Hit play for an audio recording of a mystery car’s exhaust note, and then share your guesses or get a few hints from other visitors in the comments below. Be sure to check back on Thursday for the answer! Read the rest here: Name That Exhaust Note, Episode 82 Original post: Name That Exhaust Note, Episode 82

Mini’s first hybrid will take the mullet approach: combustion-engine business up front, electric party in the back. Due in about three years, the next-generation Mini Cooper will offer a four-wheel-drive version. There’s a catch, though: The rear wheels will have no connection to the engine. The car will be a hybrid, and the rear wheels will exclusively be turned by an electric motor. Keep Reading: 2014 Mini Cooper Hybrid Spy Photos – Future Cars Originally posted here: 2014 Mini Cooper Hybrid Spy Photos – Future Cars Originally posted here: 2014 Mini Cooper Hybrid Spy Photos – Future Cars

With the latest version of BMW’s all-wheel-drive system, the 535i improves on previous deficiencies—but finds new ones. We’ve sampled a bunch of configurations of BMW’s latest-generation 5-series since it debuted about a year ago, but they’ve all been rear-drivers. Last fall, though, BMW launched the all-wheel-drive 535i xDrive, fitted with the most recent iteration of the company’s all-wheel-drive system. With the trailing edge of the Midwestern winter dropping the season’s last snow on us, we buckled up our test gear and set out to see how this all-weather sleigh stacks up against its predecessor and its current rear-drive siblings. Keep Reading: 2011 BMW 535i xDrive – Short Take Road Test Read more from the original source: 2011 BMW 535i xDrive – Short Take Road Test Originally posted here: 2011 BMW 535i xDrive – Short Take Road Test

CNN Money and Fortune Magazine published their yearly list of Most Admired Companies in the world. In the Automotive segment, Munich-based automaker ranks first, followed by Volkswagen and Daimler. The industries list are based on FORTUNE’s survey within a particular industry. But the World’s Most Admired Company according to FORTUNE is Apple, followed by Google and Berkshire Hathaway. Due to its exceptional customer service and flights flexibility, Southwest ranks third. On the Top 50 List, BMW ranks 19th, ahead of Toyota, Volkswagen and Honda. For the 50 most admired companies overall, FORTUNE’s survey asked businesspeople to vote for the companies that they admired most, from any industry. Last week, BMW was appointed China’s most-desired brand , this time ahead of Apple and Rolex. The full list can be found at money.cnn.com [Source: FORTUNE via E90post ] View original here: CNN Fortune: BMW World’s Most Admired Automotive Company

The next generation of Mercedes-Benz’s wonderful SL-class roadster has been running around for over a year now. First caught wearing camouflage that resembled vinyl siding, the car is beginning to lose its plastic disguise as it progresses toward launch. Now we’ve even caught a glimpse of the interior. These new pictures reveal an SL that carries an overall shape very similar to the outgoing car, but its disguise still hides some fine (and likely new) details such as the character lines on the car’s flanks. You’ll notice the more-upright nose, smoothed tail, and—most notably—the SLS -like interior, but the rest of the design is intentionally restrained, according to the car’s chief designer, Gorden Wagener. Engine displacement is expected to shrink, but horsepower will not. We know the next SL will adopt the new twin-turbo, 4.7-liter direct-injection V-8 found in the 2011 CL550 , and should be tuned for around 429 hp. For the rest of our 2013 Mercedes SL-class knowledge, check out our previous story here . Excerpt from: 2013 Mercedes-Benz SL Spied with Less Camo and a Peek at the Interior More here:  2013 Mercedes-Benz SL Spied with Less Camo and a Peek at the Interior

