Frozen Silver Edition Auto Only 886 Miles Msrp $100,595.00 One Of Only 55 Made on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Popular Mechanics Breakthrough Awards honors GM Super Cruise, BMW i3

Our friends at Popular Mechanics have announced the winners of their 2013 Breakthrough Awards, which honor innovations and new technologies in a variety of fields, ranging from medicine to electronics to space travel. Among the winners were a pair of automakers.
The BMW i3 was named one of PM's product breakthroughs, and while the diminutive city car has a range comparable to other electrics, Popular Mechanics was impressed the i3's use of carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic, which allows the i3 to tip the scales at just 2,800 pounds. But the i3's space-age materials wouldn't have been such a smash if it were priced beyond what the general public could afford. BMW's ability to offer a vehicle with such an advanced construction for around $42,000 (nearly half the price of the Cadillac ELR and only about $7,000 more than a Chevrolet Volt or Ford Focus Electric) is wildly impressive and speaks volumes about the future of ultra-light composites in the auto industry.
The other big winner comes from General Motors, which was named an Innovator this year for its semi-autonomous Super Cruise technology that's currently being tested on a Cadillac SRX. The technology, which we've reported on before, combines adaptive cruise control and lane centering into a super system that will allow hands-free driving under certain conditions.

BMW puts a sheep in wolf's clothing with 2 Series Active Tourer M Sport

BMW is charting new territory with the 2 Series. No, not the two-door model - that's just the kind of rear-drive coupe for which the brand is known. But the Active Tourer (which only shares its series designation with the coupe) is a front-drive tall hatchback/MPV category buster, and that's not exactly what comes to mind when you think of Bimmers. As such, the 2 Series Active Tourer is bound to turn off some of the brand's faithful, but this latest M Sport kit could at least ease the pain somewhat.
The sport package for the Active Tourer packs all the usual suspects: a more aggressive aero kit, retuned suspension, blacked-out grille, 17- or 18-inch alloys and an interior with sports seats trimmed in blue-stitched Alcantara. Top all that off with an Estoril Blue paint job and you've got a compact family hauler that might look the part, and maybe handle a bit tighter, yet it naturally stops short of the full M treatment (or even an M Performance spec like you'd find in the M235i coupe). All of which is probably just as well, because that might be the only thing BMW purists would object to more than the existence of a front-drive BMW MPV in the first place.

2014 BMW M6 Gran Coupe

One of the many perks of this job is, not surprisingly, the cars. It's relatively easy to snag the keys to a vehicle for a special occasion, whether that be for a road trip, tailgating or helping a friend move. And while sometimes the tailgating might happen with a Ford F-150 instead of a Range Rover and the road trip might be in a minivan rather than a Mercedes-Benz S-Class, occasionally the stars align and a special vehicle arrives for an equally special time.
That's exactly how I found myself dressed to the nines and behind the wheel of the BMW M6 Gran Coupe, a $135,375 (as-tested) rocket ship, en route to a rare multi-wedding weekend to celebrate with two pairs of my closest friends on the biggest day of their lives (a very special congratulations to Kara and Zach, and Laura and Andrew). Continuing with our nuptial theme, the M mechanicals and the 6 Series Gran Coupe body are a match made in heaven.