2012 BMW 3 Series

BMW has already started to test the next 3 Series platform in the current generation body style, so this tells us that the final design will be chosen very soon.

As we learned from sources close to BMW, we are still a year away from the time the first 2012 3 Series prototypes will hit the road for testing and the final design will be chosen this spring.

Sources have reported Teknikensvarld that the next BMW 3 Series will be based on the CS Concept design language.

If indeed they are correct, then the rendering makes more sense. We will definitely see a larger front-grille and a flat “nose”, needed to comply with the pedestrian regulations.

The “corona-ring” headlights will replace the current style, but still keeping an angular shape, somewhat similar to what the next 5 Series will have. The hood design seen in the newly released 5 Series GT and even the current M3 models, will be without a doubt present in the new design. The two side creases will flow towards the headlights, giving the new 3er an even more aggressive look.

The 2012 BMW 3 Series platform, codename F35, will have a longer wheelbase and a wider track width, as seen in the spy shots.

As far as the technology and engine line-up, we should see a lot of the EfficientDynamics brand all over the 3er, by offering the start-stop technology, KERS and other energy efficient features. A 3er hybrid coming? Teknikensvarld’s sources seem to indicate that, but of course, this will be pure speculation at this point.

What we know for sure and reported before is that BMW will invest heavily into a new telemetrics system, NGTP, that will provide a variety of wireless services, including a faster response to help distressed passengers. Teknikensvarld also reports that the system could be retrofitted into older models.

Obviously, the 3 Series represents the core of BMW’s sales, so they have no other option but getting the design right. So far, they did just fine with their previous 3ers…..

Thanks for the tip Oscar!

Source: http://www.bmwblog.com/

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BMW Recalls 89,000 Mini Coopers for Fire Risk

NEW YORK -- BMW is recalling 89,000 Mini Coopers in the United States for the same sort of problem that led to earlier recalls of BMW and Rolls-Royce luxury cars.

The problem, in all the recalls, is that a computer circuit board controlling a turbocharger cooling system can fail. The result: a smoldering water pump and, in some cases, a fire in the engine compartment.

The turbo cooling system in the Mini Coopers operates differently from that in the BMW and Rolls-Royce cars, according to a letter BMW sent to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Nevertheless, some turbocharged Mini cars have caught fire in the same way the larger cars did.

BMW is still investigating whether the cause of the problem is related or just coincidental, Mini spokeswoman Nathalie Bauters said. Germany's BMW AG (BAMXF) owns and operates all three car brands.

There have been 81 cases of water pump failure in Mini Coopers globally so far, Bauters said, including four engine compartment fires. No accidents or injuries have been reported as a result of this issue.

Worldwide, the Mini recall covers a total of 235,535 cars, Bauters said.

Cars being recalled include some model year 2007 through 2011 Mini Cooper S hatchbacks and convertibles; Mini Cooper Clubman S (the longer three-door Mini); and Mini Cooper Countryman S (the larger, four-door SUV Mini); as well as John Cooper Works high-performance versions of the Mini Cooper. Non-turbocharged Minis are not involved in the recall.

Mini Cooper dealers will replace auxiliary water pumps on the recalled cars.

Previously, BMW had recalled 32,000 BMW cars and 600 Rolls-Royces for possible turbo-related fires.  

source: http://www.ktla.com/

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Eight Ferraris Crash at ‘Gathering of Narcissists’

Eight Ferraris and a Lamborghini were part of a 14-car crash in Japan yesterday that wrecked more than $1 million of vehicles.

“The accident occurred when the driver of a red Ferrari was switching from the right lane to the left and skidded,” said Mitsuyoshi Isejima, executive officer for Yamaguchi Prefecture’s Expressway Traffic Police unit. “It was a gathering of narcissists.” The drivers were aged between 37 and 60 years old, he said.

The accident, at 10:16 a.m. on the rain-soaked Chugoku Expressway in Yamaguchi Prefecture at the western tip of Japan’s main island of Honshu, also involved three Mercedes Benz (DAI) vehicles and twoToyotas, police said. The convoy was heading from Kyushu to Hiroshima when the accident occurred. No fatalities were reported and 10 people sustained bruising and minor injuries.

The person suspected of causing the accident, a 60-year-old self-employed man from Fukuoka prefecture, may face up to three months in jail or a fine of as much as 100,000 yen ($1,280), said Isejima. The accident included a Ferrari F-360 that costs more than 18 million yen. It took longer than six hours to clear the highway of wreckage, Isejima said.

TV footage showed a Ferrari that had plowed into the outer guard rail, while another one had its engine bonnet almost ripped off.

Ferrari SpA, a unit of Fiat SpA (F), sold 493 cars in Japan last year, down from 548 in 2009, according to the website of the Japan Automobile Importers Association. All eight Ferraris involved in the accident were registered in Kyushu, police said. Miki Kataoka, a spokeswoman for Ferrari in Japan, declined to comment on the crash.

Source: Bloomberg.com

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BMW G-Power X5 Typhoon RS

With 625 HP the worlds strongest BMW SUV! Brawny wing extensions and strikingly formed front- and rear skirts qualified for maximum aerodynamic efficiency, mark the appearance of the G-POWER TYPHOON RS. The body alteration in OEM-quality made of PU-rim has been developed by the G-POWER designers by using state-of-the-art CAD technology. Therefore, the basic car has been entirely digitalised with a 3D-scanner on G-Powers company premises.

Source: http://www.carworld.my/

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