With the current A3 model nearing the end of its production cycle, Audi will send the car out with a bang, announcing an all new RS3 model. Putting even the Golf R to shame, the RS3 Sportback produces an incredible 340-hp and 332 ft-lbs of torque from the same turbocharged 2.5-liter 5-cylinder engine found in the TT-RS. Mated to a 7-speed S tronic dual clutch transmission and using Audi’s quattro all-wheel drive system the car can blast to 62-mph in just 4.6 seconds.

Added grip and improved handling come thanks to 19-inch wheels with 235/39/19 front tires and 225/35/19 rear tires (yes, the front tires are wider). That matches up with a front track that is just over an inch wider as well, while the overall ride height has been dropped by one inch. An ultra-precise 16.2:1 steering ratio makes the RS3 really turn when you point it.

Helping to cut weight, the wider front tires are now made of carbon fiber.

Improved braking is also a part of the package thanks to 4-piston front brake calipers with massive 14.57-inch rotors (370mm), while the rear brakes run 12.2-inch rotors.

The exterior of the RS3 isn’t quite as dramatic as past RS models, with the fenders bulging less, still, there’s a massive front grille with more aggressively designed side intakes. Side skirts, matte-aluminum mirror housings, a roof spoiler, black diffuser, two exhaust pipes and several RS3 badges round out the design.

Inside, it’s pure Audi luxury with Nappa leather, silver stitching and piano black or Aluminum Race trim, with a flat-bottom steering wheel.

Audi has made several nods to enthusiasts with this car, including a stability control system that can be turned completely off, while including a lap timer in the driver information screen. Plus, a Sport button activates flaps in the exhaust system to really let the engine howl.

Unfortunately, you’ll have to be a rich enthusiasts to afford the RS3 Sportback, with the price set at 49,900 Euros. That’s $68,000… yikes.

Sadly, that number is mostly irrelevant on this side of the Atlantic as Audi has announced now plans to sell the RS3 in North America.

GALLERY: Audi RS3 Sportback

Official release after the jump:

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After stealing the show in Paris a few months back, Lotus brought its “New Era” roadshow to America and the LA Auto Show. With five brand new concept vehicles, Lotus is looking to generate interest in the brand and its new direction.

Based on the same modular platform, Lotus revealed the Esprit, a second-generation Elise, the flagship Elite and even a 4-door model called Eterne.

First to market will be the Esprit, with an on-sale date set for the Spring of 2013. With a body made entirely of carbon fiber it will be a true exotic, using a supercharged version of the Lexus 5.0-liter V8 making 542-hp in standard trim and a whopping 612-hp in R-spec trim.

Following the Esprit will be the Elan, launching in the Fall of 2013 as a coupe, with a convertible model set to follow. As a competitor to the Porsche 911 it will use a 4.0-liter version of the Toyota-sourced V6 found in the Evora, the Elan will be 200-lbs lighter. An R-Spec model will also be offered, boasting 450-hp. Both it, and the Elise, will use a combination of aluminum and composite materials to keep weight to a minimum. In addition, Lotus will offer both the Esprit and the Elan as a hybrid.

The flagship for the new Lotus will follow six months later in the Spring of 2014, with a standard trim making 612-hp. A hybrid option will be offered and this grand touring exotic comes exclusively with a retractable hardtop.

Spring of 2015 will see the launch of the second-generation Lotus Elise. Gaining size and weight over the current car the new Elise will come in at under 2,400 lbs. Power will come from a 2.0-liter 4-cylinder with forced induction (either a turbocharger or supercharger), making a total of 316-hp. That should be enough to deliver a 0-60 mph time of 4.4 seconds. Plus, those in search of a fuel efficient sports car will be able to get it with the new Elise as Lotus also plans to offer a hybrid option. Unlike the rest of the hybrids in the Lotus lineup, the Elise will be a mild hybrid (like the Honda system) and feature start-stop technology.

