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BMW
BMW Will Sell Its Electric Cars in U.S.
By John O'Dell November 21, 2011BMW said it will be launching sales of its i3 electric city car and i8 plug-in hybrid sports car in North America at the same time the cars go on sale in Europe – the BMW i3 in 2013 and the BMW i8 a year later. The automaker, which previously had said only that the cars would be sold in Germany, first introduced them – in concept form – in Frankfurt last summer. Their North American debuts came last week at the media preview of at the Los Angeles auto show, which is now open to the publicy. more
BMW Will Debut Production i8 Plug-In In 2014
By Danny King November 17, 2011BMW will debut a production version of its i8 plug-in hybrid sports car (left) in 2014, the year after it launches the production version of its previously announced battery-electric i3 city car (right), BMW North America CEO Ludwig Willisch said in a presentation at the Los Angeles Auto Show. He said the i8, which in its auto show concept form has an electric motor driving the front wheels and a three-cylinder turbocharged engine powering the rear, will get about 78 miles per gallon. BMW hasn't said whether it has plans to market either car in the United States. more
BMW To Offer 3 Series Hybrid In U.S. Next Fall
By Scott Doggett October 19, 2011Buried in BMW's introduction last week of its highly anticipated sixth-generation 2012 3 Series sedan was the fact that the German automaker will offer its most popular series with an all-new hybrid powertrain starting next fall. The 2012 BMW ActiveHybrid 3, which the carmaker is touting as the world's first hybrid at the premium end of the sports sedan market, will feature a 6-cylinder engine and electric drive that together achieve a claimed 36.7 miles per gallon on the European test cycle. That amounts to a fuel savings 12.5 percent greater than the standard gas-powered 2012 3 Series sedan, more
BMW Unveils Sixth-Generation 3 Series
By Michelle Krebs October 14, 2011For consumer-electronics techies, October 14, 2011 marked the long-awaited arrival of the Apple iPhone 4s, but in Munich, Germany, it was the day the BMW Group officially introduced the highly-anticipated sixth-generation of its all-important 3 Series sedan. Appropriate for the car that accounts for one of every three vehicles BMW sells, the unveiling was an extravaganza that was streamed live via social media outlet Facebook. The event opened with a tribute to the more than 10,000 workers who have assembled the car in the heart of Munich since the first 3 Series was introduced in 1975. A sampling of more
BMW Will Start Selling 5-Series Hybrid in March
By Danny King October 4, 2011BMW said it will start selling a performance-oriented hybrid version of its 5-series sedan next March, as the German automaker looks to make another attempt at the luxury-hybrid market after discontinuing its ActiveHybrid X6 crossover. Based the 535i sedan, BMW's ActiveHybrid 5 will pair the sedan's turbocharged in-line six-cylinder engine with an electric motor that combined will deliver 335 horsepower and propel the car from 0 to 60 miles per hour in 5.7 seconds. While BMW will announce pricing closer to the March 24 launch, BMW spokesman Dave Buchko told AutoObserver said the model, aimed at the core BMW more
BMW Discontinues ActiveHybrid X6 SUV
By Danny King September 21, 2011BMW is discontinuing sales of its ActivHybrid X6 hybrid SUV. BMW is the second high-end German automaker this year to decide against a continuing a hybrid option for one of its SUVs after failing to find much of a market stateside. BMW spokesman Dave Buchko confirmed to AutoObserver that the ActiveHybrid X6 (above) won't be sold in the U.S. for the 2012 model year. The gas-electric SUV featured a so-called two-mode hybrid system developed in cooperation with General Motors and Daimler several years ago and also used in GM’s poor-selling pickup and large SUV hybrids. more
BMW Invests $725 Million In U.K. Mini Plants
By Danny King June 10, 2011BMW will invest $725 million to upgrade its U.K. factories for Mini production and confirmed that the brand's next-generation vehicles, such as the Mini Coupe (above) and Mini Roadster, will be produced there. The German automaker will invest in Mini's vehicle-assembly plant in Oxford, pressings plant in Swindon and engine factory near Birmingham, BMW said in a statement Thursday. BMW, which has invested about $1.45 billion in U.K. Mini production since 2000, has produced almost 2 million Minis at the Oxford factory and made more than 216,000 Minis there last year. Through the first five months of the year, more
BMW iVentures Launches Sub Brand
By John O'Dell April 4, 2011BMW, aiming to expand its reach beyond the driving enthusiast group that makes up its core audience, says it will spend up to $100 million over the next decade investing in personal mobility opportunities that could take it well beyond the automotive sphere. The investing will be done by the newly formed BMW iVentures. The global investment fund, headquartered in New York, was launched in part to help develop opportunities for BMW's new "i" sub-brand for electric vehicles. more
Can Fiat 500 Follow In Mini Cooper's Tracks?
By Karl Brauer February 17, 2011The Fiat 500 and Mini Cooper comparisons are inevitable. Read anything about the Fiat 500, set to go on sale at 120 U.S. Chrysler dealerships this month, you'll see the words 'Mini Cooper.' According to the automotive press, and happily supported by both Chrysler and Fiat, the upcoming 500 will simply follow in the successful tracks of the Mini Cooper that landed on these shores in the spring of 2002. more