Audi

Hot news for 2010: Audi is trending away from larger powerplants this year, attempting to keep the thrust while improving fuel economy. Ÿ The diesel power spreads to other models, such as the A3. Ÿ R8 model can be ordered with a 525-horsepower V10. Ÿ A4 convertible replaced with the hot A5 Cabriolet.

Carryover: A3; A4; A5; A6; A8; Q5; Q7; R8; TT

Gone: None

Starting line

n With grand visions of lofty volume increases, Audi’s plan has been to add more models to sell. In the last few years, we’ve received the R8 sports car, Q5 tall wagon and and the A5 coupe and the-new-for-2010 A5 Cabriolet. There are no brand new models this year, but plenty of changes under the hood as the company, faced with looming fleet-mileage deadlines, is dropping larger engines and in other areas adding diesel power.

The TT Coupe and Roadster, for example, can only be ordered with a four-cylinder engine this year as the V6 has been dropped. Meanwhile, the A3 wagon gets a new diesel option that dramatically boosts fuel economy. If you’re not into diesels for all the old reasons, you really need to try them today. They’re quiet, don’t smell and have more twisting force than their gasoline counterparts.

The A4 was also redesigned for the 2009 model year to be substantially larger than the outgoing version. More passenger space and the car is actually lighter and has less wind resistance. The platform upgrades are not entirely new since they’re based on the architecture developed for the new-for-2008 A5 coupe, that, for 2010, is joined by a very pretty softop convertible model.

There’s also a higher-performing S5 derivative. As a result, the A4 Cabriolet is out of the picture this year. The new base engine for the A5 is the same 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder found in the A3, A4 and TT Coupe/Convertible, a delightful pair of driving machines that lose their optional V6 engines this year. The addition of the 2.0 to the A5 - the formerly standard 3.2-liter V6 is now an option - substantially drops the base price.