by Damon Lavrinc

A few of us around the Autoblog offices are eagerly anticipating the oil burning fight about to take place at this year’s Le Mans. Audi’s dominance of the field last year made for some entertaining races, but for 2007, the R10 may finally have some serious competition.

The Peugeot 908 HDi was recently unveiled, and apart from looking the biz, the V12 diesel is laying down 850 ft.-lbs. of torque and over 700 HP. The images in our gallery can only begin to do such a beast justice, so Peugeot released a video of the 908 running the Le Castellet circuit in the South of France under the expert control of Paul Ricard.

The video is after the jump, and if you haven’t had the chance, be sure to check out the pics of Audi’s newest rival.

[Source: YouTube via Jalopnik]

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by Dan Roth

CG cars assault us from all angles, whether we know it or not. These days, much of what we see in car spots on television is created from bits of data, not bits of ore. No matter, the renderings are still labor-intensive to produce. For spots, the animators are often working with CAD files provided by the manufacturer’s engineering department. The ability to create a CG car out of thin air is a boon to the concept-rendering community as well. An obvious example of CG’s capability is the recent Superduty Superbowl ad. Less obvious use of CG can be found in Jeep’s “Bigger, Deffer” spot, where the entire Wrangler is assembled out of 0’s and 1’s.

French digital artist extrodinaire Gabriel Rabhi has harnessed processor cycles to create an Audi A7 out of pure conjecture. Of course, there is no such thing as an A7 (yet), but rumors abound. Rabhi created the car as a skill-building exercise, to get a better handle on modelling techniques for complex objects. The multiple facets of an automobile’s structure and skin are time consuming and often difficult to model. Cars are created almost entirely out of complex curves, and the only way to geometrically model such an organic form is by using NURBS curves. If it sounds complex, that’s because it is.

Conclusion plus more photos after the jump

[Source: fourtitude]

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Once you’ve decided the old Locomobile or YT-1300 freighter simply isn’t on the cutting edge of technology anymore and are ready to take a mallet to the piggy bank in order to upgrade your motoring experience, you may want to peruse this list from Forbes, which list’s Figrin D’an Lienert’s top technological vehicles. Watch out for Greedo, though. We he hear he hangs out ’round those parts. Dude’ll carjack your Veyron sure as shit. – Davey G. Johnson

Acura RDX
Audi R8
BMW Hydrogen 7
BMW M6 Convertible
Bugatti Veyron
Lexus LS Hybrid
Mercedes E320 Bluetec
Mercedes S600
Porsche 911 Turbo
Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead

[Forbes]

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by John Neff

After all the speculation and rumors, Volkswagen announced today that Wolfgang Bernhard will be leaving his post as Chairman of the Volkswagen brand and vacating his seat on Volkswagen AG’s Board of Management. A true professional to the end, Bernhard put in his two weeks and will be leaving on January 31st. The company has been no doubt preparing for his exit, as we’ve known for some time that recently appointed Chairman of Volkswagen AG, Martin Winterkorn, has been planning a reorginization of the company’s management. We’re sure he’s got a successor for Bernhard already picked out. Nevertheless, Winterkorn will assume Bernhard’s duties as VW’s head honcho until his replacement is named.

Bernhard’s shoes will be tough to fill. He joined Volkswagen in February of 2005 and has been running VW since May of that year. He was brought in to whip the brand into shape by increasing productivity, lowering costs and improving quality. Most would say he succeeded in his task, though is leaving before the job is really finished. Where will Wolfie go now? Can’t say we know for sure, but DaimlerChrysler CEO Dieter Zetsche is probably blowing up Bernhard’s pager right now.

Check out VW’s official statement on the matter after the jump.

[Source: VW]

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by Frank Filipponio

Audi’s A3 is a fun and sporty premium hatch that we enjoyed having in the AB garage. The newer S3 version just ups the ante and improves on what makes the A3 an already engaging motoring choice. Now the folks at B & B have kicked things up another notch by massaging that sweet 2.0 TFSI 4-cylinder, taking it from 265 to 306 hp. Not enough? They also offer 324 or 362 hp versions as well. With 362 hp on tap, the B & B S3 should be good for a 0-62 of 4.9 seconds and v-max of 170+ mph.

The higher horsepower numbers come via upsized turbos and computer remapping, as well as a performance exhaust and upgraded intakes. Thanks to sport springs, body roll is further reduced and the car is lowered by 25 mm. An adjustable coilover upgrade is also available from B & B., along with unique 19- or 20-inch wheels covering updated 6-piston brakes to complete the suite of mods. No word on pricing but keep an eye on the B & B website if this sounds as good to you as it does to us. After a day behind the wheel of one of these, you’ll probably sleep well in that bed and enjoy breakfast that much more in the morning knowing what’s waiting for you in the driveway.

[Source: WorldCarFans]

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