BMW announced today that the company will invest nearly $900 Million USD and add 300 new jobs in 2012 in its South Carolina plant. This announcement was made during a ceremony to commemorate a major production milestone – 2,000,000 vehicles have rolled off the assembly line since the company began U.S. production in 1994. Frank-Peter Arndt, BMW Group Board Member responsible for Production, revealed the company’s intention to expand its X-model family. He revealed that production of the new BMW X4 will occur at the Spartanburg plant, spurring significant investment and job creation necessary to prepare the facility for the new model. “I am delighted to announce today, over the next three years, we plan to invest nearly $900 Million U.S. dollars. With this investment, we will be able to produce 350,000 units here in the mid-term,” said Arndt. “This is one reaction to the rising global demand for our BMW X Models.” Governor Nikki Haley spoke at the ceremony saying, “BMW has once again provided tremendous evidence that South Carolina is a blueprint for significant economic development success. The partnership between this company and our State is an enduring example of how to attract, retain and grow business to stimulate perpetual job creation.” “Two million vehicles have prepared our team well to meet the new opportunities that lie ahead for our plant. We look forward to a new model with great anticipation. For nearly 20 years, this team has always proven their steadfast commitment to producing quality vehicles for our customers around the world,” remarked Josef Kerscher, President of BMW Manufacturing. “I am thrilled to celebrate the two millionth BMW today,” said Bobby Hitt, Secretary of Commerce for South Carolina. “BMW’s impact on South Carolina’s economy and overall competitiveness is always worth celebrating. This new economic investment and commitment of jobs is a testament to South Carolina’s strong automotive manufacturing industry.” With the addition of 300 new jobs this year the plant will raise production capacities up to 300,000 units. By the end of the year, the plant will employ nearly 7,500 people at its more than 4.0 million square foot facility.  Since the original 1992...

Volkswagen’s powerful, refined VR6 won us over in the new Passat—helping it  beat the Honda Accord in a recent Car and Driver comparison test—but it won’t stay in production, as-is, forever. Speaking with Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg, a member of the Volkswagen board of management who oversees research and development, we learned that the company is facing a decision on what to do for an engine that can provide V-6 levels of power in its U.S. cars. As it stands, the VR6 is expensive to build and import, and doesn’t sell in many vehicles: In addition to the new Passat, it’s also offered in VW’s Touareg and the Porsche Cayenne. Hackenberg tells us that the company may decide to use the VR6 in more U.S.products—though precisely which cars is unclear—or ditch the mill altogether. If the latter, Hackenberg is particularly interested in replacing it with “a turbo five, as we just used in the Audi [ TT RS ].” In the U.S.-spec TT RS, the engine makes 360 hp and 343 lb-ft of torque; the Audi Q3 , which was just announced for the U.S., will be offered here with a 314-hp version of the engine. If the turbo five does get the green light for VW products, it’d be produced here in North America. Possible applications include the Passat and the Touareg. We’re eager to see what Hackenberg and his colleagues decide in the coming months. See the original post here: Volkswagen Considering VR6 Replacements; Audi’s Turbo Five a Possibility View original here: Volkswagen Considering VR6 Replacements; Audi’s Turbo Five a Possibility

