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Ward's announces 10 Best Engines 2015

Ward's Auto has named its 10 Best Engines for 2015, covering a range of powerplants from fuel-sippers to fire-breathers. As with past years, forced-induction reigns supreme, with seven of the ten engines featuring a turbo or supercharger. This year is slightly different, though, as two of the seven blown engines are turbocharged three-cylinder mills, from the Ford Fiesta and Mini Cooper. They're joined by the 2.0-liter turbo four from the Volvo S60, the 1.8-liter turbo four from the Volkswagen Jetta and the 2.0-liter boxer from the Subaru WRX. BMW and Chrysler were the only marques to be named to this year's list twice, with the electric motor from the i3 joining the Mini's three-pot, and the 3.0-liter turbodiesel V6 in the Ram 1500 and Jeep Grand Cherokee repping the diesel crowd, alongside a certain supercharged monster. Hyundai also took a prize with a zero-emissions powertrain, with the Tucson FCV's 100-kilowatt fuel cell making the list (apparently Ward's is quite generous with what it deems an "engine"). Rounding out the list are two Autoblog favorites, each displacing 6.2 liters, but producing their power very differently. On the one hand, Chevrolet's overhead-valve, 455-horsepower V8, found in the Corvette, makes its power the old fashioned way. And in the other corner, we have one of the most exciting engines of the year – the 707-hp, 6.2-liter, supercharged Hellcat V8, featured so prominently in the Dodge Challenger and Charger SRT Hellcat. "We spend a lot of time reading the powertrain tea leaves throughout the auto industry, and we're proud that this year's list is a microcosm of all the latest innovation coming from automakers," said Ward's Editor-in-Chief Drew Winter in a statement. "It's not just a list for enthusiasts or for environmentalists," he says. "There's something for every vehicle shopper and every budget. All the powertrains on this list deliver a first-rate driving experience," Winter added. Scroll down for the full list from Ward's, and let us know which engines you think belong and which should have been included in this year's rankings. Ward's 10 Best Engines of 2015 Announced by Penton's WardsAuto Honorees span most diverse and technically advanced engines in 21 years of recognized powertrain excellence SOUTHFIELD, Mich., Dec. 10, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Penton's Wards 10 Best Engines of 2015 have been announced.

BMW bringing X3 diesel, X5 PHEV concept to New York

We've seen the i3 and i8 plug-in vehicles at plenty of BMW auto show stands these past few years. At the upcoming New York International Auto Show, the automaker will spread out a bit by showing off both new diesel and plug-in hybrid SUVs. Bimmer will showcase its diesel-powered X3 vehicle, which starts sales this spring as a 2015 model, and a concept plug-in hybrid X5 SUV. There are lots of figures to digest for what will be called the X3 xDrive28d. The vehicle will be powered by a 2.0-liter four-cylinder twin-turbodiesel engine that will deliver 180 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque. Propelled in part by an eight-speed automatic transmission, the SUV will be able to go from 0 to 60 miles per hour in about eight seconds. It will be priced with an MSRP of $42,825, which is represents a $3,500 premium over the base X3. BMW hasn't made fuel efficiency figures available, but they should be a nice improvement over the base X3's 24 mile per gallon fuel-efficiency rating in the US. Bimmer is also supposed to bring the X5 eDrive concept plug-in hybrid stateside. We saw it in Frankfurt last fall and then in some on-the-road spy shots more recently. The SUV pairs a 245-horsepower four-cylinder gasoline engine with a 95-horsepower electric motor, and will be able to go as fast as 75 mph and as far as 20 miles on electric power alone. BMW says fuel efficiency will be about 62 miles per gallon, per the more lenient European Union test cycle. That's more than double the current diesel powered X5's 26 combined mpg rating handed out by the EPA. And the model's 0-60 time is less than seven seconds. If you'd like to know more, you can take the better part of the day and check out Bimmer's mighty long press release below. BMW X4 Sports Activity Coupe and M4 Convertible Make World Debut at 2014 New York International Auto Show New BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe and BMW ALPINA B6 xDrive Gran Coupe to make North American debuts Updated BMW X3 Sports Activity Vehicle also makes North American debut including first BMW Advanced Diesel X3 model for the US BMW Concept X5 eDrive showcases new dimension of BMW EfficientDynamics technology Woodcliff Lake, NJ – April 3 , 2014 6:00pm EDT/3:00pm PDT. . . The all-new BMW X4 Sports Activity Coupe as well as the BMW M4 Convertible make their world debuts at the 2014 New York International Auto Show. North American debuts include the all-new BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe as well as the BMW ALPINA B6 xDrive Gran Coupe.

10 automakers shack up in Detroit hotel to talk Takata airbags

Since Takata has decided not to take the lead concerning potential issues with its airbag inflators, the automakers have. Perhaps that's unsurprising, since it's the automakers, not Takata, that will take a beating on the dealership floor if consumers decide its models are a health hazards. The Detroit News reports that Toyota, Honda, General Motors, Ford, Chrysler, Mazda, BMW, Nissan, Mitsubishi and Subaru met in a hotel conference room near the Detroit Metropolitan Airport last week to sort out a way to understand the technical issues involved. So far, faulty airbag inflators have been ruled the cause of five deaths and 50 injuries around the world, but neither Takata nor investigators understands exactly why the inflators are malfunctioning. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recently asked Takata to issue a national recall, Takata declined, citing a minuscule failure rate and the fact that it's still investigating the issue. Toyota and Honda then made an industry-wide appeal for "a coordinated, comprehensive testing program" that would pinpoint the problem inflators and get them replaced, and that's what the Detroit meeting was about. Numerous issues, however, will make this a long row to hoe: simply getting the parts to replace the nearly 20 million inflators in cars recalled around the world so far - even working with other suppliers - will take a years, but more importantly, no one knows if the replacement inflators currently being installed will suffer the same issue. Answers will hopefully come quickly with Takata, the ten automakers and NHTSA all independently investigating the problem.