Auto and Cars

Legends Face Off: MINI Cooper vs VW Beetle in Auto Express Test Two of the most iconic and important cars in the history of the automobile also happen to be some of the smallest; the Volkswagen Beetle and the Mini Cooper. The former proved to the world that cheap, reliable transportation was not only a possibility but that it could be made available to the masses (even if the Beetle did have a touch of Nazi influence) and the latter proved that that same small, reliable transportation could also be fun. After decades of producing essentially the same cars, both Volkswagen and Mini stopped production on their respective icons, for different reasons. However, both cars were eventually resurrected; the Beetle was brought back by Volkswagen and became the New Beetle and BMW bought the right...

This BMW M850i Gran Coupe in Carbon Black Metallic looks stunning This BMW M850i Gran Coupe radiates an exciting mix of dynamism and elegance with a unique configuration that can currently be seen at the BMW Abu Dhabi Motors. The top of the line BMW 8 Series Gran Coupe is painted in the Carbon Black Metallic color which is one of the most stunning paint jobs offered by BMW. The blueish looking paint enhances the elegant lines of the four-door coupe and reminds us why this is one of the best looking BMWs today. Furthermore, the dark metallic paint is combined with the accents of the carbon package for the exterior. So future owners of this combination will get an equally luxurious and sporty-looking car. The kidney surround in high-gloss black is combined, among other things, with the s...

2019 is Almost Over — What was the Best BMW of the Decade? Now that 2019 is soon coming to a close, we’re nearing the end of not just the year but the decade. The twenty-teens will be remembered for a lot of interesting things, spanning everything from social media to movies to politics. However, it was also a huge decade for the automobile. The car industry has made massive changes over the course of these ten years, with BMW being one of the brands to change the most. Think about this for a second: in 2011, BMW fans were complaining about the 1 Series M having a turbocharged, non-M engine. Now, there’s a BMW M8 with two turbochargers, all-wheel drive and a brake-by-wire system. So BMW has changed a lot over the course of the past decade. Which begs the question — whi...

BMWBLOG Podcast Episode 11 — BMW 1M vs M2 CS, BMW X8 and More The holiday season is nearing its end, as we approach the new year in just a few days. Being the end of the year and the holiday season, most people are in slow motion at the moment, wanting to sit back and unwind, rather than commute to work in the morning. For those of you that do need to make that morning commute, or need something to listen to to make the work day go faster, we’ve got you covered. For about a half hour, at least. Our latest episode of the BMWBLOG Podcast is now live and it’s here to help you make it through the rest of this work week. In this latest episode, we talk about a few interesting topics surrounding the BMW brand. For starters, I discuss a topic that we had talked about last week and ...

Video: How to adjust Lane Changing warning system settings With the advancement of driving assistants, which are meant to become so smart they should allow cars to drive themselves, using the systems we have today can become a bit of a nuisance. Car makers are adding more and more driving assistants and active safety features to their cars, some willingly, others forced by various laws around the world. Most BMWs today come with Lane Changing warning systems and their level of sophistication depends on the options you tick when configuring your car. Having driven a number of BMWs recently, I noticed how these systems became more and more complicated. And also a bit more annoying. I, for one, don’t keep every single system turned on. Steering intervention is the most annoying featu...

Report: BMW i6 in the works, but likely not true A new report has surfaced recently, claiming that BMW is not only working on the iX3, iNext and i4 models but another all-electric model as well aimed at the four-door coupe niche. This new report, coming from Italy, claims the BMW i6 is now in development and will target cars like the Porsche Taycan, Audi e-tron GT or the Mercedes-Benz EQS. Of course, one couldn’t rule out the Tesla Model S from this list too. According to the report from Autoblog.it, the new BMW i6 would have a four-door coupe body style inspired by the BMW i Vision Dynamics. The problem with that is that the BMW i4 is already doing that. BMW has also confirmed that the i4 will basically be an electric 4 Series Gran Coupe inspired by the concept unveiled last year...