The big kickoff event at the Detroit auto show this morning had Ford debuting its midsized Fusion sedan to the usual accompanying ear-splitting music and laser-light/fake fog extravaganza. Company officials made a point to show how sales and market share of the top-two competing models in the segment (Toyota Camry and Honda Accord) have been on a fairly steady decline over the last few years. Of course, they also conveniently failed to mention that the Camry’s and Accord’s sales slide came when both models were mid-cycle or near the end of their current designs. Nevertheless, now is the time, Ford suggests, to show the world that the new Fusion is ready to become king. How bold does the new Fusion have to be to woo buyers in this most-competitive segment? For starters, the Fusion’s styling looks like a baby Jaguar XJ – very pleasing to my eye, but I wonder if the seemingly high rear deck and sloping rear window will compromise rear visibility. In not offering a V6 engine in its midsized sedan, Ford follows in Hyundai’s footsteps, but cuts against the grain of most in the industry. With fuel economy as one of the key drivers, the Fusion will be offered three four-cylinder engines, two with EcoBoost turbocharging technology, as well as hybrid and plug-in hybrid powerplants. Give Ford some credit here for having the guts to go small – much in the same way they chose not to offer a V8 in the redesigned Explorer. The plug-in hybrid (expected to achieve “100 MPGe…8 MPGe more than the Chevrolet Volt”) is especially appealing. It also makes the Volt look like a toy. The press conference also included a video snippet of the “latest version” of the maligned MyFord Touch system. Interestingly, the video showed the passenger adjusting the screen…not the driver. Past Fusions have done well in Consumer Reports tests – with reliability among the best in its class. There’s a lot riding on this car, and Ford hopes its vision steers customers to their showrooms before people take a look at the upcoming redesigned Nissan Altima and Chevrolet Malibu. Even though NASCAR is on its winter break, the race is still on in America’s best-selling midsized sedan class. Read the original post:  2012...

Magellan is expanding its line of handheld GPS devices with the addition of the eXplorist 110. Targeting casual hikers, the eXplorist 110 joins the Triton 300 and Triton 400 as an affordable entry into GPS-guided outdoor activities. The water-resistant device features a small, 2.2-inch color screen, sized like those used on the popular Garmin eTrex devices. Magellan claims its SiRFstarIII GPS chipset provides 3-5 meter accuracy, typical for modern handheld devices. The eXplorist 110 comes with the World Edition Map references that includes the complete road network for North America and Western Europe, and also major roads elsewhere. Common to such devices, the eXplorist 110 can record travels, with an on-screen breadcrumb trail and trip information that tracks distance, average speed, elevation, and time. It also allows for paperless geocaching, synching information on enthusiast-hidden treasures from a computer. Being paperless, the eXplorist 110 can store and display all the directions, tips, and details needed to find nearby caches. Although the eXplorist 110 is a basic device, it has the core features that most casual users want, and it stands out for offering a color screen at its low price point. Interested in a handheld GPS? Check out our video below. See the original post: CES 2012: Budget-friendly Magellan eXplorist 110 handheld GPS for outdoor activities

The folks over at Driving-Fun are giving us two videos showing the new F10 BMW M5 in action. The super sporty sedan gets another opportunity to brag about its drifting abilities. The first video and the shortest one simply focus on the M5 drifting through some back roads, while the longer version, while in Dutch, focuses on a more comprehensive review. Unfortunately no English subtitles are available at the moment. The review is mostly positive and the biggest complaint comes, as expected, from the engine noise: “The main criticism to be heard on the M5, is about the engine noise. To experience for the driver to give some extra shine, the amplified sound from the speakers. Sure, it’s the V8 with two turbos differently than the V10. The V10 also sounded different than the naturally aspirated V8 that was used before, and that V8 sounded differently than the six-cylinder of the first two generations.” Read the original post:  Video: F10 BMW M5 Drifts

Lexus has released more images of the LF-LC 2+2 sports coupe concept bound for next week’s Detroit auto show . The car’s proportions and profile are as sultry as they appeared to be in recent teaser images , and we’re really digging the complex surfaces that dive and flow down the body sides. The front end, however, is pretty tragic. In the words of one Car and Driver editor, the overly fussy fascia looks like someone chucked a grenade into the front bumper. We hope it looks better in person. Keep Reading: Lexus LF-LC Concept – Auto Shows Original post: Lexus Releases More Photos of LF-LC Concept: Great Body, but the Face! Read the rest here: Lexus Releases More Photos of LF-LC Concept: Great Body, but the Face!

