Archive for BMW

Here’s another batch of teaser images for the production BMW X1 SUV that BMW has uploaded to the BMW X1 Facebook page. This set shows us the rear taillamps in a classic BMW L-shaped design, a shot of the interior featuring the steering wheel, paddle shift, meter panel and engine start button, the rear exhaust tailpipe, and finally a shot of the hood from the top. Looks good so far, but notice that the steering wheel of the X1 looks more like the old type of BMW steering found in the E60/E90 generation of cars, instead of the F01’s new style with thumb scrollers.

Check out the other 3 images after the jump.

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Click here to read the rest of Latest batch of BMW X1 teasers from Facebook

The 2010 model year BMW 7-Series will have a few list of changes to the model line-up. I’m sure you can guess some of them already since we already looked at the M-Sport kit and the potential for a twin-turbo diesel engine to be added to the line-up, but here are the full official details.

First of all will be the addition of the 740d to the line-up, complementing the 730d. The 740d is also a 3.0 liter engine but unlike the one in the 730d, it features two turbochargers, differently sizes but complementing each other. The 740d’s engine makes 306 horsepower and 600Nm of torque, making it the second most torquey 7-Series around, smack between the 760Li’s 750Nm and the 750Li’s 580Nm. 0 to 100km/h takes only 6.3 seconds.

Next up is an option for a BluePerformance system to be fitted to the 730d. BluePerformance makes the car comply with Euro6, which is expected to be adopted in 2014. The regular diesel particulates filter and the oxidation catalyst is supplemented by an NOx storage catalyst. This brings down emissions to 178g/km of CO2.

The 3.0 liter single turbodiesel engine has also had some mild refinement, boosting economy up to 41.5mpg for the F01 and 40.9mpg on the F02, and emissions down to 178g/km for F01 and 180g/km for F02. This is a 7.3% reduction in emissions and nearly 6% improvement in fuel efficiency. As a result, the 730d drops into the band I vehicle excise duty tier.

On 7-Series cars equipped with EfficientDynamics brake energy regeneration, there will be a new graphic display (a blue arrow) next to the fuel consumption indicator in the lower half of the rev counter which tells the driver when electric power is being generated during braking/engine overrun.

The 750i and 750Li powered by the 4.4 liter twin-turbo V8 engine will receive xDrive, BMW’s intelligent all-wheel drive system. This is in line with alot of manufacturers such as even Lexus adding all-wheel drive to their flagship limos. The Russians will love it. xDrive splits power between the front and rear axle 40:60 on a straight road, but up to 80% can go to the rear axle in a bend.

Lastly is the new M-Sport package you see above. It includes the new front and rear bumper with chrome trim, an illuminated M entry trim and high-gloss shadowline trim on the side profile (such as the windows). There will be an exclusive paintjob called Carbon Black Metallic. Wheels are 19 inch in size by default, with optional 20 inch units.

On the interior you get sports seats, an M steering wheel, an M footrest, Anthracite BMW Individual roof lining (V12 models get Alcantara material), and the traditional aluminium interior trim, except the V12 models which get wood. This kit is available on all models.

Look after the jump for a few hi-res photos.

Click here to read the rest of F01/F02 BMW 7-Series gets updated with new 740d, xDrive and M-Sport kit!

Munich-based premium auto maker BMW, has introduced two new engines for the 1-Series, as well as two special edition versions for the ’smallest’ BMW, called the Lifestyle and Sport Editions. Before we move on to these new editions, lets take a look at the new powerplants.

First up is the new 2.0 liter four-cylinder with BMW High Precision Injection (direct gasoline injection) that is capable of outputting 170HP at 6,700 revs and 210Nm of pulling power at 4,250 revs. This new engine is offered with the BMW 120i Coupe, and can help accelerate the coupe to 100 km/h in 7.8 seconds, up to a top speed of 224 km/h. Average fuel consumption in the EU test cycle is 6.6 liters per 100 kilometers, while emissions rating is figured at 153 grams per kilometer.

Lastly there is a 2.0-litre turbo diesel, sold under the BMW 118d Coupe designation. This engine with its aluminium crankcase and common-rail fuel injection is the same one used in the three-door BMW 118d, that went on to win the World Green Car of the Year 2008 Award. The powerplant pumps out 143HP at 4,000 revs and 300Nm of torque, between 1,750 and 2,500 revs. The BMW 118d Coupe takes 9.0 second to reach 100 km/h, and goes on to a top speed of 210 km/h. Average fuel consumption is rated at 4.5 liters per 100 kilometers (EU standard) and it outputs 119 grams of emissions per kilometer.

Now to the special editions. Both the Lifestyle and Sport Editions are available on all engine variants of the three-door and five-door 1-Series. With the Lifestyle Edition, you get a Marrakesh Brown Metallic body finish (including additional components in body colour), chrome-plated tailpipes, 17-inch light-alloy wheels in five-spoke design and window shaft covers and side window surrounds in finished in Shadow Line for the five-door while the same components are finished in Chrome Line for the three-door.

