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BMW starts Apple-like "Genius" program to explain tech

Even workaday cars are so capable now that even most auto scribes don't truly find out about a car's limits until a professional driver shows them what they are. It's the same with a vehicle's suite of features and the technology inside - there's so much of it that most people will have no idea what their cars can offer them. BMW is the latest company to make a personal effort to change that, introducing "young, tech-savvy employees" to dealerships as part of its "BMW Genius Everywhere" initiative.
Having no part in the actual sale of a vehicle, a BMW Genius is present on the showroom floor only to answer questions about the company's products and their features. If the customer decides to buy, he is transferred to a salesperson. A pilot program in the UK proved its effectiveness, it will now be rolled out across Europe and then come to the United States toward the end of this year in time for the launch of the i3. Details are still being worked out, but each BMW dealer will have at least one Genius.
For assistance that doesn't require visiting the auto mall, BMW is also putting vehicle and feature tutorials on its US website to "make our knowledge about our brand more interesting and more accessible to the consumer." They will appear online sometime in the latter half of the year, and will also be bundled into iPhone and iPad apps.

BMW could have a fuel cell vehicle by 2020

The Ultimate Driving Machine may start emitting water vapor, which may not thrill gearheads but could be good for the environment. BMW may have a hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicle to sell as soon as the end of the decade, UK's Auto Express says, citing people familiar with the process that it didn't identify. And the model will likely be sold within the i sub-brand that includes the i3 electric vehicle and the i8 plug-in hybrid. "We are working on fuel cell development, but we are not able to comment on vehicle plans at this stage or timing at this point," BMW spokesman Dave Buchko wrote in an e-mail to AutoblogGreen on Thursday. Chatter about a potential BMW fuel-cell vehicle has been getting louder in recent months. Late last year, Autocar reported that BMW was mulling using Toyota's fuel-cell system for a version of what would be called the i5 (all the better to quietly cruise the interstate running up and down the West Coast, we guess). BMW and Toyota have been working together on accelerating the development of fuel-cell technology since 2013. Toyota has since made good on the effort of selling fuel-cell vehicles by introducing the Mirai in Japan last year and is preparing to start sales in California later this year. But BMW has been mum, so far. Featured Gallery 2014 BMW i3: First Drive View 33 Photos News Source: Auto Express via Hybrid CarsImage Credit: Copyright 2015 Sebastian Blanco / AOL Green BMW Toyota Hydrogen Cars i5

Recharge Wrap-up: first Chevy Volt hits 200K miles, DriveNow launches in London with BMW i3 on deck

The first Chevrolet Volt has driven over 200,000 miles. According to the owner, Erick Belmer, the car, which he purchased on March 28, 2012, is "holding up flawlessly" with "no noticeable battery capacity loss." Belmer has a commute of about 220 miles per day, rotates his tires every 10,000 miles, and gets an oil change every 38,000 miles. Belmer still loves driving his "dream car" every day, and says it is "wonderfully engineered." Read more at Inside EVs. DriveNow has launched in London, and will include the BMW i3 as part of its carsharing fleet. Daimler shut down its Car2go operations there just six months ago. Currently, DriveNow members have access to the BMW 1 Series and Mini Countryman, but come spring of 2015, DriveNow, which is a joint venture between BMW and Sixt SE, will add 30 all-electric i3 EVs to its London service. DriveNow's rates for London are set at 39 pence per minute, with an hourly maximum cost of GBP20 (about 61 US cents and $31, respectively). The service currently operates in the boroughs of Islington, Haringey and Hackney, with hopes of expanded service in the near future. Read more at Hybrid Cars or at Reuters. FIA's Formula E electric racing championship series received the Autosport award for Pioneering and Innovation. The award ceremony was a black-tie event at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London. Formula E CEO Alejandro Agag accepted the award. "Many people in motorsport, when we started Formula E, didn't think we would make the first race," says Agag. "To announce we were doing a championship with cars that didn't then exist was a real challenge. But after that first race in Beijing, everything worked." Read more at Formula E's website. The Nissan Leaf has driven over a billion collective kilometers. That's more than 621.3 million miles. Nissan said in August that it expected to reach that mark by January, and it has done just that. To celebrate, Nissan Europe has created a video to thank its 147,000 Leaf drivers to bring the car to that substantial milestone in less than four years. Check out the video below. Featured Gallery 2014 Chevrolet Volt View 11 Photos Related Gallery 2014 BMW i3: First Drive View 33 Photos Related Gallery 2013 Nissan Leaf: First Drive View 15 Photos News Source: Inside EVs, Hybrid Cars, Reuters, Formula E, YouTube: Nissan EuropeImage Credit: Chevrolet Green BMW Nissan Transportation Alternatives Electric Racing Vehicles recharge wrapup