Video: Toyota Supra laps Nurburgring faster than Z4 M40i, M2 Competition Ever since BMW and Toyota announced their collaboration will spawn two cars, sharing a lot of their underpinnings, the world has been hellbent on comparing them. Truth be told, the Toyota Supra and the BMW Z4 do have a lot in common. Even the infotainment system inside the Toyota looks like and older version of BMW’s iDrive. So yes, the comparisons might be warranted, especially considering the fact that the engine is virtually the same. The video below shows a run done on the Nurburgring aboard the Toyota Supra with legendary journalist Christian Gebhardt from Sport Auto behind the wheel. You’re more than welcome to check it all out as it does include some awesome skills from Gebhart. Furthermore, you ...

Hamann teases full tuning program for 2020 BMW X4 The BMW X4 in its second iteration has been around for quite some time now. And yet, one of BMW’s oldest collaborators and specialized tuners out there, Hamann, was yet to release tuning parts for it. That changed this week as the tuner posted a few pictures online, teasing a potential full kit for the new X4. The kit that would cover every aspect of the car. For now though, we’ll have to make due with a teaser. The pictures below showcase the changes done to enhance the look of the BMW X4 with some very well picked out parts. Up front, the X4 tuned by Hamann features a new front bumper spoiler. This one seems to be usable solely on cars using the M Sport package, judging by its shape. Yet, It does make the car feel more aggr...

SPIED: 2020 BMW iX3 spotted, first look at the interior design Earlier this week, the forthcoming 2020 BMW iX3 electric SAV has been captured while it was stopped for “refueling”. The new BMW iX3 will be the pioneer of the electrified wave of models. It will also be the very first all-electric model to use the fifth generation of the BMW eDrive technology. The high-voltage battery unit with typical prismatic design of the new BMW iX3 is an integral part of the 5th eDrive generation. The new battery features an efficient, high-density architecture, which reduces the overall weight and increases storage capacity. The net energy content is calculated at 74 kWh (gross capacity 75 kWh), which is enough to ensure a range of over 440 km in WLTP cycle. The estimated energy consumpt...

Report: BMW probed by S.E.C. over sales reporting Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg and other publications are reporting that BMW of North America is allegedly under the scrutiny of the S.E.C. The report says that BMW is facing an investigation in the United States by the Securities and Exchange Commission over a practice known as sales punching in the U.S. Sale punching occurs when a company boosts sales figures by having dealers register loaner vehicles delivered to dealerships are reported as purchases to improve sales figures. BMW acknowledged the investigation, but wouldn’t comment on the specifics of the probe. “We have been contacted by the SEC and will cooperate fully with their investigation,” the spokesman told The Wall Street Journal. A spokesman for the S...

BMW G29 Z4 gets even more aggressive, thanks to a 3D Design tuning kit Tokyo-based tuning shop 3D Design is pushing the envelope once again with a new tuning kit designed for the BMW G29 Z4. The new roadster built by BMW in collaboration with Toyota already comes with aggressive looks, but there is always something more that can be done. With that in mind, 3D Design got to work and put together a tasteful tuning kit for the G29 Z4. The front-end is enhanced by a new lip spoiler made of urethan, while the rear-end is adorned with a rear diffuser in carbon fiber. The diffuser can be fit to Z4 M40i OEM exhaust as well. Furthermore, a trunk spoiler in urethan adds a bit more downforce to an already super sporty car. Speaking of the exhaust system, 3D Design decided to enhance its sound and...

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from the BMWBLOG Team! Another year is coming to a close and our favorite holiday of the year is here once again! On that occasion, the entire BMWBLOG wanted to, firstly, wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays. We hope you take some time off and spend it with your loved ones and we certainly hope that Santa was generous this year. Secondly, we once again would like to thank you for your support this year and for keeping us honest. We strive to bring you the best and most professional BMW news, and even if we fall short sometimes, we don’t give up. It has certainly been a busy year for us, for the BMW Group and for the automotive industry in general. Image: instagram.com/da.green.machine There were countless of new products and technologie...

