2005 Audi A8 Quattro L Sedan 4-door 4.2l on 2040-cars

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Audi, McLaren to bring winning cars back to Le Mans

Now gearing up for its 83rd running, the 24 Hours of Le Mans is as much about history as it is about racing forward. So this year, two key outfits in the event's history are celebrating by bringing back the cars with which they dominated in years past. Audi has been a force to be reckoned with and the team to beat at Le Mans in the modern era. It still may not have topped its sister brand and chief rival Porsche's record 16 wins, but Audi's 13 have all come in the past fifteen years since the turn of the millennium. That's one heck of a winning streak, which the German outfit will highlight by bringing every single one of its winning prototypes back to La Sarthe this year. From the R8 that kicked it all off in 2000 through the diesel R10 TDI to the R18 E-Tron Quattro that won last year. Ingolstadt won't be alone in racing down memory lane. McLaren announced it will be bringing back all five F1 GTRs that dominated the race in 1995. The quintet that finished first, third, fourth and thirteenth overall will lead a parade lap around the French circuit, joined by the new P1 GTR that will be making its dynamic debut as well as the customer examples of the special edition 650S Le Mans. What's more, winning drivers from '95 – Yannick Dalmas, Masanori Sekiya and JJ Lehto – will be on hand to participate in the parade lap as well, further highlighting the occasion. Related Video: UNITED FOR THE FIRST TIME: AUDI'S 13 LE MANS WINNERS - Efficiency technologies since 2001 in the Audi R8 - Pioneering achievements with the TDI diesel engine - R18 e-tron quattro with hybrid technology unbeaten at Le Mans Ingolstadt, May 15, 2015 – 29 days to go until the Le Mans 24 Hours: Audi is intensively preparing to battle for its 14th victory in the world's toughest endurance race. Since 2000, the brand has won the race 13 times. This year, Audi has assembled all of its Le Mans winning models for a group photo for the first time. Every single one of them represents 'Vorsprung durch Technik.' The string of victories began with the Audi R8 in 2000. "Following a year of learning and gathering experience at Le Mans, we started the 2000 season with a completely new design," says Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich.

2016 Tech of the Year | Autoblog Minute

Deliberation on the winners of Autoblog's Tech of the Year Award is under way. Nominees for best car in 2016 are: the Tesla Model S, the Chevy Volt and the BMW 7 series. Nominees for best tech in 2016 are: Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, VW's MiB II with AppConnect, Ford Sync 3, Audi Virtual Cockpit, the Smart Cross Connect App, and Volvo Sensus. Autoblog's Chris McGraw reports on this edition of Autoblog Minute. Audi BMW Chevrolet Ford smart Tesla Volvo Technology of the Year Autoblog Minute Videos Original Video volt android auto ford sync 3

Car companies may need to start curbing model proliferation

Looking at the current automotive landscape, especially from German makers, you quickly get the impression that less definitely isn't more. BMW alone offers its 3 Series platform in practically every segment possible, including the regular sedan and 4 Series Gran Coupe, which would seem to be direct competitors. Porsche might be the winner, though, with 20 different variants of the 911 listed for sale on its US website. However, some of this model madness might be reaching an end as companies begin cutting back spending or shifting money to other priorities.
According to Yahoo Finance, the offerings from the German automakers are up 25 percent over the past three years to over 200 models in Europe. The peak is expected to come around 2018 at 230 separate vehicles, according to consulting company PwC.
Amazingly, BMW, which is among the poster children for this model explosion, might be changing its tune. "I'm sure there will be points in the future where we look at certain cars and say, 'Maybe we need to think differently now,'" said head of sales Ian Robertson in an interview, according to Yahoo Finance. The statement certainly sounds shocking coming from a company rumored to have 23 front-wheel-drive vehicles all using a single platform on the way.