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A stylish, debonair machine, the kind of car that makes you want to dress smartly. The keyless entry and starting is seamless (not all of them are). The steering is a bit overboosted at parking speeds, but it's fine once you're moving along. Nice, light efforts in the shifter and clutch - too bad so many buyers are likely to bypass the manual. Their loss. Every generation of Audi's MMI (multi media interface) is easier to use than the one before, but it's still not quite perfect. Poised over-the-road handling, and plentiful thrust when you let the engine climb deep into the rev range. Overall, a classy coupe for those who don't entertain boy-racer fantasies.

Corvette ZR1 rage is spreading with viral intensity. Montana collector Dave Ressler bid a million bucks at a charity auction to own the first production ZR1. A Chevrolet dealer in Texas allegedly charged $400,000 apiece for two such Corvettes. After British journalists blitzed the Bonneville Salt Flats in one ZR1, German writers raced another press car around a 7.8-mile circular track near Nardo, Italy.

I first saw Paul Newman at Lime Rock Park at an SCCA race in the 1970s. I'd heard he was racing, but I'd never seen him, maybe because we drove in different classes - Newman in C Production, me in Formula Vee. I had also gathered that there was an unspoken rule not to ask for an autograph or call him "Cool Hand" or generally be a pain in the ass. Just treat him like anyone else.