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Here's why you don't want the 2016 BMW M4 Clubsport

BMW Spain recently announced a special-edition M4 Competition Sport. It's billed as a more comfortable version of the M4 GTS (including rear seats) and, with only 60 copies available, will be more rare than that hardcore M4. But hold on a second because the CS is not exactly the unicorn it appears to be. And the closest thing to a CS in the United States might be better. Here's why. The M4 Competition Sport comes with more power, 20-inch wheels, and adaptive M chassis. The twin-turbo six has been turned up to 444 horsepower, which is shy of the crazy 493-hp water-injection version from the GTS. In fact, it's the same power you get with the $5,500 Competition Package that BMW USA announced back in January. And our Competition Package also comes with the wheels and M chassis setup. View 38 Photos We concede one area where the M4 CS does earn our envy. The giant carbon wing on the back and various other carbon-fiber elements do look pretty great, although tacking them on likely does not reduce the vehicle's weight. They're also all available from the vast M Performance catalog, so you could buy an M4 and tack on whichever ones you like best. Lucky Spanish customers also get carbon-ceramic brakes, but we can order those as a standalone option for $8,150. And the M4 CS only comes with a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic. Here in the States you can order all those goodies with a manual. Each of the 60 M4 Competition Sport coupes will sell for 132,900 euros in Spain, which works out to about a 45 percent markup compared to a standard-issue M4 coupe. So no, we don't get the numbered plaque on the center console or the neat seats. But we do get all the rest of it, with a manual, and at a much lower price than the Spanish M4 CS. And you can get the same stuff in the four-door M3. U-S-A! U-S-A! Related Video: Related Gallery 2016 BMW M4 GTS View 65 Photos BMW Coupe Performance bmw m4 bmw m4 gts

The Aficionauto gets his hands on Back To The Future BMW

When thinking about the cars of Back to the Future, Doc Brown's iconic DeLorean is surely the first one that jumps to mind. However, the latest video from The Aficionauto tracks down a more obscure but still rather cool vehicle from the series. Host Christopher Rutkowski heads to Connecticut for a difficult drive in Griff's screen-used 1976 BMW 633 CSI from the second film in the trilogy. Owner Jeff Chabotte bought the car in thoroughly neglected condition and spent weeks with his father and son bringing the futuristic Bimmer back to life. The slew of scoops and nacelles behind the seats might not be aesthetically beautiful, but they're authentic to the appearance in the film. For authenticity, Chabotte even keeps the busted taillight from Griff hitting it in the movie. As Rutkowski finds during his drive, Griff's BMW poses absolutely no threat of chasing down the DeLorean to 88 miles per hour. There's actually a pretty good reason for that, though. The interesting story involves how the producers procured this gray-market 633 CSI to be in Back to the Future II. Related Video:

BMW to launch loaner program to avoid range anxiety on i models

BMW is looking to stave off electric vehicle range anxiety with a new program that offers buyers a free gasoline loaner with every i3 purchase. Ward's Auto reports BMW is confident that the EV will give buyers the kind of transportation they need for 90 percent of their trips. The loaners, meanwhile, will be available for those few occasions when drivers need to cover more ground than the machine's batteries will allow. The i3 gets around with help from a 180-horsepower electric motor paired with a lithium-ion battery pack.
The combo is good for trips of between 80 and 100 miles depending on driving habits and weather conditions, though BMW also plans to offer a model with a small two-cylinder range-extending gasoline engine as well. That option will likely set you back an additional $4,000. When the machine bows in 2014, it will likely come with a charge time of four to six hours when suckling from a 220-volt outlet.
As far as the conventionally powered loaner car goes, the cost of the program is included in the i3's purchase price, though BMW has yet to figure out how many free loans will be offered, or what happens after that threshold is reached.