Filed under: Latest News A survey of 2000 motorists by webuyanycar.com has found that 53% of BMW drivers admit to being a bit fast and loose with their horns. In fact, they admitted to using them at least once every trip – three times the national average of 18%. It seems that ‘very important’ people in 3 Series’ and taste-free goons in X6s believe that not only are indicators optional* but liberal application of the horn is A OK as long as they think it’s justified. To balance the Beemers’ over indulgence, 95% of Nissan drivers claim to never use their horns unless they’re in an emergency situation – as is normal. In between the two extremes lie Jaguar drivers (45% honk-happy), Fiat owners (43%), Audi pilots (39%) and Saab riders (29%). A wonderful array of excuses were given for over parpage: Another driver pulled out in front – 52% A vehicle is taking its sweet time after a traffic light turns green – 51% Letting other road users know of a danger – 29% They also claimed to press the big button if they spotted a driver on their phone, saw a cyclist in the wrong place on the road (in the middle, for example) or were driving along a twisty country road and wanted to let people know there was something coming the other way (or fancied making some noise). Now, in case you didn’t know The Highway Code says that you can only honk if your vehicle is moving and you need to alert other road users of your presence. That’s it. You’re not supposed to use it in anger, when you see someone you know or to let the person you’re giving a lift to that you’ve arrived. Ideally you’re not supposed to use it between 11.30pm and 7am, either – but you can if another driver is being a mad-headed ape behind the wheel. * Some BMW drivers think this. Not all.   Read more: BMW drivers overuse their horns Original post: BMW drivers overuse their horns

Where does driver comfort rank in the grand scheme of the automotive experience? Pretty high, we think, even if you’re spending less than $20,000 on what would otherwise be considered A-to-B transportation. And so we’re perplexed that Toyota seemingly overlooked the seating position in its new Yaris.3 Keep Reading: 2012 Toyota Yaris SE – Instrumented Test See the rest here: 2012 Toyota Yaris SE Tested: Engaging Handling, Poor Driver Ergonomics More: 2012 Toyota Yaris SE Tested: Engaging Handling, Poor Driver Ergonomics

Filed under: Formula One Sebastien Buemi will reportedly become Red Bull’s official reserve driver at grands prix this year. After three full seasons with the energy drink company’s Italian rookie team Toro Rosso, the 23-year-old Swiss – like his teammate Jaime Alguersuari – lost his race seat ahead of the 2012 season. But Swiss newspaper Blick reports that Buemi will at least remain in the paddock this year, as Red Bull’s new reserve driver. He will be ready to substitute not only for Toro Rosso’s newcomers Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne, but also if need be for world champion Sebastian Vettel or his Red Bull Racing teammate Mark Webber, Benoit said. “No one wants to say if the contract has been signed yet or not,” he added. “But for the driver from Vaud, it is the best solution to at least stay in the paddock.”   See the original post:  Report: Buemi to be Red Bull reserve driver in 2012 View post: Report: Buemi to be Red Bull reserve driver in 2012

Filed under: Formula One Rubens Barrichello is right back in the frame to retain his race seat at Williams, according to reports. It had been expected the Brazilian veteran would not get the chance to race a 20th consecutive season in F1 next year as the British team eyed a new teammate – perhaps Adrian Sutil – for Venezuelan Pastor Maldonado. But the Gulf Today newspaper quotes sources close to the 39-year-old as saying from England: “(Barrichello) has come back into the frame and now has a reasonable chance of a Williams drive in 2012.” It has been rumoured Barrichello, whose tally well beyond 300 grands prix is an outright F1 record, has managed to amass $5 million in personal sponsorship to offer Williams — about the same potentially brought to the team by German Sutil’s backer Medion. The Telegraph correspondent Tom Cary wrote: “Rubens Barrichello is reportedly right back in contention (for the seat) having been almost counted out at the Brazilian GP in November.”   The rest is here:  Barrichello back in the running for Williams seat The rest is here: Barrichello back in the running for Williams seat

