1988 Bmw M3 on 2040-cars

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BMW's new i DC Fast Charger will give free juice to i3 drivers

From solar chargeports to the first SAE Combo Fast Charger, BMW is offering or promoting more charging options for the i3 than most people will know what to do with. This is not a bad thing. At the Plug-In 2014 conference happening in San Jose, CA this week, BMW announced a new i DC Fast Charging unit as well as the ChargeNow DC Fast program, which is similar in some ways to Nissan's No Charge To Charge. Let's start with the chargers. Smaller and much cheaper than other DC fast chargers, an i DC Fast Charger costs just $6,548 plus installation. Remember, it was a big deal in 2011 when Nissan's DC fast charger was less than $10,000. The i DC Fast Chargers use the SAE Combo connector, so will also work in EVs from Ford, VW and Chevy and other automakers, when available. They take 30 minutes to charge an empty i3 to 80 percent full. All a driver will need in order to use the charger is a ChargePoint (or ChargeNow) card. Most of the first units will likely end up at BMW i dealers across the US. In a separate announcement, the ChargeNow DC Fast program will allow BMW i3 drivers to get free charging until the end of 2015 at participating NRG eVgo Freedom Stations. The catch is that they need to use the ChargeNow card at least once by the end of 2014. eVgo is promising to install at least 100 compatible DC fast chargers in California by the end of next year, so this should be relatively easy in at least one of the 50 states. We will have more from San Jose soon. BMW Unveils BMW i DC Fast Chargers and ChargeNow DC Fast program at Plug-In 2014. BMW i DC Fast Chargers, developed in collaboration with Bosch Automotive Service Solutions, are half the size of current DC Combo fast chargers, compatible with multiple electric vehicles and significantly more affordable. BMW i DC Fast Chargers run on the ChargePoint network giving BMW i3 drivers access with a ChargePoint or ChargeNow card. ChargeNow DC Fast enables BMW i3 drivers to charge at no cost, at participating NRG eVgo Freedom Stations equipped with DC Combo Fast Charging, through 2015. San Jose, CA/Woodcliff Lake, NJ – July 28, 2014... At Plug-In 2014, a conference dedicated to discussing key issues for the long-term success of electric vehicles, BMW of North America launched its BMW i DC Fast Chargers which can charge the BMW i3 all-electric vehicle's battery up to 80 percent in 30 minutes.

Alpina B3 Bi-Turbo burns all the midnight oil

We've got good news and bad news for you, boys and girls, from the floor of the Frankfurt Motor Show. The good news is that the BMW M3 has come early, with a diesel, in wagon form - albeit with a different name. The bad news is that it will in all likelihood never make it to America. Which is a shame, because it's awesome.
What we're talking about, of course, is the new Alpina D3 Bi-Turbo. BMW's wickedly talented but lesser know stepchild has created a 3 Series with a 3.0-liter twin-turbo diesel six packing 345 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque. You - and by "you," we mean overseas buyers - can choose between sedan or wagon, as well as rear- or all-wheel drive. But the bottom line is a 4.6-second 0-62 time and a 173-mph top speed... from a diesel.
We scoped out the rear-drive wagon Alpina brought to the show, decked out in its signature blue. And you can, too, in the gallery of live shots above, along with the freshly assembled stock photos of both sedan and wagon versions in the gallery below.

BMW almost ready to roll out new 2 Series cabriolet

The 2 Series is a relatively new member of the BMW family, having been spun off of the 1 Series (itself one of the company's youngest lines) just last year. So far the range has been split between the Active Tourer and the 2 Series Coupe, but soon the latter will breed a new compact convertible to take the place of the outgoing 1 Series cabriolet, and here we have our best look at it yet.
Spied with the most minimal camouflage and its top down while undergoing its final rounds of development testing, this pre-production 2 Series cabrio looks about ready for show time. While the Active Tourer is based on a different front-drive platform, this convertible is, as you might have guessed, essentially a 2 Series Coupe with a folding fabric roof. That means rear-wheel drive (or potentially all-wheel drive if BMW extends its availability from the coupe to the convertible) win either 228i or M235i specification - both of them turbocharged, the former with a 240-horsepower, 2.0-liter four and the latter with the 320-hp, 3.0-liter inline-six.
Considering that BMW got an approximately $8k premium for the 1 Series convertible over the coupe, expect the 2 Series cabrio to start at a little over $40k for the 228i and top out at around $53k for the M235i xDrive convertible. That is, assuming BMW offers it in that top spec, because at that rate we're getting perilously close to the $54,900 base price of the 435i convertible.