First things first: Johan Ernst Nilson once piloted a flying boat from Sweden to Africa. And not your basic, workaday PBY Catalina or Sikorsky Pan Am Clipper. Think Zodiac inflatable boat crossed with an ultralight airframe and you’ve basically got the picture. Of course, he’s also engaged in more pedestrian pursuits—climbing the highest peak on every continent, Genghis Khan-ing it across Mongolia on horseback and crossing the Atlantic by personal watercraft. Now he’s planning to travel from the North Pole to the South Pole without the use of motorized vehicles. Naturally, he’s teamed up with an automaker to make it happen. The result? The year-long Audi-sponsored Pole2Pole expedition. Beginning April 6th, the Swedish adventurer will set off from the North Pole, trek to Greenland, sail to Ottawa and spend the better part of the following year traveling south down the Americas by bicycle at a rate of 62 miles per day. He’ll then sail across the Southern Ocean and arrive at the opposite end of the world on April 6th, 2012—if all goes according to plan. To prepare for the trip, where temperatures will at times dip below -40 degrees Celsius (-40 degrees Fahrenheit), Nilson made use of Audi’s Ingolstadt cold chamber and consulted with the automaker’s engineers to construct the featherweight carbon-fiber sled he’ll be pulling across the frozen bits. Did we mention that he plans to slide his way across Antarctica on skis, pulled by a kite? On the PR front, Nilson will be speaking at Audi dealers along the route and the camera crew documenting the trek will roll in Audi vehicles from Canada to Tierra del Fuego. One could cynically call it a bit of greenwashing on the part of an automaker, or perhaps pandering to the armchair adventurers who fancy themselves quattro power users, but regardless of corporate intent, it’s an utterly nutball undertaking. Who are we to discourage ambitious nuttery? Here is the original post: Audi and Explorer Johan Ernst Nilson Partnering on Globe-Spanning Pole2Pole Expedition View original here:  Audi and Explorer Johan Ernst Nilson Partnering on Globe-Spanning Pole2Pole Expedition

Here is the full, unedited raw footage of the recently tested BMW M5 in the Austrian Alps. The static shots in motion footage are accompanied by the commentary from test drivers Frank Lutz and Bernd Limmer. The new 2012 BMW M5 will make its debut next month, followed by a world premiere at the Shanghai Motor Show on April 19th. Later this fall, at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show, BMW will unveil the production model of the M5 which goes on sale in Spring of 2012. More details will be revealed in the next weeks. Read more here: 30 minutes of BMW F10 M5 Raw Footage

2010 Cadillac XTS Platinum concept Cadillac is hoping that a refresh design style and two new models will commence sales of Cadillacs in Europe. This will be the third effort in 15 years from the American brand to gain a foothold in the premium sector in Europe. Vital to the Euro market, a diesel engine won’t arrive anytime soon. Chief executive, Dan Akerson said: “The only thing you can do is try, try and try again with Cadillac in Europe.” One of the potential new models may be a large executive sedan, namely the production version of the XTS concept, which premiered at the North American International Auto Show last year. The XTS concept had softer, curvier styling than any other Cadillac we’ve previously seen. Akerson noted the XTS will be the top-of-the-line model, sitting above the mid-sized CTS . The addition of a smaller sedan – replacing the Saab-based BLS – will arrive and make a more worthy Euro-line-up. Just don’t expect a longitudinally mounted four-cylinder diesel in the compact sedan as Vauxhall/Opel powertrain chief executive, Jeff Lux said: “We can’t do everything all at once.” Akerson also noted that the quality of European premium brands “makes it very tough” for Cadillac to succeed. View post: Cadillac tries third attempt at European market (EU) Read the original:  Cadillac tries third attempt at European market (EU)