Completing the new Lotus lineup is the Eterne 4-door sports sedan. Again, based on the same architecture, its designed as a rival to the likes of the Porsche Panamera and Maserati Quattroporte, but wont hit the market until the Fall of 2015.

The goal with the five concepts shown is to expand Lotus production and sell between 7,500 and 8,000 vehicles annually.

GALLERY: Lotus Esprit

GALLERY: Lotus Elise Concept

GALLERY: Lotus Elite

GALLERY Lotus Elan

GALLERY: Lotus Eterne

What kind of security system do you think you’d need for the Mercedes McLaren SLR that’s adorned with 5 kg (roughly 11 lbs) of gold and 600 rubies? We’re thinking its own posse of guards and an invisible force field might keep the car jackers at bay.

Designed by Suisse car-designer Ueli Anliker, this McLaren SLR 999 was featured at the Tuning World Bodensee in May and more recently, at the Dortmund MY CAR tuning show earlier this month. Anliker has been creating golden rides just like this one for about 35 years. This sparkling creation comes complete with 600 rubies, some of which measure up to 35 mm in diameter.

Want to own it? This car’s value is estimated by insurers at 5 million Swiss Francs (€3.7 million/$5.2 million). But according to Anliker, that price tag doesn’t include the more than 30,000 man-hours of work that went into this project.

[Source: WorldCarFans]

One of the worst parts of winter has to be waking up early to scrape the ice and snow off of your car (especially on a Monday morning). But Volkswagen is now working on a way to make those frosty mornings brighter – by introducing a first anti-fogging and anti-icing car windscreen.

Working in conjunction with the Fraunhofer Institute for Surface Technology (IST) in Braunschweig, VW Group claims to have the solution for this particular winter turn-off. Their invention uses new glass panes that don’t allow an ice layer to form in the first place, even at temperatures as low as -18 C or -0.4 F.

How is that possible, you may ask? Well, VW says the secret lies in a wafer-thin transparent coating of indium tin oxide that is applied to the window. This, in theory, stops heat from moving upwards and prevents or delays cooling of the glass surface to below the dew point.

“We call this a ‘Low-E’ (low thermal emissivity) coating. Applied to the outer glazing, it prevents heat from radiating skyward. We are proud of this innovation and will promote it throughout the Group. That is because an ice-free window is an added convenience to our customers,” explains Thomas Drescher of Volkswagen Development. “The ‘Low-E coating’ cannot prevent ice formation or condensation entirely, but it can significantly reduce the likelihood of it happening.”

There are still some bugs to iron our before Volkswagen can offer the technology on production models. One problem is that new coating interferes with radio transmission that affects radio and mobile phone reception.

We hope they work out the issues soon and get this to market. How did no one think of this before?

If you’ve got room on your cell phone for another app, we’ve got a suggestion for you – download the HD Radio app. This handy app is for drivers who appreciate great sound in their car.

For those of you who don’t want to shell out the extra cash for an HD entertainment system in your car, HD Radio is a great alternative. HD Radio offers better sound quality, extra programming options and new features like iTunes Tagging. But even though the app is free, to use it, you’ll need to pick yourself up a receiver, sold exclusively at RadioShack.

When you combine this app with the Gigaware Navigation Controller, you have the ability to listen to HD Radio FM broadcasting on your iPhone and iPod Touch. The app lets you listen to your favorite radio stations, and offers PSD that lets your know the name of the artist, the song title and other relevant information.

Another great feature is its HD2 and HD3 channels, which are extra FM channels you can only tune into with an HD Radio receiver and well as iTunes Tagging that enables you to tag a song for purchase and download from the iTunes Store.

Initial reviews for thearen’t that glowing. They say that the combination isn’t well designed for behind the wheel, on the fly operation. Some reports says that the controls on both the app and receiver are small and can be dangerous to operate while driving. But if you’ve got a passenger in the car who can operate it why you’re driving, it promises to give you a richer sound experience for your commute.

If you’re interested, you can download it for free here.

