The term 'e-tron' will soon be as familiar in Audi's range as TDI or quattro, as the German automaker makes plans to offer a plug-in version of every one of its carsby 2020. Speaking at a press conference in Beijing, Audi CEO Rupert Stadler announced the launch of the China-only A6 L e-tron, a long-wheelbase, plug-in hybrid version of Audi's executive sedan. But the automaker will globally launch a new e-tron model every year, the end goal to "have an e-tron version of all key model series by 2020".

e-tron is Audi's marketing term for all its electrified vehicles, whether all-electric or plug-in hybrid. It's named for the original e-tron concept, a two-seat electric sports car concept shown at the 2009 Frankfurt Auto Show. Since then, the name has spread to other concept vehicles, as well as a host of production models. The first of those to hit the streets will be the new A3 Sportback e-tron, a 204-horsepower plug-in hybrid version of Audi's four-door subcompact hatchback, on sale in the fall. Other confirmed e-tron models include an A8 luxury sedan and Q7 SUV--and Audi currently intends to put its all-electric R8 e-tron into production, too.

The range-wide e-tron plans means other popular models will gain a plug by 2020, most likely in the form of plug-in hybrids rather than battery-electric vehicles. That includes the small A1 subcompact, already previewed with a rotary-powered range-extended electric car, and the sporty TT--set to grow into a sub-brand in the coming years. The TT and its variants already sit on the Volkswagen Group's MQB platform, used by the A3 Sportback e-tron and other electrified models from the Volkswagen Group.

A plug-in range will also boost Audi's chances of success in China. Electric cars have been a particular slow-burner in the country so far, but several automakers, not least Tesla and luxury automaker Bentley, have plans to offer plug-in vehicles in the country to combat energy and pollution problems.

You might not often think about them, but the springs in your car’s suspension are a key piece of technology—and one that has been largely unchanged for decades. The simple steel coil spring has served in effective anonymity—but its days may be numbered. Audi is planning to put a lightweight composite spring into production by fall 2014.

The glass fiber-reinforced polymer, or GFRP, springs will save about 40 percent of the weight of steel springs, cutting about 2.5 pounds per spring for a larger mid-size car. That amounts to a savings of 9.7 pounds total, half of which is unsprung mass.

Unsprung mass relates directly to a car’s handling and ride quality, and reducing it can yield even larger dividends than a similar weight reduction from the car’s sprung mass (i.e., from the car’s body). Ford has shown a lightweight concept car using similar composite spring technology, but hasn't announced any plans for production.

“The GFRP springs save weight at a crucial location in the chassis system. We are therefore making driving more precise and enhancing vibrational comfort,” said Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg, Member of the Board of Management for Technical Development at AUDI AG.

But how durable are these GFRP springs? Can they take the same stresses as steel? Audi thinks they can. In addition to being larger in overall diameter and sporting a smaller number of coils, the GFRP springs are composed of long glass fibers twisted together then impregnated with epoxy resin. This glass-resin structure is then wrapped with more glass fibers at counter-poised 45-degree angles. The multi-ply structure is designed to support and absorb the stresses the spring undergoes during driving. Once formed, the spring is cured at more than 100 degrees Celsius (212 degrees Fahrenheit).

The GFRP springs are composed of resin and glass fiber, and therefore cannot corrode, and is impervious to a wide range of chemicals, including harsh wheel cleaners. Audi also notes that the production process consumes far less energy than the production of steel coil springs.

German automaker Audi has decided to kill off its continuously variable transmission, in the next generation of its models. Continuously variable transmissions, or CVTs, have long been available in several Audis, but the firm will now replace it with conventional automatics and dual-clutch transmissions.

The decision, Audi driving behaviour engineer Ralph Riegger told Motoring, was made on the basis that dual-clutch transmissions are now capable of delivering the fuel efficiency gains that previously only CVT models allowed. Called Multitronic, the CVT was available in a number of Audi models, including the A4, A5, A6 and A7.

"It isn’t being developed anymore," explained Riegger. "It served its purpose because it was very good for fuel economy."

