Scoop: BMW 5-Series GT to get a Makeover, but Don't Except Miracles…

The only other BMW vehicle we can think of that has received so much flack for its looks as the 5-Series Gran Turismo or GT for short, is the Chris Bangle-era 7-Series E65 (codenamed E66 for the LWB variants).

And from the looks of things, we somehow don't think this will change with the mid-life facelift BMW is preparing for the 5-Series GT and which will incorporate a similar suite of subtle styling and possibly mechanical upgrades to the rest of the 2014 model 5-Series sedan and Touring variants.

Read more »

BMW 116d EfficientDynamics Records 103MPG UK – 2.7lt/100km in RAC Challenge

A latest generation BMW 116d EfficientDynamics hatch driven by the team at Green-Car-Guide at the RAC Future Car Challenge 2012 achieved an average fuel economy of 103 mpg UK (equal to 85.8 mpg US and 2.7lt/100km) over the 64-mile Brighton to London route, recording a 39 per cent improvement over the manufacturer's official 74.3mpg UK combined economy figure. Read more »

Watch BMW's Optional M Performance Steering Wheel with Race Display in Action

Some might say it is a yet another gimmick and a distraction or one more electronic accessory to worry about, but BMW and German motorsports expert and race driver Tim Schrick, beg to differ claiming that the firm's M Performance Steering Wheel with a race display is what the doctor ordered for enthusiasts. Read more »

BMW Group and Toyota to Each Donate $1 Million for Hurricane Sandy Relief Efforts

With a simple press statement, the North American division of the BMW Group announced that it will donate the amount of $1 million to million to the American Red Cross for disaster relief in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.

"This donation will help the Red Cross give aid to the many who are in need in the affected areas," said Ludwig Willisch, CEO and President, BMW of North America.

Read more »

G-Power's BMW 1 M Coupe with 591HP Supercharged V8 will Put Hair on Your Chest

The original BMW 1 M Coupe sporting a 335hp (340PS) 3.0-liter turbocharged six is the fastest regular production 1-Series model money can get, but if you are willing to spend a small fortune, you can turn it into something much faster and far, far more brutal in every way. Read more »

Kahn Design Meets the BMW X6 Crossover and Gives it a Muscular Makeover

We are accustomed to A. Kahn Design (formerly known as Project Kahn, for those of you wondering) working its styling touch on various Land Rover SUVs, but BMW tunes are far more rare for the British company.

Scheduled for a release in the forthcoming weeks, is Kahn's elaborate styling package for the BMW X6 that brings many changes to both the exterior and the interior of the Bavarian brand's sports crossover.

Read more »

Scoop: New BMW X5M Makes Another Quick Pass for the Camera

The next BMW X5 M is increasing its public appearances on the road allowing automotive paparazzi to capture fresh footage and pictures of the prototype models, which for the most part, remain heavily camouflaged.

The F15 generation of the X5 series in general, will take an evolutionary styling step, with the M-prepped model to gain the usual cosmetic trinkets such as bespoke bumpers, bigger alloy wheels, flared fenders, spoilers, a rear diffuser and the traditional four-pipe exhaust system.

Read more »

Sandy Super Storm: Bentley Continental GTC Convertible Driver Thinks he Owns a Boat

New videos shot during the cataclysmic Hurricane and then Post-Tropical Storm Sandy that unleashed it power on the Mid-Atlantic and New England Coasts this week are constantly popping up on the web.

In this clip filmed by a one "Gianni F", who along with his friend, was navigating through the flooded roads of Bayville, New York, captured several drivers including one in a Bentley Continental GTC Convertible and another in a BMW 5-Series sedan playing with their expensive wheel's fate and…insurance premiums.

Read more »

Spied: BMW Takes 2014 5-Series Sedan Out for a Ride in the Open

After the recent sighting of the revamped 2014 BMW 5-Series Touring, we knew that it was only a matter of time before our scoop photographers caught on to a prototype of the four-door sedan model.

Naturally, the subtle mid-life makeover will bring the same styling updates to both body-styles.

Even though these early prototypes may not be telling us the whole truth, we suspect that BMW designers will make some subtle styling revisions to the 5-Series' headlamps, the double kidney grille, the rear light clusters and the bumpers.

Read more »

BMW to Debut M Performance 3-Series Touring Line at Essen Motor Show

About a month after the SEMA Show that kicks off today, Europe will have its own aftermarket festival in the guise of the 45th annual Essen Motor Show, which takes place in Germany from December 1 to 9.

The BMW brand will be there with a host of production and racing models including its full M Performance range and Original BMW Accessories lineup.

Read more »

Ford Comes in Second Last in Consumer Reports’ 2012 Auto Reliability Survey [w/Video]

Two years ago, Ford was included in the Top 10 of Consumer Reports’ (CR) annual reliability survey, with more than 90 percent of its range rated average or better.

In the 2012 survey, however, you’ll have to look a long way down to find the Blue Oval: it occupies the next-to-last place as it finished 27th out of 28 brands rated, and its Lincoln luxury division is just one place ahead.

