2016 Audi A7 4dr Hatchback Quattro 3.0 Prestige on 2040-cars

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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.

Daily Driver: 2016 Audi A7

Daily Driver videos are micro-reviews of vehicles in theAutoblog test fleet, reviewed by the staffers who drive them every day. Today's Daily Driver features the 2016 Audi A6, reviewed by Seyth Miersma. You can watch the video above or read a transcript below. Watch more Autoblog videos at /videos. Show full video transcript text Hey, all. This is Seyth with Autoblog, and I'm in the 2016 Audi A7 3.0. It's interesting, initially, I thought that I wouldn't do any kind of video review on this car because I've already done reviews on the Audi RS7 and the Audi S7. I didn't want to be overly heavy handed on the Audi A7 range, but I thought I'd at least do a quick update because it's a little bit interesting to compare and contrast all three versions of the car. This A7 has got a supercharged 3.0-liter V6 engine. It makes 333 horsepower, 325 pound-feet of torque. The MSRP starts around $69,000 when you factor in the destination charge. The one that I'm driving is right around $78,000. You look around the cabin, and you see typically nice Audi fare. It definitely feels like you're in a high-end car. Compare that to the S7, and you lose about 120 horsepower, and you add to that sticker price around $14,000. Move up to the RS7, which if you'll remember I characterized as a supercar with a hatchback, you're down way more than 200 horsepower and right around $35,000. When you take the step down especially in power you expect that the performance is not only going to lag but might be a little bit disappointing being as I was in the fancier ones first. The truth is after all these miles, this car is really fantastic especially the RS7. It really surprised me with its ability to combine just crazy good performance with great livability, never overly harsh, not a lot of impact noises. The suspension didn't beat you up. All that is obviously true of this A7 too. You don't have that top end and maybe not all of the outright ability, but it still feels very capable and a lot of fun to drive when you want to push it. You get a powerful V6, which makes the car feel pretty damn fast. Now as I'm speeding along here, I don't get the same sort of aural enjoyment from this car as I do from the V8s. Those guys just sound crazy good especially when you're really getting into it. The V6 you really got to work at to hear even, but it's satisfying, and it just feels nice and light and powerful when you're going down the road.

VW will expand goodwill package to larger diesels

Volkswagen Group of America will expand its goodwill package to affected owners of the VW Touareg and other models with the 3.0 TDI. The company may also replace the catalytic converter on some cars equipped with the 2.0-liter four-cylinder TDI engine to bring it into compliance with US emissions. VW Group of America boss Michael Horn told Reuters he plans announce the goodwill program's expansion to the 2009-2016 Touareg during the Detroit Auto Show, and company spokesperson Jeannine Ginivan also confirmed this to Autoblog. Audi intends to extend the offer to its affected owners, too. As with the previous goodwill package, participating customers would receive a $500 prepaid Visa card and $500 to use at dealers. The EPA issued a violation notice against the 3.0 TDI in November and later extended it to additional model years. Audi later admitted that the engine, which was also in the Touareg and Porsche Cayenne, had undisclosed emissions management software. However, the automaker limited the goodwill package only to the 2.0-liter powerplant while it investigated the allegations against the larger mill. VW has not announced a recall plan in the US for the 2.0 TDI so far, but VW Group CEO Matthias Muller recently outlined a possible solution that could fix about 430,000 of the 482,000 affected vehicles. "We have one [catalytic converter] in the works and we believe that will be a part of the technical solutions," he told Reuters. Muller plans to discuss the repair while in Washington D.C. on Wednesday to meet with the EPA. "I think we can now offer a package that will come very close to what the EPA is expecting from us," Muller said to Reuters. He also suggested the company might buy back some affected models but didn't confirm the recent rumor claiming that the buy-back may cover as many as 115,000 cars.