1959 1960 Chevrolet Belair, Biscayne Impala Horn Button on 2040-parts.com

Automakers should disable technologies that distract drivers, U.S. says

The U.S. Department of Transportation on Thursday released its long-awaited guidelines on distracted driving, calling on automakers to disable applications that allow drivers to manually access social media, surf the Web or send text messages while on the road. The recommendations also seek to prevent any in-car technologies that require drivers to use both hands or take their eyes off the road for more than two seconds.

Audi A1 Quattro gets the XCar treatment

The Audi A1 is just one of the cool European city cars we don't get here in the United States. It shares a platform with the VW Polo, Skoda Fabia and Seat Ibiza. Audi saw fit to drop the 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder from the last generation S3 in just 333 examples, all of which have reportedly been sold.

Mercedes A45 AMG takes aim at the Audi RS3

The performance version of the new Mercedes A Class – which looks like it’s going to be the Mercedes A45 AMG – is gunning for the Audi RS3. We know that car makers have other car makers’ models in their firing line when they plan a new model. But it’s not all that common for them to publicly admit it.