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Audi A3-based people mover in the works

We have yet another announcement of yet another new Audi, including yet another obligatory quote from Audi research and development chief Wolfgang Dürheimer that there's room for it in the Audi range. On the sidelines of reports about the diesel-hybrid sports car, derived from the R18 endurance racer, there have been remarks about a possible MPV. Now Auto Express reports that said MPV "is on the way" and will be based on the A3 Sportback.
Previous speculation has posited either a six- or seven-seat people carrier; if the AE report is to be believed then five seats is the number that's been settled on. Planned to rest on a stretched version of the A3 platform, its wheelbase would be nearly eight inches longer than that of the A3 Sportback and it would compete against the Mercedes-Benz B-Class and the production version of the BMW Concept Active Tourer.
Audi is not going to dally about it, either, with a concept said to be ready for debut next year. Should it come, it would mean the A3 range comes pretty close to hitting for the cycle.

Watch the Audi R18 E-Tron Quattro long-tail testing at Monza

Audi released a single photo of the long-tailed version of its R18 E-Tron Quattro Le Mans racer, but the photo didn't offer the best view of the stretched rear. The car has been caught testing at Monza, in Italy, and not only do we get a better view of what it's got out back, we get pretty awesome sound as it makes high-speed runs past the camera.
Since the 2013-spec car was found to be down on performance versus the 2012, the long-tail is a different evolution to see if Audi can eke out more performance from its already dominant chassis. Have a look and a listen in the video below.

Audi R8 V10 gets tuned up by ABT

Bavarian tuners ABT have done another job on the Audi R8 V10, pumping up the 5.2-liter FSI V10 from 525 horsepower to 600 hp, and torque from 391 pound-feet to 406 lb-ft. With 50 more horsepower than the R8 V10 Plus - but not the extreme weight-loss scheme - ABT claims a 0-62 mile per hour run of 3.5 seconds, the same as the R8 V10 Plus, and a top speed for the mid-engined coupe of 198 miles per hour "is no problem at all."
Managing all that speed are the aero tweaks provided by a comprehensive body kit including a rear wing, a lowered and beefed-up suspension, a stainless steel exhaust and 19-inch wheels in two different designs.
The press release below has a few more bits of info on the matter. And while ABT hasn't put a price on the Audi upgrades, but it's safe to say that nearly 200 mph in an R8 won't come cheap.