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Recharge Wrap-up: Ford Fusion and Toyota Highlander named Best Hybrids for Families; Funky Prius motorhome

Tesla Model S customers in China will receive a "Universal Mobile Charger" with their vehicle. The charger will allow drivers to charge their Tesla anywhere, without having to search out a Supercharger when out in the wild. It allows Model S drivers a bit more freedom and helps alleviate worries about traveling too far from home. It could also help sway potential customers who suffer from range anxiety. The charger will be free to new and existing customers when it becomes available this summer. Read more at Car News China. US News & World Reports' list of Best Cars for Families includes two hybrids. The 2015 Ford Fusion Hybrid was chosen as the Best Hybrid Car for Families, while the 2015 Toyota Highlander Hybrid was picked as the Best Hybrid SUV for Families. The Fusion hybrid was chosen for its roomy, comfortable cabin, as well as the MyKey system's features for new drivers. The Highlander Hybrid offers eight seats - good for carpooling - as well as good mileage and a quality infotainment system. Read more at US News & World Reports or at Hybrid Cars. Audi plans to give its electric vehicles looks that differentiate them from the rest of the lineup. "In early 2018, we will launch a battery-powered sports activity vehicle in the large premium segment with a range of more than 500 kilometers," says Audi's head of development, Ulrich Hackenberg. "It will have a new, very attractive design, which we are developing especially for the E-Tron range and for battery-electric vehicles." According to analysts, part of the reason the Toyota Prius was so successful was because it was easy to distinguish from other Toyota models with conventional powertrains. Read more at Automotive News Europe. An Australian man turned his Toyota Prius into a miniature motorhome. James Lawler used mostly scraps to build the tiny house – complete with tin roof, chimney, and stained glass window – for just $150 Australian. It took him about a week to finish. Lawler made use of his creation at the Meredith Music Festival so he didn't have to sleep in a tent. He was, however, fined by police for driving the makeshift motorhome. See pictures and read more at the Herald Sun.

Recharge Wrap-up: Smart metals, OTA updates, Rolls-Royce LNG ship

"Smart" metals could help engines reduce emissions and invigorate US business. Metallurgist and University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee professor Pradeep Rohatgi combines known metal alloys with materials like ceramics, nanoparticles, and recycled waste to produce strong, lightweight composites with self-lubricating properties that help internal combustion engines run more efficiently. Rohatgi hopes his startup, Intelligent Composites, and its products can help US foundries compete with production outsourced overseas. See the video above, and read more at Phys.org. Almost 203 million cars will be capable of over-the-air (OTA) updates by 2022, according to ABI research. While Tesla has the OTA firmware updates nailed down, other automakers will focus on software update capability. This will take the place of dealer-installed updates and - like Chrysler did after the Jeep hacking incident - updates sent to owners via USB drives. OTA updates will enhance vehicle security and reduce recall rates. Read more at Green Car Congress. European bus manufacturers have agreed upon a standardized charging interface for their electric buses. Irizar, Solaris, VDL and Volvo will use pantograph charging for "opportunity charging" and CCS plugs as the base for overnight charging and network communication. The manufacturers hope other bus makers and charging providers to join them in cooperation over standardized charging. Read more at Green Car Congress. The second Audi Autonomous Driving Cup will take place from March 22 to 24, 2016 at the automaker's Museum Mobile in Ingolstadt, Germany. The competition involves eight university teams implementing basic Audi software in 1:8 scale electric Audi Q5 models, and putting them through the paces of simulated real-world driving situations. The teams develop software architecture to use the suite of sensor to have the cars drive, park, maneuver in traffic and perform emergency braking autonomously. Teams also perform a freestyle event where they put the car through an additional task of their choosing. The winning team gets ˆ10,000, with smaller prizes for second and third place. The competition also gives the students the opportunity to showcase their skills in front of a potential employer. Read more at Green Car Congress. Rolls-Royce will provide the Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) propulsion for an NSK cargo ship carrying fish food. The ship will deliver 2,700 metric tons of fish food to fish farms along the Norwegian coast.

An Outback for architects | 2017 Audi A4 Allroad First Drive

There are crossovers – big SUV-like things that give people the commanding view of the road they crave so much – and then there are crossovers. Lifted wagons in the vein of the Subaru Outback are arguably the crossover archetype, but they've become the exception, not the rule. That's where the Audi A4 Allroad fits in. Like its predecessor, the 2017 Allroad is a rather good-looking alternative to a mid-size SUV. The A4 Allroad is again based on the lovely A4 Avant, a wagon that isn't sold in America. The Allroad has a slightly raised suspension compared to its overseas counterpart, slightly higher-profile rubber, standard two-tone paint, roof rails, fender flares, lower body cladding, and a grille with vertical slats to emphasize the rugged point. And for reasons that no automotive purist has ever been able to derive, the look totally works. You can have a two-tone Allroad in one of 13 colors with gray trim along the bottom and the fenders. Or, pay an extra $1,000 on top of the cost of metallic paint and you can opt for one of five monochrome color schemes. In either case, you'll get a handsome, aggressive front end; 18-inch five-spoke wheels; standard Xenon or optional LED lighting up front; and LED lighting in the rear. The rear blinkers have a standard swiping effect borrowed from the R8, and the same sequential motion is applied to the front turn signals on models with the optional all-LED headlights. It's a party trick, but a neat one . We'd be hard pressed to think of an interior that Audi has screwed up recently, and the latest A4 has a particularly good one that translates well to the Allroad. No matter the trim you choose, you'll get your choice of dyed leather, including the requisite brown to best showcase the Allroad's rugged intentions. The level of gadgetry and pricing rises as you work your way up the trim tree – from Premium, to Premium Plus to Prestige, with the sweet spot in the middle – and it more or less mirrors that of the A4. Opting for the Technology Package on Premium Plus models gets you Audi's Virtual Cockpit instrument cluster, a fully configurable gauge package that sets the standard for info display in the industry. (It is so choice. If you have the means, we highly recommend picking one – er, it – up.) Here, the optional advanced dash is paired with an 8.3-inch center display, which is equally intuitive and responsive.