2004 Bmw Z4 3.0i Convertible 2-door 3.0l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Are you the next BMW X5?

Who knew that diecast model makers could be such a good source of leaks? Less than a month after a diecast model 2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA in China, someone overseas at Diecast Empire or Jadi Modelcraft could get a bath in boiling oil for leaking uncamouflaged images of the next-generation BMW X5.
Naturally, that assumes that this image from a brochure from a Jadi brochure is indeed the F15 BMW X5 - it was posted to Diecast Empire's Facebook page. In its favor, the lines all add up if we compare it to the most revealing spy shots we have of the coming crossover - the headlight corners, the metal trim separating the kidney grille from the opening just above the license plate, the cut of the swage line, and the fact that the model picture reveals all of the most important character pieces that BMW has kept covered.
There's something written on the door of the model image that isn't in the spy shots, but that could be an xDrive badge. We will see the genuine article soon enough and we'll know for sure. For now, we might have already seen its facsimile in miniature.

Toyota launches BMW-powered Verso in Europe

BMW makes some sweet-revving engines, but its own vehicles aren't the only ones running BMW engines. So do the latest from Rolls-Royce and Mini, of course, as well as a handful of Peugeots and Citroëns thanks to its joint engine program with PSA. Wiesmann uses BMW engines, as did the famous McLaren F1. And now we can add one more to the list.
That would be the Toyota Verso, a Corolla-based minivan which Toyota builds in Turkey and sells in Europe and a few other markets overseas. The Verso is also now officially the first beneficiary of the partnership between Toyota and BMW as the Japanese automaker has released the MPV with BMW's 1.6-liter turbodiesel four.
The 111-horsepower engine is coupled to a Toyota transmission and joins the Verso range as the fourth (and least powerful) engine in the lineup, alongside the 122hp 2.0 diesel and the gasoline options with 1.6 liters and 160 hp and 1.8 for 180. Future collaborations between the two automakers will include fuel-cell development, a new joint sportscar platform, lightweight bodywork research and a new generation of lithium-air batteries. See the press release below for further details.

Next BMW X1 caught on flatbed

The X1 had been around for four years before it was added to BMW's US lineup, so it isn't all that surprising that a new version of the company's smallest Sport Activity Vehicle is already in the works. Captured in transit on the back of a flatbed truck, these spy shots give us our first look at the next-gen X1 - codenamed F48 - which is expected to debut around 2015.
While the camouflage does a good job of obscuring most of the styling elements, we definitely see evidence of the X1's new platform. Elements like the loss of the long nose and a noticeably shrunken dash-axle gap (just compare this spy shot picture to this one from our X1 review), are good indicators that the next X1 will move to the new front-wheel-drive platform BMW is using for the new Mini and 1 Series GT. Aside from this, the overall shape is very similar to the current design, but we're sure it will pull many cues from the updated range of BMW products.