Audi's A6 Avant E-Tron Concept Is a Gorgeous Station Wagon, Electrified

Ever since the current-generation Ford Ranger landed on these shores—finally—a few years back, we've been looking abroad with some envy at the Ranger Raptor offered globally with swollen fenders, big ground clearance, and a twin-turbocharged Diesel engine with a stinking 369 lb-ft of torque. Anyone holding out hope for that particular Ranger Raptor, we're sorry—it's not coming, and it never will. But there's great news for you: the next one is. The 2023 Ford Ranger Raptor isn't only better than that old truck, it's also coming to America. And wait until you get a load of its specs.For one, that 2.0-liter turbocharged I-4 diesel is gone, and in its place is a 3.0-liter, twin-turbo V-6 worked over by Ford Performance and producing 284 horsepower and 362 lb-ft of twist. That's down a few lb-ft, but ups whopping 74 horsepower over the old truck. This performance engine features an anti-lag system similar to what is fitted to the Euro-market Focus ST. Power is channeled through Ford's familiar 10-speed automatic and a full-time four-wheel-drive system that features a two-speed transfer case. The off-road hardware is impressive. Requisite front and rear diff lockers are present, and there is a full complement of selectable terrain modes, including Baja mode for high-speed desert rips. Speaking of, the chassis has been reinforced in all the expected ways to cope with the severe stresses on the suspension of, say, hitting a medium-sized rock at 60 mph on the playa. That means that the suspension mounts are all beefed up, and some parts of the frame around the bed and spare tire well. You can see all the reinforcements in the image below, and they're not dissimilar from those in the 2022 Ford Bronco Raptor, which utilizes a similar frame.The suspension itself consists of beefy aluminum control arms up front, and a live axle with a Watt's linkage out back. Ford returned to Fox to swipe 2.5-inch Live Valve internal bypass shock absorbers to deal with wheel oscillation punishment. (Interestingly, these units are of a smaller diameter than the 3.1-inch units in the Bronco Raptor.) Ford claims that the Teflon-infused oil inside these revised shocks reduces friction—and performance-robbing heat—by 50 percent. Ford also promises better on-road comfort than the previous model. A Bottom-Out Control feature provides more damping force in the last quarter of the shock's travel, to prevent spine-rearranging slaps on the bump stops. There is some serious armor under this truck. 2.3mm steel plates protect vulnerable points underneath the front of the truck, and also protrude out from the bumper giving the truck a stylish underbite. The radiator, steering, engine sump, and differential are all protected. Most importantly, the new Ranger Raptor manages to keep the handsome, Maverick-influenced look of the "regular" next-gen Ranger intact while adding a serious dose of adrenaline. Remember, the current-gen Ranger wasn't initially designed for the American market—it was adapted after the fact from a global-market truck. And it shows. The new Ranger is a true global product, one designed with the U.S. in mind from the get-go, and we think the new Ranger Raptor shows that there was some serious forethought that went into ensuring it'd appeal to buyers on both sides of the pond—buyers that have very different conceptions of what a pickup should be. The elements you'd expect are all present—big fenders with black arch extensions, a grille with a "FORD" logo you could see from space, hood and fender blisters, and a rugged rear end with tucked up twin-exit exhausts. The loop and side rails on the bed look to us to be more of a Euro-market styling element, but perhaps that will come to us, too.The interior is much more modern than our Ranger, and obviously is very similar to the global Ranger we saw last year, with the expected Raptor touches—bright Code Orange accents, a sporty steering wheel, and bolstered sport seats.This is a good time to mention that you're looking at the ROW version, specifically the U.K. market version. Don't be surprised if there are minor variations in the American-market truck—head- and tail lamps and bumpers are often different in different markets. But it's a very close preview of what we will get, that has been loudly confirmed to the world by Ford—an American-market Ford Ranger Raptor, designed from the ground up with us in mind. That's something worth getting very excited about.