Happy New Year! It’s 2012, and the biggest car show of the year is exactly a week away. The North American International Auto Show kicks off next Monday, and it has a full slate of debuts scheduled. The biggest from Ford will be the new Fusion mid-size sedan. The current generation Fusion was introduced in 2006, and a heavy mid-cyle enhancement followed in 2010. For 2011 the Fusion has posted its best sales year ever, despite being at the end of it model run. With all that momentum, look for the next generation model to hit higher figures than ever. Future mid-size number one? Very possible. While the 2013 Fusion is still under wraps (they’ve done a remarkably good job of keeping it a secret), Ford is letting loose some of the details. Ford is a master at this kind of press release marketing; they dribble out information bit-by-bit. A new feature debuting on the 2013 Fusion is Lane Keeping System (LKS). To provide feedback, there is a digital camera mounted on the rearview mirror with a full-view of the road. This is in contrast to older, more expensive systems that used radars placed on the front of the vehicle. It the “democratization of technology”, evidenced by the widespread availability of technologies once only available on luxury cars. When the system senses the driver is drifting in his lane, it gives a warning and sends a vibration to the steering wheel. If the driver ignores this, the steering wheel will continue to vibrate and a power will be applied to nudge the car back into its lane. In addition, the warning icon will turn red. Ford said a lot of work has been put into the system to make it smooth and accurate, and that it will be debuting across the lineup rather quickly. Drivers would be well-off to learn not to depend on these kind of technological aids. However, with all the crazy drivers out there we welcome these technologies being added to help make our roads safer. No related posts. Automoblog.net – A Car Blog for Auto Enthusiasts Read the original post: 2013 Ford Fusion To Press Technology Envelope in Mid-Size Segment

The perfect tire would stick to any surface, never go flat, run in any weather, provide plentiful steering feedback, and wear forever. Fat chance we’ll ever get a perfect tire because a big set of those features are mutually exclusive. So tires are about compromise, compromises between traction and wear, traction and wet performance, traction in hot weather and traction in cold. Oh, and they should generate no noise, no vibrations, nor add any harshness to the ride. Impossible. Tires range from wide and sticky for racing slicks and narrow and hard for low rolling resistance e-mobility specials and then everything in between. Putting the right tire on the car for its intended use, and finding a suitable tire that will minimize NVH, increase fuel economy, and yet deliver appropriate traction in dry and wet/hot and cold is the stuff of nightmares. Once the appropriate set of compromises are reached, the tires reach the public (on suspensions tuned to that specific tire – in the case of high performance and luxury cars). And up until recently, that was five tires per car, then four tires and a donut spare, and even more recently, four run flat tires. The run flat tire allowed manufacturers to save weight by eliminating the spare tire, jack and accessories. The weight savings would help with fuel economy, every pound shed adds up to fractions of MPG – the more weight lost, the more MPG improved – and car makers will take MPG gains wherever they can find them. The manufacturers could accurately claim that the use of run flat tires as improves safety. After all, it is dangerous to change a tire on the side of the road. But they could not claim that they improve feel, that ever elusive notion of road information being transmitted from the contact patch up through suspension bits, and finally emerging in the driver’s fingertips. In addition, they couldn’t deliver the ride comfort expected on a luxury car (and of course the suspensions of cars had to be tuned to deal with the harshness of a run flat). And from an enthusiast’s point of view, they just didn’t feel good. The reason they didn’t feel good was the compromise required in the sidewalls of the tire that provides the run flat capabilities. They are extra stiff/thick to provide...

