The Audi R8 is a bona fide A-lister in a glittering world of stunning machinery. And it's all the more impressive that Audi has achieved this status with its first ever supercar.
But Audi didn't walk into the R8 project with its eyes closed. It put what it had learned from its all-conquering Le Mans race car into practice, creating a near-190mph, mid-engined supercar complete with Audi's excellent quattro four-wheel drive system. We sent Stuart Milne to Warwickshire to put the Audi R8 through its paces.
Read the full story now.
They're expensive, impractical and demand constant attention - but supercars are the world's most desirable motors.
But is there a way you can have your £333,000 supercar cake and eat it? Vijay Pattni went to a low-key industrial estate in Surrey to find out - and uncovered a world of glamour and horsepower...
Road tax prices will change in April 2009 - but how much will it cost to tax YOUR car?
We reveal how the new car tax system works, what the exemptions are and how much you'll pay.
by Andy Goodwin
The Volkswagen Scirocco is now available with two full-on tuning packages, while VW has announced two new entry-level Scirocco engines.
It used to make salt, pepper and bicycles - but today it is the second biggest car maker in Europe.
Peugeot has come a long way in its 100 year history, and has now entered the big off-roader market for the very first time with this: the four-wheel-drive Peugeot 4007. Peugeot has teamed up with Mitsubishi and Citroen to produce essentially the same four-wheel-drive SUV - Vijay Pattni took the first road-going Peugeot 4x4 to see what's what...
Lewis Hamilton is flying the flag for Britain in Formula 1. But with fellow Britons Anthony Davidson and David Coulthard dropping out of F1 this year, who will replace them?
Trackside's Keith Collantine looks at three of the most likely names to join Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button as F1's British stars.
A 784bhp concept car with ZERO emissions, a V6-engined Renault Megane - and the world's first EVER Lamborghini four-door saloon: this is the 2008 Paris Motor Show.
Vijay Pattni is your guide to the hottest cars lighting up the stage in France...
by Adrian Hearn
Paris Motor Show goers have been treated to a sneak peek at the world's next hypercar - the Aston Martin One-77.
While almost completely concealed, there were parts of the Aston Martin clearly visible such as a massive front grille and sexy alloy wheels.
The Ferrari California has been given its official global debut at the 2008 Paris Motor Show.
The bright red Ferrari California is the first car from the Italian car maker to have an electrically-folding metal roof - and it's amazingly quick, folding from open to fully closed in just 15 seconds and then dropping back down again in the same amount of time.
by Vijay Pattni
BMW has taken the wraps of its latest SUV offering at the Paris Motor Show - the BMW Concept X1.
The new BMW Concept X1 - which will sit below the BMW X3 in the carmaker's off-road range if built - is the company's first 'baby' 4x4 and follows the groundbreaking BMW X6 coupe-SUV launched earlier this year.
The Right to Repair Campaign has been created by the independent automotive aftermarket in response to potential changes in legislation in Europe that could drive all repair work into the vehicle manufacturers franchised dealerships.
Block Exemption Regulations (BER) were introduced to give the consumer the freedom to choose where he/she had his car maintained without negating manufacturer’s warranties so long as original parts or parts of matching quality had been fitted by the repairer. To enable repairs to be made, the vehicle assembler under BER should make technical information freely available to the independent market.
There are far fewer franchised dealers across the UK than independent repairers. The consumer will be faced with further distance to travel to have a vehicle maintained or repaired and therefore greater cost in both financial terms (fuel) and in terms of time.
The hourly rate of the independent garage is half that of the franchised dealers (source GIPA UK ltd Operation Rate Trends March 2007). The cost to the consumer of repairs could double!
The knock on effect could be that vehicles are serviced less often meaning they operate less efficiently, coupled with increased distances to travel for repair this will create a negative impact on the environment.
Lack of regular servicing will undoubtedly lead to unsafe vehicles on the road at what cost?
With the exception of the Vehicle Assemblers and their dealerships it is in everyone’s interest to ensure that R2RC succeeds in its aim – to ensure that the consumers right to chose where they have their vehicle repaired is protected and to ensure that the repair arena remains a competitive one. Write to your MP or MEP today.
By accident or design vehicles are more complex and access to information is being restricted in most cases by the price that the vehicle assemblers charge therefore negating the benefits that BER was intended to bring. In addition using a loophole that restricts access to technical information in certain circumstances it is becoming increasingly necessary for vehicles to be sent to the dealership for ‘recommissioning’ even if the repair has been successfully completed by the independent repairer. 
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