The interior is finished with Chrome entry trim carrying the “BMW Edition” designation, leather sports steering wheel with multifunction buttons, as well as roof lining in anthracite colour. The interior is also treated to a Marrakesh Brown colour scheme that matches the exterior paint finish.

The exterior of the Sport Edition features, an M Sports Package including the M Aerodynamics Package, a sports suspension set-up as well as 17-inch light-alloy wheels in dual-spoke design (18-inch light-alloy wheels in Ferric Grey optionally available). More upgrades include Blackline rear lights, certain exterior features in body colour, Shadow Line on the window shaft covers and side window surrounds, foglamps and chrome-plated tailpipes on the exhaust round off the striking look of the exterior.

On the inside, the Sport Edition gets a chrome-plated entry trim bearing the name “BMW Edition”, stainless-steel pedals, an M footrest, an M sports steering wheel, an M gearshift lever complete with its gaiter made of soft nappa leather, interior trim in Aluminium Glacier Silver and roof lining in anthracite colour. It also comes with sports seats for the driver and front passenger in a combination of cloth and Sensatec featuring blue ornamental stitching around the seat bottoms and headrests. Lastly, the mats are finished with blue pipping.

BMW also revealed that the optional navigation system for the BMW 1-Series now comes with the auto maker’s new generation BMW iDrive electronic vehicle management. There is also the Business navigation system with its new control concept allowing even easier and more precise control through iDrive featuring direct choice and favourite buttons. There is also a new Control Display with 800 x 480 pixel screen resolution. Continue reading to view high-res images of the Lifestyle and Sport Editions.

Click here to read the rest of BMW adds two new engines for the 1-Series Coupe and reveals the Lifestyle and Sport Editions

New details have emerged regarding Munich’s next generation BMW 1-Series. Apparently, the new 1-Series that is expected to hit the market in 2011 will be offered in a four-door sedan (for the US market) as well as a GT version, apart from the coupe, five-door, three-door and convertible variants.

Words are also being exchanged that the new 1-Series will have a 2-seater Roadster in its line up since the recently launched BMW Z4 has grown in size, but who knows? Powerplant wise, there will be a few as expected, but these engines will be treated to BMW’s EfficientDynamics program, meaning turbocharging smaller engines.

Sizes include, a 110HP – 160HP 1.6 liter turbo, a 150 – 200HP 2.0 turbo as well as a top of the line 300HP variant, that is said to be the closest there is for an ‘M’ version, although the auto maker did reveal that there will not be a 1-Series M. The image you see above is a rendering of the new 1-Series made by Giom Mouton.

An initial set of 4 photos of the new M-Sport kit for the F01 BMW 7-Series have been released onto the internet. On the front you get a new bumper with wider air intakes, and rather large pieces of chrome flanking the top of the left and right bumper air intake, kinda like how the pre-LCI E90 and 6-Series had chrome at the top of their kidney grilles.

The M-Sport kit also comes with its own set of wheels, which are of 5 double spoke design. These show off the disc brakes nicely, especially if you upgrade them to some nicer looking cross-drilled ones later, perhaps an offering from BMW Performance?

The design of the rear bumper mimics the front – an equal amount of chrome treatment. All that extra chrome probably makes up for the lack of chrome around the windows, instead replaced with “shadowline” trim. And instead of wood trim, the interior gets the aluminium panels that’s been so associated with modern M-Sport BMWs.

BMW will probably introduce the 7-Series M-Sport officially with a new engine variants. When the F01/F02 was released, it only had one diesel engine, the new all-aluminium crank 3.0 liter turbodiesel with a single turbo. There is also a twin turbodiesel around but it was not offered with the F01.

BMW must have been waiting for an update to that engine before slotting it in, and the time is probably here. They’ve just announced that their twin-turbodiesel engine has been upgraded from 286hp and 480Nm up to 306hp and 600Nm, with the latter number from as low as 1,500rpm. The car with this engine will probably be called the 740d M-Sport.

When BMW first announced that the BMW Sauber F1 team would be implementing electric KERS, they had this to say: “The BMW Group can transfer the knowledge gained within the BMW Sauber F1 Team directly into the development of standard production vehicles. This makes Formula One the ideal pre-development platform for innovative drive technologies.”

And it looks like it really happened after all! It seems that the next generation F10 BMW M5 will have a type of KERS system! Scott27, a BMW insider of sorts on the German Car Zone forums has revealed that the final engine to be slotted into the next generation F10 BMW M5 has not quite been decided yet. But what is confirmed is a kind of KERS system that will be exclusive to the M5. It will forge a big link between BMW M and BMW’s EfficientDynamics program because it will be taking what is essentially wasted energy but recycling it and turning it into power.

