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Local Motors launches Pacific Northwest competition

Local Motors' 20th design competition, themed 'Thrive in the Elements,' opens for submissions starting today, 17 March. The new American car company is calling for entrants to design a car based around the four core elements: Earth, wind, fire and water; challenging designers to create a vehicle that will 'inspire Pacific Northwesterners to thrive'. The deadline for entries is 30 March 2010.

Lotus Elise S Cup R poised for US consumption

Lotus can’t sell its road cars in North America anymore (dang safety regulations!), but that won’t stop them from sending some hardcore track vehicles here for the true enthusiasts. Enter the Lotus Elise S Cup R. The Cup R variant of the Elise sports a 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine, delivering 217 hp and 181 lb-ft of torque with help from a Magnuson R900 supercharger.

Audi R8 V10 5.2 FSI quattro – stunning CGI

Audi has created a stunning CGI video of the R8 V10 (below) As we’ve said a thousand times before, there is no substitute for actually driving a car. However hard we try at Cars UK to tell you what a car is like, and endless photos to show you every angle and nuance in the design, it’s still a narrow experience. Video gets much closer and you get a good feel for a car by watching a video.