Beneath this thick coating lies Kia’s new Rio supermini. Although we seen official pictures, the Rio ’s rigorous testing days are far from over as engineers still alter the chassis and steering. While the previous model didn’t bother the Citroen C3 , Volkswagen Polo , Ford Fiesta , or Vauxhall/Opel Corsa , does the new car have what it takes to unnerve class-leaders? Read on to find out… Exterior/interior : Visually, the new Rio is substantially better looking than the outgoing model, with large headlamps, a dynamic stance, bowtie-esque ‘tiger’ grille, and LED daytime running lights. On the inside, a stylish, well-built cabin used from high-quality materials feature, bringing the Rio up-to-date with the current line-up. However, the dashboard of our car was covered with extensive disguise and fake panels, and despite the official images being released, no interior photos were allowed. Over the previous model, the new Rio now feels a lot more grown up. With a longer wheelbase, all-round legroom and headroom was superb, allowing tall adults to sit comfortably on a long journey. The luggage capacity has also increased to 288 litres, still some way off the Fiesta ’s 295 litres. Wind noise is very well suppressed, but not much can be said about road noise, which intruded into the cabin. Visibility was good, especially with the slender A-pillars, but cast your eyes to the rear, and those thick, chunky C-pillar block your field of vision. Lucky for you then rear parking sensors and a reversing camera will be standard on certain grades. Engine : Our car was powered by a tiny 1.1 CRDi, kicking out a mere 69bhp (70PS/51kW). When fitted with a stop/start system, CO2 emissions fall to 85g/km, making it the cleanest combustion engine on sale in Europe. When the 3-cylinder engines bursts into life, it’s far from quiet, although that said, under 3,000rpm, it rumbles soundly along. With 162Nm (119lb-ft) of torque available, it takes the Rio a tiring 16.4 seconds to reach 62mph (100km/h). The British line-up will include the 1.25 ‘Kappa’, 1.4 litre ‘Gamma’ petrols, and a 1.4 CRDi, nevertheless, we’d be very surprised not to see the 1.1 CRDi. Driving dynamics : A concise moment behind the wheel informs...

The new smart Collection is designed for those wanting unconventional style and are fully in tune with the spirit of the times See the original post here:  smart Clothing and Accessories for Spring

Modification of the C63 AMG V8 Motor includes above all things sports camshaft and the cylinder head reworked Original post:  Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Performance Modifications by Wimmer

More than two weeks after the massive earthquake and tsunami, the work in stabilizing Japan in the aftermath has been slow. While the tragedy is still fresh with assessments of the Asian island region has sadly reinforced dire predictions of loss, fate of the thankfully many more survivors depends on the ability to regain some sort of normality. Part of this social recovery mission entails restarting the businesses inside this vital industrial market. Slowly, the Japan automotive industry is restarting output from their manufacturing facilities in this realignment with pre-disaster life. Much of Japanese auto production for the meantime has focused on keeping part supplied to plants outside of Japan. Honda, Nissan and Toyota have production facilities well embedded in the North American market. This diversity has shielded a good deal of those companies’ infrastructure and personnel from harm. Toyota has reported their Japanese plants were producing parts for export since the 21st of March. In facilities such as the Nissan’s truck plant in Canton, Mississippi and Honda’s East Liberty, Ohio plant have been able to operate normally (though many plants cancelled overtime shifts in fears of exhausting part stores of components imported from Japan). Not immediately impacted, the earthquake and tsunami effects are now beginning to flow down the production chain to a point where North American assembly is beginning to express concerns. For North American vehicle production, the critical dates are April 1st for Nissan and April 4th for Honda. Honda stated even though the majority of their parts and components are supplied by North American based companies, there is still “a few critical parts” Toyota and Mazda (who currently builds the Mazda6 at the AutoAlliance International facility) have not reported any immediate concerns in North American production. The Japanese automakers were not the only car company affected by part supply issues. Last week, the General Motors Shreveport, Louisiana and Buffalo, New York plants idled production related to the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon. Citing a shortage of electronic air sensors supplied by Hitachi, production of the medium sized pick-up has since resumed. Two weeks following the earthquake fallout, limited production...