As BMW’s F1 cars uses a electric implementation of KERS, the BMW M5’s KERS system will likely use Brake Energy Regeneration to recover energy and store it via some kind of battery of supercapacitor system. This energy can then power a high-powered motor that can boost up power by a certain amount for a few seconds.

The F1 car’s KERS system weighs under 40kg and stores enough energy under braking for 60kW of output for 6.5 seconds. BMW picked an electric KERS system instead of a mechanical (flywheel-based) or a hydraulic system (abandoned) likely because it was already using similiar technology in the EfficientDynamics program and it would be easier to transfer the knowledge gained to production road cars.

Back to the engine – there are two engine options being evaluated right now. One is very likely some form of tuned up version of the same M TwinPower Turbo V8 engine in the X5 M and X6 M, but the other is something a little more exciting than that, though it was not revealed towards which option management is leaning towards.

The E89 BMW Z4 is now here in Malaysia, offered in two variants – the sDrive23i and the sDrive35i. The sDrive brand is basically BMW’s new method of naming their rear wheel drive cars that do not fall under the regular numbered series range. It’s meant to follow up on the xDrive suffix that was introduced on the X6, which means all-wheel drive.

The BMW Z4 sDrive23i is powered by a 2.5 liter N52 engine, producing 204 horsepower at 6,200rpm and 250Nm at 2,950rpm. That’s actually quite an impressive torque curve, as you don’t see many normally aspirated engine hitting peak torque below 3,000rpm, and the engine has Valvetronic and Double VANOS to thank for that. 0 to 100km/h takes a decent 7.3 seconds, far from blistering but within sporty ranges. The sDrive23i’s engine is mated to a 6-speed ZF automatic.

The most powerful one offered internationally for the moment (no E89 Z4 M for now or forever) is also the most powerful one brought in here, the BMW Z4 sDrive35i. This one is powered by a twin-turbocharged direct injection N54B30 engine, producing 306 horsepower at 5,800rpm and an M3-equalling 400Nm of torque between 1,300 to 5,000rpm.

0 to 100km/h takes just 5.1 seconds and the turbocharged roadster also features a 7-speed dual clutch transmission. There are only a few models that feature this – the 335i Coupe and Convertible as well as this new Z4 sDrive35i. The 135i does not get it for now. The E90/E92/E93 M3 gets a M version of the twin clutch.

Like all the new BMWs, the new hard drive-based iDrive system is used and also features BMW TeleServices. The Z4 comes with BMW Service Inclusive 3 years/60,000km + Repair), and here are the prices:

BMW Z4 sDrive23i – RM411,800.00
BMW Z4 sDrive35i – RM558,800.00

For more information on the E89 Z4, read our extensive coverage in the past.

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Click here to read the rest of BMW Z4 sDrive23i and sDrive35i launched in M’sia

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BMW must be really excited about their new found information outlet – social media. They seem to be using it to the max, as the latest on the BMW X1 Facebook Page is another BMW X1 teaser image. This one featuring a white X1 looks more like a product promo photo, it’s fully undisguised but the X1 is a blur. It could be that the photographer had something else in focus that ended up reflected in the lense

BMW’s Emergency Stop Assistant project is part of The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research’s SmartSenior program, which aims to develop intelligent services to make the lives of senior citizens easier and safer. BMW’s system is of course designed to make it safer for senior citizens to drive.

As you know, as we get older more and more health problems start to appear. Some older people may develop intermittent cardiovascular problems, and this may also apply to young people if they are unlucky or live an unhealthy lifestyle. What if you get a heart attack while driving, something that really might just happen considering the kind of traffic and bandits you have to deal with on Malaysian roads on a daily basis.

The BMW Emergency Stop Assistant system automatically activates an autonomous driving mode when it detects that the driver has a serious medical problem (through the use of driver vital sensors), and carries out a controlled emergency stop. It uses sensors around the car to detect the traffic around it to maneuver carefully to the outer edge of the road with the hazard lights on before stopping. BMW ConnectedDrive then performs and emergency call for medical and traffic assistance.

BMW will be updating the voice control system for the optional BMW Navigation Professional system in cars beginning September 2009 with a latest version that promises more natural interaction with your car.

The BMW New Voice Control system allows one single voice command to completely transmit the driver’s destination into the navigation system. The driver’s verbal statement specifying the place, street and number is processed immediately by the system, all data going directly into the navigation unit.

A driver can say “Berlin, Willy-Brandt-Strasse 1” and the navigation system will automatically translate this into the Federal Chancellery in the capital of Germany, and begin navigation directions to the destination. This means the system has an edge over Mercedes-Benz’s LINGUATRONIC, because it is able to “understand” a complete address entry.

You can also use it to control the entertainment system. It monitors and interprets the user’s voice commands regarding the type of music, the name of the artist, an album or an individual title.

Look after the jump for a video of how it works.

Click here to read the rest of BMW Voice Control improves the way you talk to your car’s navigation and entertainment system