AUGUST 5, 2015

(GM)
General Motors revealed the newly installed and dedicated National Historic Landmark bestowed upon the GM Technical Center located in Warren, MI, on Aug. 6, 2015. The National Park Service selected the campus for this honor because it possesses national significance as one of the most important works of modernist architect Eero Saarinen. When the GM Technical Center was dedicated in 1956, it was the pinnacle of engineering, design and advance technology, and marked Saarinen’s emergence onto the international stage as an architect, planner and designer of total environment. In the background to the North East of the land mark (below), is one of the most striking features of the campus - the stainless steel-clad water tower located on the northeast corner of the central lake. Built in 1954, it is 140-ft. high and holds 250,000 gallons of water. The tower functions visually as the counterpoint to the aluminum-clad design dome at the southwest corner of the lake. Both of these shining, light-colored metal elements provide key curvilinear moments in the predominantly rectilinear geometry of the campus. GM’s Research Administration building borders the lake to the North of the footprint. The dedication of the marker, which required a crane and several people to guide it into place, also was attended by Mark Reuss, Executive Vice President of Global Product Development, Purchasing and Supply Chain and Ed Welburn, Vice President of GM Global Design. “When the GM Tech Center was dedicated in 1956, it was the pinnacle of engineering, design and advance technology,” Reuss said. “We recently announced a $1 billion investment that will bring new construction, significant renovation and 2,600 new jobs to the campus,” he said. The expansion of the Tech Center will continue Eero Saarinen's original design style.

(PPG)
The annual PPG Dream Car awards were presented at the Goodguys 18th PPG Nationals held at the Ohio Expo Center in Columbus, July 10-12. The two winners, a 1955 Chevy pickup (above) owned by Joe and Josh Bailey of Maryville, Tenn., and a 1940 Ford pickup (below) owned by Robert Anderson of Savannah, Ga., stood out in a field of spectacular cars and trucks vying for one of the most esteemed prizes on the show car circuit. Joe and Josh Bailey, a father-son team, presented their flawless ’55 Chevy pickup. The truck was acquired by an uncle in 1972 and handed down through the family. The Baileys took possession of it in March 2014 and worked evenings and weekends in their home shop to give the Chevy its redo. They achieved the award-winning finish using PPG’s DELTRON® 2000 DBC Basecoat and DCU2002 CONCEPT® High Solids Polyurethane Clear with PPG colors Fender Guitar Surf Green and 1957 Chevrolet India Ivory. Robert Anderson entrusted his Ford pickup to Steve Legens at Legens Hot Rod Shop in Martin, Tenn. The shop turned the truck into a winner, customizing it and sandblasting the body to repaint it a custom-mix glossy green. Legens and painter Keenan Hailey chose PPG’s ENVIROBASE® High Performance waterborne basecoat along with water-compatible GLOBAL REFINISH SYSTEM™ D8152 Performance + Glamour Clearcoat and D8372 Slow Hardener to produce the truck’s head-turning appearance and earn a PPG Dream Car award.

(Audi images)
Audi has introduced the new S8 plus for, you know, when an ordinary, run-of-the-mill S8 just won't do. The Audi and Quattro GmbH tweaked 4.0 TFSI V8 biturbo engine has 445 kW (605 hp) and a maximum torque of 700 Nm (516.3 lb‑ft). In overboost mode it produces 750 Nm (553.2 lb‑ft). Other stuff? An eight-speed tiptronic gearbox and a quattro drivetrain with a sport differential, and sport adaptive air suspension and dynamic steering tuned specifically for the S8 plus. In Germany, the car comes with 21‑inch wheels specially designed for the S8 plus (with 275/35 tires). 

(Audi)
At the other end of the Audi spectrum of automobiles we have the all-new 2016 A3 Sportback e-tron®. The new machine has a 1.4 liter TFSI® engine with a six-speed S tronic® transmission, combined with a liquid-cooled, permanent magnet-driven electric motor. The A3 e-tron produces 204 horsepower and 258 lb-ft. of torque. An 8.8-kWh lithium-ion battery pack provides electrical energy storage and is packaged beneath the rear seat, allowing for a fully-usable trunk. The first Audi plug-in hybrid, or PHEV, to hit the market will be priced from $37,900 for a Premium package to $46,800 for a  Prestige package.  The plug-in hybrid will launch at dealerships nationwide in October. EPA figures will be announced in the near future once they are available from U.S. regulators.

(Chevrolet)
Chevrolet is continuing its special edition onslaught with the Colorado pickup. The latest offerings? The 2016 Chevrolet Colorado’s Midnight Edition and Z71 Trail Boss. Chevy PR minions say that "the Midnight Edition evokes the aesthetic of an urban tuner vehicle, while the Z71 Trail Boss is designed for terrain where the pavement ends." Well alrighty then! The special editions arrive at Chevrolet dealerships this fall.