[Source: Edmunds Inside Line]

This isn’t really news, but Misha Designs has made it officially official: they are releasing a widebody kit for the Mercedes-Benz SL. In case you missed the news earlier, we revealed that iForged built an SL55 for SEMA that would sport Misha Designs’ widebody kit. Now Misha Designs has released the full specs on the styling package.

Along with the widebody kit, the aggressive front bumper sports a lower carbon fiber lip spoiler. The larger-opening on the front bumper helps keep the SL nice and cool. The fenders imitate the lovely design from the SL’s Black Series, while the hood is an original with carbon fiber vents. The side skirts were designed to match the wider rear fenders while the rear bumper sports a carbon fiber diffuser and gills. A subtle and clean rear spoiler also comes with the kit rounding it off on all edges.

The kit is available for all SL models 2003 and up, while it’s a direct bolt on for the 2009 models. For those with a previous model, you’ll need new headlights and a center grill to get it to become a full conversion. No pricing was mentioned.

With the holidays quickly approaching, now’s the time to starting planning for all those road trips you’ll be making to see friends and family. And nobody knows the benefits of planning for a road tip like Irv Gordon.

Gordon, a 70-year old retired science teacher from Long Island, is known for his 1966 Volvo P1800 that took Guinness Book of World Records honors as the highest mileage non-commercial vehicle driven by a single owner (2.8 million miles).

He encourages drivers to be alert on the roads this holiday season. “The holiday season means more people are driving to places to which they are not familiar and are in their cars for lengths of time to which they are not conditioned,” said Gordon. “Planning and diligence are key to ensuring a safe holiday road trip and that families reach the destination we all seek, a Happy New Year.”

See after the jump for five tips for safe holiday road trip driving from the master of road trips:

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According to a recent press release from Ford Motor Company; the 2011 Super Duty is currently accounting for 50 percent of total heavy-duty pickup sales in the United States.

Given quality and reliability issues in the past, this represents a major gain, especially in a market segment that, despite doom and gloom over predicted high fuel prices, has grown by 17 percent since last year.

And a lot of that growth has apparently been due to the S-D’s 6.7-liter PowerStroke diesel engine. The first to be designed and engineered completely in-house by Ford, the PowerStroke churns out 400 horsepower and a stomping 800 ft-lbs of torque, making this rig one of the most capable in its class.

“As always, our goal is to better satisfy the needs of our customers,” said Doug Scott; current Group Marketing Manager for Ford Trucks. “Super Duty’s continued sales and share leadership is validation that whether those needs are capability, durability, quality, power, performance, fuel economy, technology or safety, we are succeeding.”

It’s also been interesting to note, that along with little brother F-150, the Super Duty enabled Ford’s entire F-series line to sell more than 400,000 units in 2010 – the first nameplate to top this ‘magic’ sales figure over the last 12 month period.

The Buick Regal will get GM’s eAssist mild hybrid system next year, according to rumors on GM Inside News. The eAssist system will debut on the Buick Lacrosse 4-cylinder, an engine shared with the Regal. It is also expected to appear on thew upcoming Chevrolet Malibu, though eAssist is expected to remain exclusive on Buick products for some time.

GM formerly offered a mild hybrid system on the Chevrolet Malibu, Saturn Aura and Saturn Vue, but the models enjoyed limited popularity and a brief production run. The eAssist system is designed to use a much more powerful battery pack and other technologies derived from the Chevrolet Volt.

This television ad, the first Fiat has produced for North American in almost 30 years, is longer than your average 30 second spot, and makes it clear that the new 500 isn’t just for the teeming masses, but people who like to enjoy life.

Filled with images of happy people and young families, the Fiat ads are decidedly less cheeky than MINIs ad campaigns have been over the years, and we figure that Chrysler is playing it safe considering that the brand is primarily known for the acronym “Fix It Again Tony”. Hit the jump and see for yourself.

[Source: Fiat 500 USA]

Hit the jump to see the video

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