In the past, 0-60 and 1/4 mile times were the only numbers that people seemed to care about. In today’s world, we definitely still care about those, but lap times also play an important role. Because a car has to handle well not just go in a straight line, right? If anyone has that balance figured out, it would have to be BMW’s M Cars. German magazine Autobild recently did a test on the entire M lineup and called the result “M Fascination.” As part of the article, Autobild pitted each M car against each other on the Sachsenring, a German race track. It isn’t the Nurburgring, but we’ll take it as an important indicator nonetheless. As expected, the highly-expensive and German-only M3 GTS is the quickest. Out of recently available cars though, the fastest M in the BMW lineup is the special edition M3 CRT, clocking in with a time of 1:38:87. Three tenths – an almost imperceptible difference – of a second slower is the all-new F10 M5 with a time of 1:38.90. The 1 M Coupe is next in line, beating out the M3 Coupe with a time of 1:40.18 versus 1:40.52. So much for the baby BMW being the slowest. A lot of this comes down to the M3 being the oldest product in the lineup; the F10 is all new and the 1M Coupe was recently developed. It will be interesting to see where the next-generation M3 coupe lands. Versus its competition, the M5 bested the Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG Performance Package. With a time of 1:38.13 the Porsche Panamera Turbo S is the top dog of performance sedans at the track. You pay for that extra time though – and handsomely. It’s great to have this set of data to pore over and see where the new M5 ranks. The new M5 goes on sale next year. Related posts: A Shape of Things to Come: BMW Concept 6 Series Coupe New Coupe Tops Off the BMW 6 Series BMW Debuts Standard Incorrect Fuelling Protection System For Diesel Models Automoblog.net – A Car Blog for Auto Enthusiasts Read more from the original source: BMW M5, 1-Series M Best Standard M3

Drivers in various states around the country will need to be aware of some new driving laws that affect seat belts and cell phone use that go into effect on January 1st. California has a new child restraint law aimed at further protecting children. All children age 7 and under who are less than 4 feet, 9 inches tall are required to be in a booster seat placed in the rear seat. This law replaces the previous one in which booster seats were only required for children under 6 years of age and 60 pounds. Also, on January 1st, Illinois will strengthen their seat belt law by requiring the use of seat belts for all passengers in front and rear seats. This new law replaces the previous legislation that only required the driver, front seat passenger, and passengers under the age of 19 to wear a seat belt. Besides seat belts, there are some stronger distracted driving laws going into effect as well. Nevada has implemented a new law that will ban hand-held cell phone use and texting while driving in the state and this also includes using a hand-held phone while stopped at a light or in traffic. Drivers are allowed to use a hands-free device such as a Bluetooth. In addition, this offense is now primary, which means police can ticket drivers for those offenses alone. North Dakota will ban cell phone use for young drivers under age 18 and has increased their graduated licensing requirements. Driver’s under 16 must hold a learner’s permit for a year until they can get a full license and have at least 50 hours of supervised driving time. Further in 2012, Pennsylvania’s texting law will go into effect on March 8th and it will be a primary offense. For more on distracted driving and teen safety, see our special section . Read more here:  New Year brings new driving safety laws

We were pretty impressed with the redesigned-for-2012 Hyundai Accent GLS sedan we tested. It proved to be a substantial improvement over the model it replaced. Now we bought a second Accent to test, this time a well-equipped SE hatchback with a manual transmission. Its $16,695 sticker price includes a lot of content-full power accessories, iPod control, keyless entry, alloy wheels, Bluetooth, even a trip computer. Other than the lack of an outside temperature display, this Accent really doesn’t want for anything. Several early logbook comments from our staff say that they could happily live with this inexpensive car. (That said, the roomier Hyundai Elantra GLS stickers at only $17,205 with a manual -and at that price, all you give up are the Accent SE’s alloy wheels.) Like several other Hyundais, the Accent SE claims 40 mpg on the highway. Hyundai’s come under fire in some quarters, particularly from Elantra owners, for having optimistic EPA fuel economy estimates. We’ll be curious to see how this Accent stacks up in our formal tests, but so far, it’s not too hard to eke over 40 mpg out of the car on the highway. The six-speed manual transmission certainly seems to help. The Accent shares its 1.6-liter direct-injected four-cylinder with the funky Veloster sports car. Small stick-shift hatchbacks like these may be sold as gas-sippers, but they often provide cheap fun as an unexpected bonus. Cars like the Ford Fiesta SES and Honda Fit Sport hatchback that we’ve tested prove to be both practical and entertaining. We’ll see how this Accent SE compares when we fully test it. Here is the original post:  Just In: 2012 Hyundai Accent SE