White. Hot. Summer.
Editor's Note: Our "Quick Take" this week has us in a 2016 Audi A6 2.0T quattro.  I know, I know...there has definitely been an abundance of Audis to drive around here at AE, but that is not a bad thing AT ALL because this brand continues to impress with its incredible consistency and attention to detail. The A6 has been tweaked a bit for 2016 - new front and rear design, redesigned LED headlights and taillights, trapezoidal chrome tailpipes, etc., etc. Basically, you really have to know what you're looking for - or I did anyway - but these are the kind of model-year changes that always seem big to the manufacturers and usually not-so-big to the consumer. Nevertheless, the 2016 A6 remains every inch an Audi, and extremely tasteful to the nth degree. White would be close to last on my list of colors for a vehicle, but I must admit, the Ibis White seemed to work during the 90-degree week we just had. And the elegant Nougat Brown interior is particularly appealing. Dark interiors just inherently seem more luxurious to me, and this one was particularly well turned out. Whether navigating the city (read: still miserable Michigan roads) or cruising on the highway, this Audi never blinks. It is just so composed, so assured. It feels solid and luxurious, in a totally German, understated kind of way. Basically, it is hard to find fault with this car because it delivers so flawlessly on its mission. And for me, it's always the little things that impress. Like rearview mirrors that fold flat with the car is powered off (you have to set them to do that, but still), or a camera screen that pops up for guidance when you're in reverse, then quietly tucks back into the IP once you've shifted into Drive. Sounds trivial, I know, but you tend to notice things that are annoyances in other vehicles that Audi has thought of. (I could do without all the warning chimes, but that is the way of the automotive world now. Although I must say, if you're gonna be chime-obsessed, why not add one to monitor the front end for parking situations like those nasty curbs that are all to easy to scrape - or all the junk in my garage?) I guess that's what it comes down to - cars are so damn good, it's up to the manufacturers to really excel at, well, excellence. And it is by focusing on those tiny details that they really set themselves apart. In our brief time with the A6, it became clear that you know exactly what you're getting with this car, day in and day out. And there is no question that it delivers a particularly satisfying - and totally "Audi" - experience. -WG

Editor-In-Chief's Note: Yes, we've had an abundance of Audi models over the last two years but we're not complaining, because they're so consistently good, satisfying to drive and close to the state of the automotive art - though it's constantly shifting - that it's always a pleasure. The big news for me was the overall performance of the 2.0-liter, 4-cylinder turbo in our A6 tester. As recently as five years ago I had a hunch that the exponential growth of four-cylinder engines in America's passenger car fleet would be a downer because the weight of the vehicles would overwhelm the performance capability offered, but that has not proven to be the case at all. The 4-cylinder in the A6 was responsive and up to any task you could throw at it, to the point that going with the V6 seems superfluous. I know, that's not a newsflash in the least, because the sophistication and performance of 4-cylinders from most all of the manufacturers has indeed been impressive to watch, but still, this drivetrain package in the Audi A6 performed flawlessly. -PMD

2016 Audi A6 2.0T quattro Tiptronic: $54,725 ($48,400 Base Price; Ibis White; Nougat Brown Interior; 2.0-liter TFSI 4-cylinder with 252HP and 273 lbs-ft of torque; quattro permanent all-wheel-drive system with 40:60 torque split; Eight-speed Tiptronic transmission; 18" 5-spoke V-design wheels with 245/45 all-season tires; Electronic Stability Control (ESC); Audi drive select; Ventilated disc brakes front (13.6") and rear (13"); Anti-lock brake system (ABS) with brake assist; Electromechanical power steering system; Energy recuperation with start-stop system; Spare tire (space saver); Power sunroof; Xenon plus headlights with LED DRLs and taillights; Auto dimming, manual-folding, heated exterior mirrors; Power tilt and telescopic, leather-wrapped, three-spoke adjustable steering column with shift paddles; Split-folding rear seat back with pass-through (60/40); 8-way power adjustable heated front seats with four-way lumbar adjustment; Leather seating surfaces; Dark Brown Walnut Wood inlays; Three-zone automatic climate control; Audi sound system; SIRIUS Satellite radio (with three-month complimentary subscription); Garage door opener (HomeLink); preparation for mobile phone (Bluetooth); A6 Premium Plus Model - Audi MMI navigation plus with MMI touch, color driver information system, Parking system plus with rear view camera, Audi connect with online services (six-month subscription), Audi advanced key - keyless start, stop and entry, Auto-dimming, heated, power folding exterior mirrors, Audi side assist with pre sense rear, Audi music interface with USB inputs, Power adjustable steering column with memory - $3,700; Warm Weather Package - 4-zone automatic climate control, Power rear window sunshade, manual rear door sunshades - $900; 19" Wheel Package - 10-Y-spoke-design wheels, All-season tires - $800; Black headliner; Front filler panel; Destination charge, $925)

Adherence to Brand Image: As Peter has said countless times, Audi is a brand that continues to excel at what it does best - it never wavers from what it believes in - a relentless passion for engineering and an unerring focus on where they want to take the brand. The 2016 Audi A6 2.0T is yet another fine example of "Audi-ness" - and a rolling testament to the commitment and consistency that have enabled Audi to ascend to the top tier of luxury performance automobiles -WG