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A magical, disappearing ad for the hydrogen Audi A7 Sportback H-Tron

It's not quite Tupac appearing at Coachella with Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre in hologram form, but it'll do for the gearhead set. Audi is looking to make a first impression for its A7 Sportback H-Tron hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle by making as little of an impression as possible. Like the car itself, Audi has, as it says in a video, "created ads that leave behind nothing but vaporized water." Pretty slick. Audi worked with German advertising agency Thjnk, on the campaign, which uses LED lighting and other bits of magic to first show an image of the sedan and then show it disappearing into a cloud of steam, according to Adweek. The publication posted Audi's 58-second video on the campaign (we've embedded a German version of the video for those looking to practice a bit of linguistics). The German automaker first revealed details about the A7 Sportback H-Tron late last year. The all-wheel-drive sedan can go as far as 31 miles on electricity alone. And the hydrogen fuel-cell drivetrain delivers almost 400 pound-feet of torque and a full (hydrogen) tank's range of 311 miles as well as a 0-62 mile per hour time of less than eight seconds and a top speed of 112 mph. Featured Gallery Audi A7 Sportback H-Tron Quattro View 83 Photos News Source: Adweek via Hybrid Cars Green Marketing/Advertising Audi Hydrogen Cars billboard adweek

24 Hours of Le Mans an on-and-off love affair

There was little usual about this year's 24 Hours of Le Mans - intermittent rain in the weeks before the race meant cars didn't get on track as much as they wanted, and intermittent rain during the race meant cars went off track a lot more than they wanted. The race started with a wet track, and one of the records broken because of the random downpours was the number of times the safety car led the field - 11 times this year - although the record of two hours and 53 minutes of lapping behind the safety car, set in 2011, was not eclipsed.
None of that served to dampen the action. With little more than an hour left in the race there were cars still only a few seconds apart fighting for position, leads still changing because of pit stops and everyone drafting anyone they could.
Things didn't go the usual way up front, either - well, not exactly...

Audi UrQuattro gets the Petrolicious narrative

Audi started a revolution in the world of rallying when it paired an all-wheel-drive system with a turbocharged, five-cylinder engine and a rakish, three-door body. That car, the Quattro, didn't just upset the entire balance of the World Rally Championship, it (eventually) led to a transformative effect on the consumer car market.
But we're not just interested in this car simply because history has proven the UrQuattro to be important - we love its sharply creased looks, its offbeat soundtrack and its gravel-spitting abilities. Evidently, so does the crew from Petrolicious, as they've lavished their lenses upon the car. This particular model hails from 1983, and has covered a healthy 175,000 miles, says owner Manuel Leon Minassian. His first experience with the Ur (meaning "original") came in Beirut, where the car received plenty of praise from students at his school.
That first encounter led to a long passion for the Quattro, culminating in his purchase of this car four years ago. Take a look at Minassian and his Audi in the latest video from Petrolicious.