By Greg Kable, AutoWeek

Audi is poised to take the supercompact class by storm with a wild 252-hp, all-wheel-drive version of the A1.

To be produced in a limited run of just 333 cars, the A1 quattro harks back to Audi's rallying heyday of the 1980s. It has aggressive, competition-based styling, a turbocharged engine and the latest in all-wheel-drive technology, together with a heavily reworked interior boasting all of the sporting accoutrements to back up its impressive mechanical specification.

The go-fast hatchback, which Audi strenuously denies presages a long-rumored S1 model, aims to land a knockout punch to a host of European-market pocket rockets, including the Fiat Punto Abarth, the Renault Clio Sport, the Mini Cooper S John Cooper Works and the Volkswagen GTi.

By Greg Kable, AutoWeek

Audi has revealed a facelifted version of the A4 that will hit showrooms in Europe in January. U.S. consumers will get the restyled A4 next June or July, marketed as a 2013 model.

In Europe, the refreshed A4 will be sold in sedan, wagon, Allroad quattro and high-performance S4 versions. Audi says the S4 will sprint from 0 to 62 mph in five seconds, has a top speed limited at 155 mph and returns 29.4 mpg on the European fuel-economy test.

Facing off against new versions of the BMW 3-series and the Mercedes-Benz C-class, the reworked A4 gains several styling changes, revised engines for the European market and added interior quality.

By Mark Atkinson for MSN Autos

Anyone looking to spend some quality time getting to know some of Audi's new and hot products would be wise to sign up for the company's new Driving Experience events. Passing through Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver between early October and mid-November, the program is designed to teach participants both about some basic high-performance driving skills, and also show just how high the limits are of the latest S4 and A6 sedans.

On the table are emergency lane-change maneuvers, stopping, obstacle avoidance and more. There will certainly be a brief in-class session to get everyone on the same page before being cut loose with the expensive metal. And all sessions end with students getting hot laps with the pros in the delicious Audi R8. 

The sessions only run half-days, the better to get more people through the gates. The cost is a pretty reasonably $370 per driver, which includes a lunch too. That's less than adding rear-parking sensors to a new S4.

Visit the Audi Driving Experience page to learn more and to sign up, but if you're interested, you'd best hurry since many of the dates are sold out already.

By Diana T. Kurylko, AutoWeek

Audi hasn't decided whether to bring the compact Q3 crossover to North America, but it could happen in three years after a midlife freshening, said Johan de Nysschen, president of Audi of America.

"We have to look at the economic feasibility, and it has to hit targets. We have to overcome certain challenges," de Nysschen said at the Frankfurt auto show.

One big obstacle is price. It must be low enough to attract buyers but high enough to make a profit, he said.

By Justin Couture, MSN Autos

There’s no doubt about it: When it comes to throwing a pre-motor show bash, Volkswagen Group certainly knows how. After all, the Frankfurt show is on VW’s home turf, so if there’s any show to pull all stops out at, it’s this one. It certainly doesn’t hurt that it’s also the world’s largest.

By Greg Kable, AutoWeek

Audi has officially confirmed plans for a lightweight, electric successor to the A2--six years after the first-generation model ceased production.

Previewed by a four-seat concept car set to make its world debut at the Frankfurt motor show this month, the four-door hatchback retains the distinctive one-and-half-box silhouette, short overhangs and shallow greenhouse treatment of the original A2--still considered one of the most advanced small cars ever put into large-scale production because of its lightweight aluminum spaceframe construction and 1,973-pound curb weight.

By Greg Kable, AutoWeek

Audi is set to build on its existing performance-car lineup with the introduction of four all-wheel-drive S models, all running the company's latest twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V8 direct-injection engine developed in partnership with Bentley.

Scheduled to get their first public airing at the Frankfurt motor show in mid-September, the quartet of new S models include successors to the S8, S7 and S6 sedans and the S6 Avant. Everything but the S6 Avant is coming to the United States, with launches set for late spring 2012.

By Greg Kable, AutoWeek

Following an initial reveal in a series of sketches earlier this month, Audi has now provided Autoweek with detailed computer-enhanced photographs of its radical Urban concepts - the compact two-seat city cars set to bow in September at the Frankfurt motor show.

Constructed in both coupe and spyder guise, the urban concept is described by Audi as a developmental study being used by a team of in-house designers, engineers and electrical experts to explore new avenues in styling, small-car packaging, ultralightweight construction and driveline efficiency.

By Jake Lingeman, AutoWeek

Audi's flagship A8 sedan has always brought power and luxury to the lineup, along with a good bit of consumption. Now the company aims to lessen that blow with the A8 hybrid that will debut in 2012.

Only confirmed for the European market, the hybrid A8 will use a 2.0-liter turbocharged engine combined with a disc-shaped electric motor that develops 54 hp and 155 lb-ft of torque. Total peak output of the powertrain will be 245 hp and 354 lb-ft of torque. Most of the twist will be available from launch, because of the electric motor. The 0-to-100-km/h sprint will take 7.7 seconds.

By Mark Atkinson for MSN Autos

In a previous full-time position editing a pair of Canadian car magazines, one of the most memorable long-term testers we had was a then-new Mazda MX-5 PRHT - the one with the lightweight retractable metal hard top. While the gist of its extended stay with us was to see whether the rear-wheel-drive roadster could survive a Canadian winter as an everyday commuter with the proper tires fitted, the small Mazda did stick around into near-prime drop-top season.

Even with the minimal weight added by the retractible hard top, the MX-5 could always be counted on to deliver smiles galore. Having that first crack at being exposed and more in touch with your surroundings never failed to put a particularly nasty day at the office behind me. I always shake my head at folks who buy convertibles but leave the tops up with the air conditioning running during mild weather. Why spend the extra money if you don't take advantage every time?

I've driven my fair-share of convertibles, from the simple MX-5 to Mustangs, Bimmers, Benzes, Porsches, Jags and Audis. The Mazda would be a good everyday choice, although even the new 300-hp V6-powered Mustang convertible is a nice alternative. Price no object? Audi R8 5.2 FSI Spyder. Having the exotic V10 even more vocal than before gives me goosebumps.

What's on your convertible bucket-list?