McLaren MP4-12C arrives in USA (video)

The MP4-12C hits the US The McLaren MP4-12C has finally hit the USA, and to celebrate McLaren has put together a video showing its arrival in America. Being a supercar lover in the USA can have its drawbacks, particularly if you have a penchant for supercars from smaller car makers, because the US can be rather tetchy about letting a handful of supercars on American roads, just in case they destroy the fabric of American society. McLaren had that problem with their last car – the iconic McLaren F1 – and it took years for the legislative mess to be sorted to let ultra rich Americans indulge in a bit of McLaren love (mind you, it also lined McLaren’s pockets as they charged and arm and a leg for software to make US F1s legal).

Pioneer App Radio officially unveiled

Pioneer has officially unveiled the App Radio that AutoWeek told you about earlier this month. Now that it's willing to talk, Pioneer claims that the radio and audio system is "the first in-vehicle product designed to utilize the processing power, storage capacity, network connectivity and apps of the iPhone and iPod Touch as the primary source for its information and entertainment capabilities." That does sound a lot like what Mini Connected and, in a more platform-agnostic sense, Ford Sync are doing. Pioneer said it couldn't speak to the similarity of those systems, but Ted Cardenas, director of marketing for Pioneer's car-electronics division, briefed us on installation of the device and what Pioneer is doing to minimize driver distraction.

Audi's new A8 (2010): the first teaser photos

By Ben Pulman First Official Pictures 21 July 2009 17:34 Audi has released a teaser picture and sketch of its new A8 limo. Buried amongst the press material for Ingolstadt’s 100th anniversary were the two teaser images: the sketch reveals the headlight and grille design; the picture shows the A8 hidden beneath a black Audi-branded dustsheet.The A8 is currently in the final stages of testing, but Audi promises an unveil in ‘the late autumn of 2009’ – the new aluminium limo isn’t expected at the Frankfurt motor show this September, so we should see it in LA later in the year. Audi claims its ‘new flagship offers an impressive palette of innovative technologies and will redefine the benchmark for luxury saloons.’  A typically bullish claim – how will Audi match its boasts?The basic tech remains the same, with an aluminium chassis – which will also underpin the next Bentley Continental – that contributes to a significant weight saving.