2009 Bmw 535i Base Sedan 4-door 3.0l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Recharge Wrap-up: BMW i app for Apple Watch, Tesla certified pre-owned web page

BMW has introduced ConnectedDrive and BMW i remote apps for the Apple Watch. The apps can show users battery and charging status, give service alerts, and control certain vehicle functions from the wearer's wrist. It can tell the owner if the doors are locked, or if the sunroof or trunk is open. Users can activate the climate control remotely from their watch, or honk the horn to help find the car in a crowded parking lot. It can even guide the owner back to the car using the navigation system. Read more in BMW's press release below. Higher octane gasoline could provide better fuel economy. According to a panel at the SAE World Congress that included folks from Ford, General Motors, Chevron and an ethanol group, a higher-octane fuel could boost fuel economy by three to six percent and reduce CO2 emissions by two percent. While higher octane fuel is more expensive, building cars calibrated to higher octane ratings could help automakers raise fuel economy and meet CAFE standards. Cars not calibrated to the higher octane levels would likely not see any significant benefit in fuel economy. Read more from Automotive News. Tesla Motors has added a Certified Pre-Owned section to its website. Tesla didn't make any announcement before it quietly added the CPO page. The used Model S electric cars sold by Tesla include a warranty good for four years or 50,000 miles. Plus, the cars have been inspected by technicians at Tesla to make sure everything is in working order and up to company standards. Explore the page yourself, and read more at Teslarati. BMW ConnectedDrive and BMW i Remote app. World premiere: Apple Watch controls functions of BMW i models. Munich. BMW is pressing its claim to automotive brand leadership in the world of mobile vehicle connectivity through its BMW ConnectedDrive technology. As the BMW i Remote app confirms, nowhere else is the link-up of driver, car and outside world raised to such an advanced level. The app can already be used to remotely check and control functions of BMW i models. It is an application that customers will also be able to use from day one on the new Apple Watch, due for imminent release. Apple Watch uses the BMW i Remote app – which can be downloaded free from the Apple iTunes Store – to keep users updated on the car's current battery status, for example, and alert them when the high-voltage unit is fully charged.

BMW wants to expand DriveNow carsharing program to 25 new cities

Daimler's Car2go car-sharing service just announced that it will debut in Rome, its 26th global city. Now, BMW says it wants to expand its own carsharing program to, wait for it, 25 more cities. Coincidence? We think not. BMW is looking to bring its DriveNow carsharing program, with its Mini Coopers and 1 Series, to as many as 15 new cities in Europe as well as 10 in the US, Bloomberg News says, citing comments BMW executive Peter Schwarzenbauer made at the Geneva Motor Show last week. The service is now operational in Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne, Munich, Dusseldorf and San Francisco and serves about a quarter-million people. Of course, it's that last city, where DriveNow started operations in August 2012, that's been somewhat problematic. San Francisco has tough guidelines when it comes to where the cars can be parked, with so few public parking areas to choose from. DriveNow charges $39 for membership in San Francisco, then $12 for the first half hour of driving and 32 cents for each additional minute. DriveNow competes directly against Car2go, which charges around $25 to become a member and then 41 cents a minute to rent a Smart ForTwo.

BMW 3 Series Gran Turismo gets leaked well ahead of Geneva reveal

The great power of the internet has allowed us to get an early first look at the all-new BMW 3 Series Gran Turismo, a car that is slated to be shown in full at the Geneva Motor Show next month, albeit without many details to go on right now. With pictures leaking out this early in the game, we'd expect that you won't have to wait until March to get the full lowdown, however.
Our first look at the 3er GT reveals a car that is, to our eyes, a tidier piece of design work than its 5 Series GT brother. The long-backside proportions are still a bit ungainly, at least from these images, but they're helped tremendously with the larger wheel/tire package and more aggressive fascia of the sport package.
Expect the 3 Series GT to hit the ground running, with the same turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder and 3.0-liter inline-six found in the standard 3 Series sedan. BMW's popular xDrive all-wheel-drive system is a virtual lock for the option sheet, too.