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Alpina B3 Bi-Turbo offers Europeans a pre-M3 performance 3er

Anyone that's spent some time behind the wheel of the Alpina B7 probably knows enough to understand what Americans are missing with this, newly launched Alpina B3 Bi-Turbo. We've got no lack of M models to choose from, it's true, but the Alpina touch offers a completely different driving character, with almost as much performance. A pity then that Alpina has no plans that we've heard of to bring this one across the pond.
Filling the gap between the current 3 Series offerings and the outgoing M3 (we're not likely to even see the new M3 and M4 until September's Frankfurt show, nor be able to buy one until after that), the B3 Bi-Turbo brings serious performance to the F30 3er. As the name indicates, two turbochargers are used to force-feed BMW's 3.0-liter inline-six engine, for a total output of 410 horsepower and 442 pound-feet of torque. That power offers a big jump from even the BMW 335i sedan, and will push the B3 to 62 miles per hour in just 4.2 seconds and on to a top speed of 190 miles per hour. Alpina's own sport suspension underpins the thing, while the power is modulated by way of a eight-speed automatic transmission.
The new B3 will be easily recognizable thanks to its "Classic" 20-inch, 20-spoke Alpina wheels, and a rather subtle, aero-enhancing body kit. No pricing has yet been announced, but you will find a host of additional information in the attached Alpina press release below.

Audi and Mercedes both outsell BMW in January

There won't be any celebrations in Munich this month, as BMW was outsold by arch-nemeses Audi and Mercedes-Benz. The Bavarian company finished behind Audi in January, which took the top spot for the first time since June of last year, Bloomberg reports. Ingolstadt rode high on a 10-percent bump in sales, while Mercedes saw a larger 14 percent increase. BMW, meanwhile, only saw a modest 6.3-percent sales increase last month, thanks in large part to its struggles in China. The company's sales there increased at about half the rate of its chief competitors, with a 7.9-percent jump to Mercedes and Audi's roughly 15-percent increases. Perhaps more worrying for BMW, though, is that this could become something of a trend for the company. According to Bloomberg, issues with Chinese dealers who cancelled orders over sales targets and bonuses combined with what the publication calls aging models, could spell bad news for the German marque. "This looks like a pretty significant decline in growth compared to Mercedes and Audi," Bankhaus Metzler analyst Juergen Pieper told Bloomberg. "I think this will continue during the next few months." News Source: BloombergImage Credit: Matthias Schrader / AP Earnings/Financials Audi BMW Mercedes-Benz

2014 BMW 3 Series Gran Turismo [w/video]

BMW Gets Much Closer To The GT Look And Feel It Seeks
The 2014 BMW 3 Series Gran Turismo is being launched to a pretty cynical automotive press brigade. You know it. We know it. Heck, even BMW knows it. We've just returned from driving it on the rather unforgiving and sometimes nasty roads of Sicily, and even before we got behind the wheel, many of our media colleagues were busying themselves doubting the 3 GT's very raison d'être. So, despite the always excellent Sicilian hospitality, the day's atmosphere was kind of fragile.
While the press in attendance seemed determined to nail every product expert to the wall for having been even tangentially associated with the larger 5 Series Gran Turismo, it seemed that BMW decided ahead of time to not introduce such a sensitive discussion topic. That strategy would do little to smooth things over as everyone started digging for dirt on BMW's so far clumsy Gran Turismo franchise.