MINI Tomboy Electric concept is your new city car obsession MINI is widely known for one main advantage it has over its rivals. And that advantage can be spotted in the name of the brand. MINI started off making small, compact, city cars. Some would argue it basically invented the niche altogether and, over the years, it ended up being widely recognized for these compact little hatches. In recent times, the Brits might’ve forgotten their way, but we definitely haven’t. The Rocketman concept was unveiled in 2011 and people responded well to it. That’s understandable as the recent trends dictate car makers of all types build and sell huge SUVs and crossovers, something that’s not exactly on MINI’s alley. Thus, when the Rocketman concept was unveiled, some peo...

Video: 1,300 HP BMW E30 M3 with 2JZ engine is a proper smoke machine The BMW E30 M3 achieved legendary status a while back. While I’m not sure whether the engineers in Munich were aware of how important their work would be for the years to come, I’m certain that they gave their best to create this iconic car. These days, prices for this piece of history are going through the roof, but only in pristine condition. Thus, the one we’re about to show you today is not of that assortment. As a matter of fact, people looking for a BMW E30 M3 would probably scroll right past it if it was posted on a car sales website. However, for those looking to actually have fun behind the wheel, it would probably be an interesting choice. That’s because this little bundle of joy has n...

Five Reasons to be Excited about the upcoming BMW i4 One of the most exciting cars in the pipeline at BMW has to be the upcoming i4. The Bavarians have been slacking a bit on the electrified front, over the past few years. While BMW has sold a lot of “electrified” cars, and recently boasted about it, those cars are mostly hybrids which all have internal combustion engines. Where BMW has slacked is in fully-electric vehicles, cars that burn not a drop of fuel of any kind. However, that’s going to soon change, as BMW is going to release no less than three all-electric models by 2021. Most importantly, the BMW i4. So let’s take a look at five reasons why you should be excited about the i4. 5. Gran Coupe Styling Everyone loves a BMW Gran Coupe. Be it the 4 Series, 6 ...

Know Your Leather: Here are the different types of BMW Leather Options When buying a new BMW, there are quite a few different leather options that can be had, depending on the model. And, if you’re like most people, you just see words like ‘Nappa Leather’ and go “Ohh, like where they make the wine. That sounds nice.” However, the different leather options in modern BMWs actually vary quite a bit, based on several different factors. So it’s worth knowing which leathers have which qualities, as that knowledge allows you to determine which BMW leather is worth the upgrade. So let’s dig in. Sensatec Entry-level BMWs don’t get real leather as-standard kit. Instead, they get a synthetic leather called Sensatec. It looks real enough and it feels ...

Analysis: BMW M2 Competition brakes vs. BMW M2 CS brakes BMW M products are emotional. That’s the slogan we’ve heard over the years and with every new product, it gets reinforced. When a new M car comes out, there are countless of posts that analyze every aspect of the car and every pound or extra bolt is part of the discussion. So naturally, when the new BMW M2 CS was launched, the BMW community got busy. The brakes setup is a hot topic today, especially when put in the context of the BMW M2 CS vs. the BMW M2 Competition. So we reached out to a friend of ours (Artemis) to shed some light on this. Here is the analysis that came out of it: M2 Competition brakes vs. M2 CS brakes: EUR-spec: The BMW M2 Competition comes standard with the smaller blue-colored brakes of the M2 and...

Video: BMW i8 Coupe goes for top speed run, feels like memory lane It’s easy sometimes to forget just how old the BMW i8 and i3 really are. It’s hard to imagine that the i8, for example, was launched in 2013 as it still looks so futuristic. Yet, it is over 6-years old, going on 7. The futuristic plug-in hybrid stands out in the crowd even today though and that’s why it’s still quite popular. As for the performance, it wasn’t meant to be a supercar in the first place. Some are saying it’s a shame BMW didn’t go with a bolder powertrain for the i8 and I agree. While I do understand why the i8 was launched with a 1.5-liter 3-cylinder engine under the proverbial hood, I think a bolder approach could’ve worked as well. The goal of the i8 was to ...

