11 Audi A4 Premium Plus Quattro Awd Quartz Gray Dual Climate Home Link on 2040-cars

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How does a 600-HP Audi RS6 Avant Plus sound to you?

The 2013 Audi RS6 Avant was announced back in December with a twin-turbo V8 cranking out 560 horsepower, but Car is reporting that this badass grocery getter could get even more power with a new Plus model. In a conversation with Car, Stephan Reil, Audi's top guy at its Quattro GmbH division, told the magazine that the RS6 Avant Plus would produce around 600 horsepower, and it sounds like there is a growing family of RS Plus models being planned as well.
Aside from the more powerful engine, the specifics of the RS6 Avant Plus are unknown, but we'd suspect some weight-savings measures and updated features for improved handling. Like recent RS Plus models such as the TT RS Plus and R8 Plus, the RS6 Avant Plus will not be a limited-production unit when it goes on sale (most likely for the 2014 model year).

Audi A5 and S5 Sportbacks look slinky for the Paris Motor Show

Following closely on the heels of the updated Audi A5 and S5 refresh, the German automaker introduced the 2017 Audi A5 and S5 Sportback. The vehicles are set for an official debut at the Paris Motor Show next month and share many of the same exterior touches as the regular coupes. Audi's sportback models are not sold in the US. A spokesman from Audi told Autoblog that the automaker is still deciding whether to bring the vehicles to the US. The A5 and S5 Sportback are aimed at drivers that want the same feel as the coupe with the added functionality of a hatchback – think wagon meets sedan. Besides the extra set of doors, there's very little that differentiates the sportback models from the coupes. The new models are built upon Volkswagen's MLB platform, which makes the car roughly 190 pounds lighter than the outgoing model. European customers will be able to choose between two TFSI and three TDI engines for the A5 Sportback. The engines range from a 2.0-liter inline-four that makes 190 horsepower to a 3.0-liter turbocharged diesel V6 putting out 286 hp. The engines can be paired to a six-speed manual transmission, seven-speed S tronic dual-clutch gearbox or an eight-speed tiptronic unit. Front-wheel drive is standard, with all-wheel drive as an available option on two variants. AWD comes standard when opting for the more powerful engines. The vehicles will also feature Audi's new Quattro Ultra all-wheel-drive system that can disconnect the rear wheels to be more fuel efficient. The S5 Sportback is the one enthusiasts will enjoy as it packs a turbocharged 3.0-liter V6 that's good for 354 hp and 369 pound-feet of torque. Audi claims the S5 Sportback, even with the addition of its new doors, will be able to get to 62 mph in 4.7 seconds, which is the same time as its two-door counterpart. In addition to the diesel and gasoline-powered vehicles, the A5 Sportback g-tron will be offered for drivers looking for flexible fuel choices. The g-tron model is powered by a 170-horsepower, 2.0-liter turbocharged-inline-four that can run on Audi e-gas, natural gas or regular gasoline. The exterior design is nearly identical to that of the coupes with Audi's new single frame grille and muscular front end. The rear incorporates a fastback-like design, similar to the one found on the A7, which helps soften the vehicle out – all sport in the front and luxury in the rear.

VW will need to recall 323,700 diesel vehicles in India

Volkswagen Group's diesel emissions scandal continues to spread, and now the automaker must recall 323,700 diesel vehicles in India because of too much pollution, according to Bloomberg. The campaign covers models from several of the group's brands including VW, Audi, and Skoda. The Automotive Research Association of India first discovered the emissions irregularities after conducting its own real world and lab tests, and the Indian government then commanded VW to explain what was happening. The country's regulators will allow the automaker to set the recall schedule for the repairs, according to a government official who spoke to Bloomberg, and the campaign will likely happen in phases. Among the affected vehicles, there will be about 100,000 from the VW brand including the Jetta, Passat, and some variants of the Polo. VW already has repairs for some of the affected diesel engines in Europe, and the company can allegedly fix the emissions problem with new software and small hardware changes. The situation is harder in the US where regulators still need to approve any proposed solutions, and VW also must now recall its 3.0-liter V6 TDI in California to eliminate other problematic code. The German automaker faces investigations from regulators all over the world into its emissions evasions, and they could be quite costly. One estimate already suggests the minimum price of the potential repairs, fines, and other expenses at about $24.5 billion. Officials in Brazil have already fined the company $13 million for pollution issues with the diesel Amarok pickup and requested a recall to fix them.