"Ford's bumpy road can be seen in the numbers. Sixty percent of Ford-branded models and half of Lincolns were below average in predicted reliability and none placed above average," said Jake Fisher, director of automotive testing for Consumer Reports.

Read more »

BMW Recalling 7-Series for Rollaway Threat and for Doors that May Open by Themselves

Bad news for several thousand owners of BMW's previous flagship model, the E65 and E66 7-Series sedan, which is the one featuring the pronounced boot(ie) that came to be known sarcastically as the "Bangle Butt."

The Bavarian carmaker filed two separate recalls on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) website, the first concerning a transmission flaw that could cause the car to roll away, and the other, because of a faulty software concerning the door latches.

Read more »

Listen Up: New 2014 BMW M3 Hisses and Growls on the Nürburgring Track

Here's some fresh spy footage of the upcoming, fifth iteration of BMW's highly successful M3 series that dates back to the classic E30 model of the mid-1980s.

The video, which comes to us courtesy of F30 Post, shows the new M3 in four-door sedan configuration running a few hot lamps around the Nürburgring Nordschleife racetrack, as BMW M's engineers fine tune the car's F30 chassis and its new turbocharged straight-six engine, the first of its kind to be used in the series.

Read more »

Oops…Large Crane Falls and Crushes Rare Jaguar XKR-S and BMW 6-Series Coupes

An automotive dealer from the small Belgium village Gits was in for a nasty surprise earlier this week when a large crane trying to position a huge fuel tank for a new gas station being built right next to his shop tipped over and crushed a pair of cars parked on the lot.

The two vehicles were a rare Jaguar XKR-S coupe (the 2008 model), of which only 200 examples were built for the European market and one he reportedly had just…sold for €150,000 (US$194,000), and a previous generation BMW 630i Coupe.

Read more »

Stormbringer: BMW Celebrates 25 Years of 12-Cylinder Engines [49 Photos]

Just like Deep Purple sang in Soldier of Fortune, I feel I’m growing older. Not only because of the receding hairline (or what’s left of it, anyway), the back-aches or my firstborn being less than a year away from high school, but also because BMW has just informed us that its creamy V12 has being powering the top versions of the 7-Series flagship saloon for no less than a quarter of a century.

Some of you may point out that other engines, like Porsche’s flat-six, have been around for much longer, while others may wonder what the big fuss is all about. Hopefully, not too many of you reading this article prefer Justin Bieber to Ritchie Blackmore and David Coverdale.

No matter; on February 1987, seven years before the inexplicably successful young singer was born, BMW released the technical specifications of its then brand-new V12 engine that would power the range-topping 750i and make its debut a month later at the Geneva Motor Show.

Read more »

New 2013 BMW M3 Coupe Frozen Limited Edition will Set You Back Over $76k

The sales directors at BMW's M department seem to have found the golden goose in the form of special edition models sporting added standard features and unique shades.

Less than a month after BMW began U.S. deliveries of the 200 examples of its 2013 M3 Lime Rock Park Edition, the Bavarian company came out today with another special series of the V8-powered coupe.

This one is named the 2013 M3 Frozen Limited Edition and for the most part, it's very similar to last year's 2012 M3 Competition Edition of which only 40 units were made available to U.S. customers.

Read more »

Spy Shots: BMW Preparing 5-Series for its First Facelift

It seems like yesterday that BMW debuted the sixth generation of the 5-Series, but it's actually been three years since the launch of the sedan model that was followed in 2010 by the presentation of the more spacious and practical Touring variant.

BMW's three to four year facelift cycle means that the 5-Series is approaching this stage; hence, the appearance of the first prototype models on the road.

Read more »

Audi S8 vs. BMW Alpina B7: Which One is the King of the Road?

For decades now, German carmakers have dominated the premium segments from top to bottom with only a few notable exceptions questioning their 'authorita' along the way.

Two of the most successful luxury brands from the land of engineering excellence are BMW and Audi, both of which offer a high performance version of their flagship limousines.

Audi chose to go alone to create the S8 sports sedan, which it equipped with the most potent version of its new 4.0-liter TFSI V8 pushing out 513hp (520PS) and 479 lb-ft (648Nm) of peak torque towards all four wheels via an 8-speed automatic transmission and a permanent all-wheel drive system.

Read more »

BMW Details Plans on Brazilian Factory, will Produce 30,000 Cars Per Year Starting from 2014

Brazil seems to be the new Eldorado (or Shanghai…) for carmakers, especially those active in the premium segments. The BMW Group is next in line to take advantage of the country's growing economy by building a new manufacturing facility to boost its local sales.

After a meeting with Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff in the capital city of Brasilia, on Monday, BMW board member Ian Robertson confirmed the company's plans.

Read more »

Watch Chris Harris Compare the New BMW M135i Against the Audi RS3

Chris Harris put his hands on two of Europe's fastest and most powerful hot hatches, the Audi RS3 and the newly arrived BMW M135i.

Believe it or not, in the UK, at £39,950 (US$64,100 / €49,200), the Audi RS3 is roughly 25 percent more expensive than BMW's newly arrived M135i hot hatch, which will set British buyers back £29,995 (US$48,150 / €36,900).

Read more »