BMW’s latest concept, Vision ConnectedDrive comes back to focus. Earlier this month, at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show, BMWBLOG sat down with Domagoj Dukec, Project Leader for the Advanced Design Studio where the concept was designed. Built primarily around future technologies and innovation, the new Vision ConnectedDrive Concept was the main attraction at the BMW exhibit. While many believed the ConnectedDrive is a preview of a future roadster – BMW CEO discarded the idea of a predecessor for Z2 – the new concept came to life with a single purpose: to showcase BMW’s ConnectedDrive innovations. Mr. Dukec took the time to describe for us the exterior design and new elements that can be seen in this futuristic concept. BMWBLOG: Describe for us the BMW Vision ConnectedDrive Concept Domagoj Dukec: This car is only being used to communicate ConnectedDrive. The board members believed we have not had enough communication around ConnectedDrive and even though we have in every car, people are not really familiar with it. Adrian Van Hooydonk said it was important to communicate ConnectedDrive in an emotional way otherwise people might not be able to grasp the idea. So how should the exterior look to communicate ConnectedDrive? It has to be open so you can look inside, this is a very emotional thing, the classic roadster concept has always been emotional. It also has to be very easy to understand. If you look at the car, there is not much of an experiment as far as surface languages, we are only using the core elements of a BMW. The whole body has been reduced to some main lines. Since BMW has such a strong heritage, we don’t need to deal too much with flaming surfaces. Same goes for the color chosen here, it’s less prominent so the car stands out for what it was meant to be. BMWBLOG: So the whole idea was really to focus on the ConnectedDrive technology rather than another eye-candy Concept. Domagoj Dukec: Exactly. Of course, we still had to give it a look that enhances driving pleasure so typical to a BMW: long bonnet, shorter overhangs. The other heritage element we used here is the sliding door, coming from the Z1. On the Z1 you have to door sliding down, so you have to compromise on the design to make it work. Since BMW always has this long distance between...

In 2009, BMW broke the stereotype and launched an upscale variant of the new 7 Series. The first 7 Series Hybrid was labeled ActiveHybrid 750 and is considered a full size luxury performance vehicle with green aura around it. The ActiveHybrid 7 uses a different electric drive setup from the X6 Hybrid and it’s being considered a mild hybrid. The system was developed in collaboration with Mercedes Benz. The upgraded V8 twin-turbo with High Precision Direct Injection runs together, at the same time, with a 3-phase synchronous electric motor which is positioned between the engine and the torque converter. The electric motor generates approximately 20 hp and peak torque of 155 lb-ft. The “pumped up” V8 twin-turbo engine produces 40 horsepower more than the engine found in the 750i/Li models to a total of 400 horsepower. The overall combined output is being advertised at 455 horsepower and 516 lb-ft of torque. The BMW ActiveHybrid 7 accelerates to 60 mph in 4.5 seconds, while delivering fuel economy approximately 15% better than the 750i. The 7 Series Hybrid has the drive power transmitted via an 8-Speed automatic transmission and has a top speed electronically limited to 150 mph.The ActiveHybrid 7 uses a lithium-ion battery pack supplying 120 volts. The folks over at Car and Driver decided to refresh our memory of the 7er Hybrid with a short road test. Let’s have a look. “In our testing, the 750Li ActiveHybrid went from 0 to 60 mph in 4.5 seconds and through the quarter-mile in 12.8 at 112 mph. That’s 0.7 second quicker to 60 and 0.9 quicker through the quarter than the last non-hybrid 750Li to wear our test gear. More (un)importantly, it’s 0.9 second quicker to 60 than the last LS600hL we tested. A brief blast around the high-speed oval confirms that the hybrid 7 rockets to its 147-mph governor without any of the lethargy commonly associated with hybrids. Later on, driving more like downtrodden suburban Americans, we saw 21 mpg. So It’s Fast. Now Drive It Like a Hybrid Okay, so you really care about the hybrid bits? This hybrid won’t glide about on electric power and smugness alone. You want motion, you’re going to have to choke the planet with the internal-combustion engine. There’s an electric motor sandwiched between the gas engine...

The next generation BMW M6 has been spied once again. Due out in 2012, the new M6 will be available in both Coupe and Convertible variants. The new M6 will have its own attributes and characteristics in order to challenge the established rivals from Porsche, Audi, Bentley, Aston Martin, Jaguar and Mercedes-Benz. As seen in these new spy photos, the M6 continues to carry the typical wider rear fenders and the usual four-tailpipe exhaust system characteristic to M models. At the front end, a more aggressive and typical M-style bumper with integrated diffuser is included as well. The test mule showcases big brakes behind the larger wheels and M-signature quad-exhaust pipes out back. The new M6 will likely be powered by an upgraded version of the 4.4 liter V8 engine, producing near 600 horsepower. A similar engine but will less output is rumored to appear in the next M5 as well. A regular sprint to 60mph is not expected to take more than 4 seconds. The 2012 BMW M6 is rumored to launch at the Geneva Motor Show next year. [Source: TeamSpeed ] Excerpt from: Spied again: 2012 BMW M6