Video: BMW X3 M Competition drag races Alfa Romeo Stelvio QV It seems like everyone wants a piece of the BMW X3 M Competition. The new kid on the block is definitely in high demand and most people are interested in how it compares to its rivals in a straight line. Apparently, BMW delivered as the S58 engine under the hood puts down more power than anyone expected, allowing the M car to be a worthy opponent on the drag strip. Today we’re taking a look at how the BMW X3 M Competition handles itself against its sole Italian rival, the Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadtrifoglio Verde. The QV version of the Stelvio is the fastest of the range, as you might expect. Under the hood hides a six-cylinder turbocharged engine some are saying Ferrari fiddled with. The 2.9-liter powerplant has its cylind...

Review: 2020 Porsche Panamera – As Good As It Gets We’re living in a day and age where we like to have our cake and eat it in its entirety. People have such fast-paced lives, trying to find the perfect balance that they’re not willing to make hard choices anymore. All the time, universal solutions are embraced as the next big thing and the phrase ‘one size fits all’ has never been more popular. This reflects in all aspects of our lives and leads to all sorts of hybrids, especially when it comes to the automotive industry. That’s why we have mind-bending, uber-fast SUVs on sale today and that’s why the BMW M5 is such an adored car all over the world. Cars of this size shouldn’t be able to do the things they do and yet, engineers have been hard at...

The 10-Hour Race for BMW: The 1959 Shareholders Meeting For BMW, the post-war era meant tormented times and a constant race to reinvent and rediscover its own way in the automotive industry. Even though Germany emerged as a defeated country after World War II, the 1950s decade can be pictured as a flourishing and exuberant period for the German industry and society.But while the country’s economy was growing, BMW was in the middle of a crisis, struggling to find its identity in a very competitive automotive landscape. In the late ’50s, BMW was faced with bankruptcy. The peak moment of the crisis was in 1959. The iconic constructor from Munich was underperforming financially and its model lineup could not cope with other market competitors in terms of profitability and custo...

Check out this Awesome Photo Gallery of BMW M cars over the years I must say, there’s quite a bit of pessimism surrounding BMW M from long-time BMW fans at the moment. From the odd-ball styling of the next-gen M3’s grille to the lack of electrified cars in the lineup, it seems as fans are quite frustrated with BMW M. So it seems that Autocar felt the need to give M fans a bit of a morale boost and show them just how great BMW’s famous performance division used to be. And can be again. In this new photo gallery, we get to see a long history of incredible BMW M cars in stunning photos. Everything BMW M has ever built, whether it reached production or not, is in this gallery. Everything from the BMW M1, all the way to the brand-new M2 CS, is in this gallery and it shows o...

VIDEO: The Smoking Tire finds the BMW M2 Competition frustrating Of all the current BMW M models, the M2 Competition is probably the most enthusiast-loved. Its 405 hp and 406 lb-ft of torque, from an M4-derived S55 engine, power a short wheelbase and rear-wheel drive. So it’s the car that, on paper at least, is the most fun to drive from the Bavarian stable. And from our experience, the M2 is at the very least among the most fun cars BMW currently makes. However, it’s not perfect. In this new video from The Smoking Tire, Matt Farah drives the M2 Competition on track, as part of Road & Track’s Performance Car of the Year. During that drive, he couldn’t really love the little M2 and actually found it frustrating in a lot of ways. There were a few things he real...

Rolls-Royce Phantom painted by Bradley Theodore arrives in Abu Dhabi Rolls-Royce has a habit of creating unique cars. The biggest advantage the company has over anything else on sale out there today is the amount of customization that customers can choose from. Their Bespoke division handles even the most peculiar requests and that has been rather obvious this year, with plenty of special edition Phantoms being launched. From a special model sold at auction to raise money for AIDS research to one featuring floral motifs, they’ve done some impressive work. Today, we’re looking again at a special Phantom, but on this occasion, the work hasn’t been officially sanctioned by the people working in Goodwood. This particular Rolls-Royce Phantom was introduced by the Abu Dhabi ...