CVTs have proven unpopular with some drivers, despite their theoretical benefits—the independent rise and fall of engine revs compared to road speed can be disconcerting, and gives drivers a "disconnected" feel. The new dual-clutch gearbox, by comparison, should prove more popular—allowing greater control and with seven ratios, providing a suitable mix of performance and economy. Despite Audi's decision, CVTs as a whole are expected to become more popular over the coming years, as customers become ever more concerned about fuel efficiency.

The need for cars to get more efficient and the desire of customers to have more equipment in their vehicles are conflicting goals. Cars with complex electrical systems, dozens of ECUs and all manner of interior gadgets put heavy load on the alternator. That in turn means more engine power must be dedicated to driving these systems.

According to Audi, the existing 12-volt electrical systems in modern cars are being pushed to their limits. In cold weather particularly, various static‑load consumers can account for all the power being generated by the alternator, and batteries are no longer capable of meeting the demands of electronics-heavy vehicles. Audi's solution is a new 48-volt electrical system, previewed in the recent RS 5 TDI concept.

“It enables us to make more energy available," explains Audi head of technological development Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg. "That paves the way for new technologies with which we can make our cars more sporty, more efficient and more convenient to use.”

The new system would use a compact lithium-ion battery to complement an existing 12-volt power supply. While that sounds like even greater complication, the idea behind it is to give the regular 12-volt battery less work to do. For a start, the 48-volt system results in smaller cable cross-sections, meaning lighter cable harnesses and lower power dissipation.

It also turns the car into a mild hybrid—the 48-volt battery acts as an energy source whenever the internal combustion engine is turned off (as part of a stop-start system). As various electrical systems can be powered while the engine is off (such as steering and brake boosters) it also gives Audi various ways of starting and stopping the engine—engine-off coasting might be one example.

The larger capacity also has energy recovery benefits, says Audi. The savings aren't huge in isolation, but do add up over time—saving approximately one gallon every 600 miles or so. Or, to put a more real-world spin on the numbers, if your car does 30 mpg and you typically fill every 300 miles, you'll get an extra 15 miles out of every tank.

Audi has developed high-beam headlights that can detect other vehicles on the road and dim part of the light beam so that they don’t blind other drivers while at the same time continue to cast their full light in the areas surrounding the other vehicles. This works because the light beams are created using numerous LEDs—about 25 per headlight unit—spread over a grid, and these can then be individually controlled depending on the situation.
The technology is called the Matrix LED and at present only works when the driver switches on the high-beams and selects the headlights’ automatic function. The headlights get their instructions from a computer that processes images of the road taken by an on-board camera. In built-up areas like around town, the Matrix LED function only starts working at speeds above 60 kmh (37 mph), and out of town it’s activated at speeds above 30 kmh (18 mph).

In addition, the Matrix LED headlights also function as a cornering light. Using predictive route data supplied by the navigation system, the focus of the beam is shifted towards the bend even before the driver turns the steering wheel. These first two functions are demonstrated in the video above, but there’s one more benefit.

There is also a marker light that works together with the optional night vision assistant. As soon as a pedestrian is detected in front of the vehicle, individual LEDs flash briefly three times in succession to alert that person, who is then clearly visible to the driver.

The Matrix LED technology made its debut on the 2015 Audi A8, although we haven’t seen it in the U.S. yet. The reason is that local rules stipulate a car’s headlights must have separate high- and low-beam settings. However, Audi’s Matrix LED technology, which controls the high-beam function of the headlight, means the high-beam setting creates both high- and low-beam light. Audi, along with other automakers developing similar technology, is currently lobbying to get this rule changed.

Audi launches laser lights in America with a tasty R8 V10 Plus special

The Audi R8 has been equipped with laser headlights for a little while, but only now is such tech available in the US. It’s an occasion Audi has marked with the car you see here.

This is the R8 V10 plus exclusive edition (someone at Audi really doesn’t like upper-case letters). And we think it is excellent.

Alright, so perhaps supercars ought to be a lairy yellow rather than a flat grey. But we’re pretty taken by ‘Quantum Gray’, particularly as Audi has thrown in some ‘Solar Orange’ on the carbon sideblades to liven things up. Looks cracking, no?

