it is working on, Atieva says it is "redefining what a car can be, by building an iconic new vehicle from the ground up." Read more at Charged EVs. Testing shows that Joule ethanol, made from recycled CO2, meets standards for use in the US and Europe. In partnership with Audi, Joule has been working toward making its recycled CO2 fuels ready for commercialization. "We are pleased to achieve another critical step towards our planned near-term delivery of fuel-grade ethanol from recycled CO2," says Joule President and CEO Serge Tchuruk. "Using waste CO2 as a feedstock, our technology has the two-fold advantage of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and producing cost-competitive, drop-in fuels." Joule will use these test results to get government approval for the use of its ethanol in highway fuel.

Audi tech counts down red lights today, reduces traffic tomorrow

Audi announced today that in Washington D.C. and Las Vegas, select Audi Q7 and A4 models will be able to take advantage of new vehicle-to-infrastructure technology. The technology was developed with Traffic Technology Services and will allow drivers to see how long it will take for a traffic light to change to green. Compatible traffic lights will send information through servers operated by Traffic Technology Services to properly equipped Audis. This may not sound like an earth-shattering feature at first, unless you're a stoplight drag racer – if Audi has its way, it may shut off the timer at about 10 seconds to prevent such a thing – but the technology opens up the door to much more useful features down the road. Audi's general manager for connected vehicles, Pom Malhotra, suggested that the information could be used with "vehicle navigation, engine start/stop functionality and can even be used to help improve traffic flow." More specifically, navigation could account for traffic light timing to divert drivers to a more efficient and faster route. It could even suggest acceleration and speed to hit signals when they're green, minimizing stops and starts. Then, for engine start and stop features, the car could selectively shut off at long stops but remain on when approaching a light that's about to turn green. Traffic lights could also start adjusting patterns based on how many cars are approaching a light or are stuck at a light, alleviating slow-moving traffic. Vehicle-to-infrastructure communication could lead to roads that waste less time and less energy. While Audi didn't elaborate on this topic, vehicle-to-infrastructure technology could also be useful for future autonomous car technology. For instance, the car wouldn't necessarily have to "see" the actual traffic light. Instead, it could rely on a separate signal from the smart traffic light to know it has to stop or go. Going a step further, the technology could be used to manage traffic so precisely that traffic signals are no longer needed, as some other groups have investigated. And, of course, the aforementioned benefits in navigation technology would help autonomous vehicles make smarter route decisions as well. The feature is currently only available on Audi Q7, A4 and A4 allroads built after June 1, 2016. It's also only available as part of Audi connect PRIME, a subscription-based service that provides various infotainment and streaming features for your Audi. While D.C.