Video: BMW 840i Gran Coupe 0-200 km/h acceleration test The BMW 8 Series Gran Coupe is now available for purchase around the world. It’s one of the most beautiful and highly anticipated cars BMW ever released and is bound to hypnotize a lot of customers. The range is quite diverse too, created to appeal both to those wanting a fuel-efficient cross-continent cruiser as well as those looking for gas-guzzling V8s. The entry level model is the BMW 840i Gran Coupe which should have plenty of power to get your blood flowing. If that task is not achieved simply by looking at this beautiful four-door coupe, the engine will likely do the trick. Under the hood of the BMW 840i Gran Coupe hides the brilliant B58 powerplant. The 3-liter straight six mill has 340 HP to rely on and 500 Nm (369 l...

Video: Hoovie’s $4,500 BMW 760i breaks down on first road trip As many of us expected, Hoovie’s latest purchase finally broke down. If you recall, he bought a BMW 760i for $4,500. The catch here is that it was an auction car and its history wasn’t very well known. As it is often the case, a big V12 might need some work and repairs on such cars aren’t cheap. Initially, Hoovie though he got a good deal once he paid just $3,000 to get the car’s initial issues fixed. Those included some leaks, some misfires and generally easy to remedy problems. Thinking his good days are just ahead of him, he set off for a 1,000 mile road trip with his new BMW 760i. Unfortunately, as he details in his most recent video, the BMW went into limp home mode some 400 miles away from home....

VIDEO: BMW X7 versus Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class When BMW first announced the X7, fans were foaming at the mouth with anger. The idea of their beloved Bavarians, once known for only making small sport sedans and coupes, making a massive three-row SUV. However, since its been on sale, the BMW X7 has been hugely popular, even winning over several doubters (including this one). But the X7 is only BMW’s first entry into the segment, while its main rival Mercedes-Benz has been competing in it for awhile now. So can the new-blood X7 take on the latest from Suttgart? In this video from The Straight Pipes, we get to take a look at the BMW X7 M50i and the Mercedes-Benz GLS450. Now, those two cars aren’t direct competitors, as the X7 M50i is powered by its most powerful V8 engine option a...

MINI Cooper SE Countryman gets 50% EV range increase for 2020 When the first ever plug-in hybrid MINI model was launched, the Countryman Cooper SE, the EPA gave it a rather small EV range estimate – 12 miles on battery power alone. That was back in 2017 and now, MINI infused a new battery into the Countryman, thanks to new tech developed by parent company, BMW. Therefore, without increasing the size of the battery, the Brits managed to squeeze more energy into it and now, the Countryman Cooper SE will be rated at 18 miles for the 2020 model year. That’s a hefty 50 percent increase. It doesn’t seem like much, since it only grants some extra 6 miles but then again, it’s a pretty big step in the right direction. The old battery used to have a capacity of 7.7 kWh whi...

BMW M850i xDrive Gran Coupe showcased in Carbon Black metallic The BMW Abu Dhabi Motors dealership has already received its first, brand new BMW M850i xDrive Gran Coupe. The luxury four-door coupe has been specially specced in a sensational combo which further underlines its muscular character. The chosen color for the exterior is the deep Carbon Black metallic, which turns to dark, navy blue in certain proper lighting. This G16 M850i also features BMW M Performance parts as follows: a high-gloss black kidney grille, carbon attachments for the front air intakes, carbon exterior mirror caps and side front air breathers in high-gloss black. The choice of wheels was the BMW Individual V-spoke style 730 I alloy wheels finished in Orbit Grey shade. The cabin is pampered in the finest BMW In...

BMW-Daimler ShareNow car-sharing service to exit US market After announcing surprising gains on the ride-sharing market with their FreeNow service, BMW and Daimler announced earlier this week that they will be reviewing their business model on the car-sharing segment. The two German companies launched a shared service for car-sharing earlier this year, dubbed ShareNow, merging BMW’s DriveNow arm with Daimler’s Car2go. Apparently, it’s not doing too good and, starting February 29, 2020, the service will no longer be available in the US. The news is a bit surprising, considering how much money went into creating this shared entity in the first place, but there were signs showing a downturn for such enterprises a while back. Right now, ShareNow is still available in Montr...