It’s meant to be a moving advert for Audi’s ‘exclusive’ customisation scheme, and as such, its designers have gone to town on the design flourishes. The interior is a festival of Alcantara, carbon and orange detailing, while there are fixed-back racing seats inside, too.

There’s carbon aplenty on the exterior too, as well as those nifty headlights. Audi’s making 25 in total, with a price tag of $229,200. That’s around £185,000; spec a V10 Plus to that level in the UK (they start below £135k) and you’ll be doing very well indeed…

Earlier this summer, officials at the California Air Resources Board reportedly discovered a cheat device in the automatic transmission of an older Audi vehicle. The device, activated based on the angle of the steering wheel, has been used on both gasoline and diesel Audi models sold in Europe, the report said.

Under testing conditions, the software tells the transmission to shift more rapidly and in a way that lowers emissions, reports Sueddeutsche Zeitung, citing a VW document.

“Adaptive shift programs can lead to incorrect and non-reproducible results,” when tested, VW told Reuters in response to the Sueddeutsche Zeitung report.

Google has taken a major step toward turning Android into a complete operating system for cars that doesn’t require the use of a phone. The company announced partnerships with Audi and Volvo today, ahead of this week’s I/O developer’s conference, that will see those carmakers build new branded infotainment systems using Android 7.0 Nougat.

The manufacturer-tweaked versions of Google’s operating system will power the cars’ main touchscreen displays, as well as the digital dashboards behind the steering wheel. They will add new services like Google Assistant to the apps and integrations already available on Android Auto. But Android will now also control basic functions like heating and cooling, seat position, or opening and closing the windows. (It won’t go as far as controlling critical safety systems like brakes, though, according to Google.) Volvo says it plans to launch its Android on new models within two years, while Audi will show its version off in the new Audi Q8 Sport concept.The Q8 Sport Concept running Audi’s new Android-powered infotainment systemTaking over a car’s entire infotainment system — as opposed to just running on top of the one created by the manufacturer — has always seemed to be the endgame for Google’s initial efforts with Android Auto. Google has been reportedly working on it as far back as late 2014, when a report in Reutersindicated that the software giant was aiming to turn Android Auto into something that could control a car’s systems and wouldn’t require a smartphone.

Google officially exposed those ambitions at last year’s I/O conference when it showed off a Maserati Ghibli with a 4K, 15-inch vertical center touchscreen that was running a version of Android that could control everything from the radio to the HVAC system. This past January, Google and Fiat Chrysler (the parent company of Maserati) announced they were working on combining FCA’s Uconnect infotainment system with Android 7.0 Nougat — an apparent precursor to today’s news.

At that time, Google said this automotive version of Android would still be open source, and that it wouldn’t necessarily lock out Apple’s CarPlay (or even the Android Auto app). That still appears to be the case. Patrick Brady, vice president of engineering for Android, toldBloomberg News that Apple's CarPlay would still be able to run on top of this new embedded Android system. And a representative for Volvo tells The Verge that there is “no change in functionality with regards to CarPlay, nor is there a change in the many partners with whom we collaborate.”

With 2016 officially over, we can crown Android as 2016's product with most vulnerabilities, and Oracle as the vendor with the most security bugs.

This statistic is based on the number of vulnerabilities reported by security researchers in the past year, bugs which have received a CVE identifier.

According to CVE Details, a website that aggregates historical data on security bugs that have received a CVE identifier, during 2016, security researchers have discovered and reported 523 security bugs in Google's Android OS, winner by far of this "award."

Chrysler is recalling 1.4 million vehicles that can be remotely hacked over the Internet.

A flaw in several Chrysler models lets hackers remotely control them, posing an unprecedented danger for American drivers. Hackers can cut the brakes, shut down the engine, drive it off the road, or make all the electronics go haywire.

After the vulnerability was uncovered on Tuesday, Chrysler offered a software upgrade that it recommended customers install "at their earliest convenience."

Chrysler on Thursday upgraded its network, saying the update would prevent the remote hacking from taking place. It said that its update required no action on the part of customers and dealers.