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The Audi Q7 doesn't want me to speed and I'm not totally okay with that

I'm a big fan of adaptive cruise control. My commute is 50 miles each way, almost all on freeways here in Michigan. If everyone drove at the same speed there'd be little need for smart cruise, but I live in reality where people camp out in the left lane and practice going from the gas to the brake for no apparent reason. Radar cruise systems let me set my max speed and just worry about steering. But Audi has gone a step further with its adaptive cruise system. And it's a step I'm not sure I'm comfortable with. Audi's system, as featured on the new Q7, has a feature that uses the forward-facing camera to read speed-limit signs, something that's becoming common in Europe and is now making its way here in the continent's luxury cars. That part's fine; it's useful information and gets nicely integrated into Audi's Virtual Cockpit screen and on the head-up display. What the car then does with that info, however, is the issue: If your set cruise speed is higher than the speed on a sign you pass, the car will drop the cruise speed down to the limit. But it's not perfect. On one stretch of highway, the Q7 picked up the speed limit posted on the parallel service road, dropping me down from a little above the limit to 30 mph. It didn't slam on the brakes, but it did confuse me at first and require intervention before the car slowed down to a crawl. This feature isn't ready for primetime. Luckily, it can be turned off or switched to a mode where it gives you a warning that the speed limit has changed (or at least that the car thinks it has) and lets you react before the set cruise speed is changed automatically. When activated, it's a safety issue. A more serious one, in my opinion, than driving a little over the speed limit, especially when it means interrupting the flow of traffic. There's nothing predictable about a car trundling along in the fast lane and then completely letting off the gas. It's not predictable for the driver behind you, and it's not something a driver expects of their own vehicle. Yes, this feature was obviously developed for people driving on the Autobahn, where speeds can drop down from unlimited to a slow crawl pretty quickly when entering a construction zone or approaching a built-up area. German roads also have more consistent signage, so the false-positive scenario I experienced might not have come up there.

The super-luxury Audi Q8 concept is coming to the Detroit Auto Show

We've known the Q8 was on the way since last May, and now we'll get a better glimpse of the range-topping Audi SUV at the 2017 North American International Auto Show. The Q8 is, according to CEO Rupert Stadler, "a sporty Q derivative." It also has the same phonetic pronunciation at the country of Kuwait. To be clear, the vehicle coming to the Detroit show is the Q8 concept, so expect the standard treatment for thinly-disguised production cars like giant wheels and impossibly-small side mirrors. According to a leaked document from earlier this year, the production Q8 comes sometime in 2018. Like most teasers for auto-show reveals, this one only gives us a rough idea of what the car will look like. In this case, that's big, bold, and imposing. Or, as the press release states: "The octagonal Singleframe is considerably wider than that in Audi's current production Q models. Enhancing the forward positioned stance, is dynamic three-dimensional sculpting." We put the quote there to prove you can't make this stuff up. The next sentence in the release says there are design elements reminiscent of the 1980's Audi Quattro, which we consider a positive. According to the latest press conference schedule, expect the Q8 concept to debut at 8:00 AM on Monday, January 9.Related Video: Image Credit: Audi Detroit Auto Show Audi Crossover SUV Concept Cars Luxury 2017 Detroit Auto Show

This gold wrapped R8 is how Audi celebrates an award

We like to think some awards (our Tech of the Year, for example) are more valued than others. Even so, Audi wasn't going to let its winning the Golden Steering Wheel award from Auto Bild go unnoticed, and this gold chrome R8 ought to do the trick. On display now at the Audi Forum in Neckarsulm, Germany, this Audi R8 V10 Plus is all decked out with a gold chrome wrap, similar to what rival Mercedes rolled out in Cannes a few years ago, but with a tone-on-tone satin gold stripe up the center, flanked by black pinstripes for extra contrast. Fortunately the accents – including the wheels, grilles, mirrors, air scoops, and rear wing – were left in black (albeit glossy) rather than chromed up. It looks just as shiny as the mirror-finish Bugatti Veyron displayed at Autostadt 300 miles north in Wolfsburg. Opened a decade ago, the Audi Forum Neckarsulm is one of two such locations run by the German automaker, alongside the one at its headquarters in Ingolstadt. Situated between Frankfurt and Stuttgart, the Neckarsulm facility includes displays from the company's collection, a customization studio, restaurant, a 4,000-square-foot shop, and a concert space. Customers can also pick up their new wheels direct from the factory at the Neckarsulm location, which is also where Audi operates one of its principal assembly plants – and where Quattro GmbH builds the R8. Following the original that debuted in 2006, the new second-generation R8 was introduced earlier this year at the Geneva Motor Show. It eschews the V8 available in the previous version exclusively for the 5.2-liter V10. In the Plus spec pictured here, it produces over 600 horsepower, channeled to all four wheels through a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. The R8 won the Goldenes Lenkrad award this year in the sports car category, alongside the Audi A4, Opel Astra, Hyundai i20, and the BMW X1, 2 Series Gran Tourer, and 7 Series. Related Video: X The video meant to be presented here is no longer available. Sorry for the inconvenience. Featured Gallery Audi R8 V10 Plus in gold chrome at Audi Forum Neckarsulm News Source: Audi Forum Neckarsulm via Facebook Audi Coupe Performance Supercars award gold chrome