Like it or not, it was hard to miss the 2023 Acura Integra Prototype that debuted last year in its Yellow Pearl paint job. That prototype is now going into production—and being revealed soon in salable form— though it might not get that striking yellow color as an option immediately, according to alleged leaked details on the IntegraTalk forums.Details gathered from screenshots of a dealer ordering guide—if accurate—may reveal the upcoming Integra's trim and specifications ahead of orders opening later this week, on March 10. Here's what the forum-leaked order guide shows:The 2023 Integra will come in base, A-Spec, and A-Spec Tech trim levels, with a continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT) listed as standard and a six-speed manual option only listed as available for the top-of-the-line A-Spec Tech trim, according to the screenshots. It doesn't appear that the company's available 10-speed automatic transmission will be an option on launch, either.The CVT is here because in all likelihood it's the very same transmission utilized in the mechanically related Honda Civic. It's even paired with the Honda's same 1.5-liter turbocharged I-4 engine. Power figures for the new Integra have yet to be announced, but we anticipate an output of at least around 200 horsepower, meaning the Acura will use the the 200-ish hp version of the 1.5-liter turbo four used by the sportier Civic Si.The forum posts also offer a look at the upcoming Integra's paint options, and sadly there doesn't appear to be any yellow option (yet), despite the Integra prototype debuting in a bright yellow color. The paint options that are listed include Platinum White, Lunar Silver, Performance Red, Liquid Carbon, Majestic Black, and Apex Blue.We may just be looking at partial information and there could be more options at launch, or it's plausible that Acura is holding back the yellow for an upcoming Integra Type S model that surely will follow the regular-grade version. The company recently trademarked the name and has been Type S'ing numerous nameplates in its lineup, including the TLX sedan, MDX SUV, and NSX supercar.If this order guide is accurate, you can't quite order the car that Acura debuted in prototype guise last year. You can order something close, in another color. Oh, and you will also have to upgrade to the highest available trim level if do not want the CVT.That may not be what Acura fans had hoped for—a second coming of the brands' premium sport compact formula distinct from a regular Honda—but at the end of the day, there's still a new turbocharged, manual-transmission Integra just around the corner that isn't a crossover or an EV. Maybe that's something. We'll be able to confirm full details on the Integra's available options when ordering begins March 10.

We've seen concept cars featuring four-wheel-steering that makes it possible to pull up next to a parking space and drive sideways right into it, thanks either to four-wheel 90-degree steering or spherical tires that can just roll sideways. Don't hold your breath for these sideways parking car concepts, but supplier ZF recently showed off a front suspension design capable of steering the front wheels 80 degrees—enough to drastically reduce the amount of surplus parallel-parking space required for easy insertion/extraction and to tighten U-turn diameters considerably.The Missing LinkIn most front suspensions, a tie-rod connects the suspension knuckle directly to the steering rack. ZF proposes inserting a second link. This one runs roughly parallel with the tire, connecting the lower control arm in front to the knuckle at the other end. The traditional tie-rod then connects to this link, a bit closer to the control-arm pivot. The mechanical advantage this creates can more than double the range of tire pivot rotation from a typical 35 degrees in either direction to 80 degrees without extending the travel or dimensions and functionality of the steering rack.Why Has Nobody Produced This Yet?Swiveling the wheels and tires 80 degrees either way requires a lot of packaging space that is typically reserved for crash-structure frame rails, and their spacing has generally been dictated by a front-mounted combustion powertrain. Another problem is the lack of any sort of constant-velocity joint capable of transmitting drive torque over such an extreme angle, which makes the concept impractical for traditional front-drive vehicles. Finally, implementation would require a means of limiting the max allowable steering angle to parking-lot speeds, because suddenly dialing up 80 degrees of steering at speed could roll a tire off the rim and flip the vehicle.Enablers: Electronics and Electric DriveModern electronics are more than up to the task of limiting steering angles to certain speeds, and this obviously means any rear-engine, rear-wheel drive vehicle could adopt this steering setup today and begin seeking out incredibly tight parallel parking spaces and hanging U-turns inside their garage or on their neighborhood street. Indeed, ZF demonstrated the concept on a rear-motor, rear-drive electric BMW i3. Another key enabler will be in-wheel electric drive motors, which eliminate the need for shafts and CV joints. These have yet to find favor with mainstream automakers, but advances we've covered by Orbis and Indigo address the technology's limitations in ways that could bring them to market—especially in ride-hailing and delivery vehicles, which stand to gain maximum benefit from the improved maneuverability.When and How Much?ZF's EasyTurn Suspension is so simple that it can be implemented quickly, whenever a manufacturer signs on the dotted line, but as of press time ZF had yet to announce any such contracts. And no supplier ever talks specifics on cost, but clearly this design adds a couple of ball joints, a link, and a bit of extra machining, so this won't be a budget-buster. Consider our fingers crossed for this cool concept.