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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.

Audi RS3 sedan spied testing at the Nurburgring

Although American enthusiasts often miss out on foreign forbidden fruit, we've known for a while that the Audi RS3 will probably make it to the United States in 2017. While there's been no official word, Audi of America CEO Scott Keogh has made it clear he wants to bring the car over. Audi already sells the handsome RS3 Sportback in Europe, but since European hot hatches don't tend to fly here it will most likely come only as a sedan. Now we have spy shots to drool over. View 7 Photos These gallery above shows the 2016 RS3 Sportback that sits at the top of the range in Europe. The RS3's turbocharged five-cylinder engine sends power through Audi's quattro all-wheel drive system, propelling the car to 62 mph in just over four seconds. We can only make an educated guess as to what will power the RS3 sedan. Quattro all-wheel drive is a given, as is turbocharging. The European RS3 Sportback comes with a seven-speed dual-clutch that will probably make it to the US. In that car, the transmission is fed by a 2.5-liter turbocharged inline five-cylinder engine making 362 horsepower and 343 pound-feet of torque. Rumors suggest that Audi will make up for lost time by giving us the 400-hp inline-five that powers the new TT RS. These spy photos show a black RS3 sedan ripping around the Nurburgring, partially covered in camouflage. Through the camo we can see all of the basic hallmarks of Audi's RS line: cues like larger wheels, brakes, and a spoiler. The front has a hexagonal pattern in the grille that's typical of RS models, while the air intakes are larger and the chin spoiler looks to sit lower than the standard car's. From the side we can see different skirts and fixed brake calipers. Around back two large exhaust pipes replace those of the standard car, which may be the biggest indication that the vehicle is in fact the RS3. Models like the S3 and S4 have quad exhaust tips, while RS models feature two large exits like the ones on the 2016 RS3 Sportback. For 2017, Audi has made some changes to the A3 line, but we haven't heard or seen anything official from Audi regarding the 2017 RS3, be it Sportback or sedan. With the A3 and S3, the interior benefits from the company's fantastic virtual cockpit digital gauge cluster. The company also added some driver assistance features and refreshed the car visually with new front and rear facias.

2017 Audi S4 switches to turbo power, loses manual

If you dig the understated look of the 2017 Audi A4 but crave more power, then check out the latest S4. The new sport sedan sticks with a V6 but ditches the supercharger in favor of turbocharging to now produce estimated US figures of 354 horsepower and 369 pound-feet of torque. If there's one downside to the upgrade, it's that Audi only plans to offer the mill with an eight-speed Tiptronic automatic gearbox. The 2017 S4 is now quicker than before. The run to 62 miles per hour takes just 4.7 seconds, versus 4.9 seconds for the current sedan to reach 60 mph. The top speed remains at an electronically limited 155 mph, but fuel economy is claimed to be improved with a rating of 31.8 miles per gallon on the European testing cycle. All S4s come with Audi's venerable Quattro all-wheel drive, and it generally operates with a 40:60 front-rear power split. As conditions change, a maximum of 70 percent of the grunt can go to the front or 85 percent to the rear. Handling is also aided by a tweaked suspension that sits 0.9-inches lower than the A4. Beyond the different badges, the latest S4 doesn't visually advertise its prowess. LED lighting is standard, and quad exhausts rest in a new rear bumper with a subtle diffuser. The side mirror housings also get some aluminum-look trim. The interior layout echoes the A4 but with sport seats and a mix of Nappa leather and Alcantara upholstery. Audi's digital instrument cluster is optional and includes an exclusive sport screen among the three views. The new S4 goes on sale in 2016 as a 2017 model. In addition to the lack of a manual, there's no intention of offering the S4 Avant in the US. Sporty and high-tech: the new Audi S4 and S4 Avant September 15, 2015 | FRANKFURT/INGOLSTADT, Germany Audi launches the new S4 and S4 Avant at the IAA in Frankfurt am Main. The top models from the A4 series are ahead of the competition – with intelligent lightweight design, powerful engines, an extensive package of the latest technologies, and 260 kW (354 hp), 0 to 100 km/h (0 to 62 mph) in 4.7 seconds. (The all-new A4 and S4 are expected to go on sale in the U.S. market in 2016. The Avant is not planned for the U.S. market.) "At Audi, we have more than 20 years of expertise in developing our sporty S models," says Professor Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg, Member of the Audi Board of Management for Technical Development.