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BMW, Ferrari, VW cars use tungsten mined by terrorists

Bloomberg Markets is reporting that BMW, Volkswagen and Ferrari have been using tungsten ore sourced from Columbia's FARC rebel terrorists. The extensive story focuses on Columbia's illegal mining trade and calls into question the provenance of the rare ore that is used not only in crankshaft parts production, but is also found in the world's computing and telecommunications industry for use in screens.
The ore is mined by the FARC (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia, or Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia - People's Army), and exported to Pennsylvania, where it is refined. The refined ore is then sent over to Austria, where a company called Plansee turns it into a finished product. Now, it's important to note that we aren't talking about the world's supply of tungsten here. In 2012, Plansee's American refinery purchased 93.2 metric tons of tungsten, valued at $1.8 million. That's peanuts, with the entire Colombian tungsten mining industry producing just one percent of the world's supplies.
That doesn't make indirectly supporting FARC any more acceptable, though. BMW, VW and Ferrari are all committed to not accepting mineral supplies from the Democratic Republic of Congo, which is also in the grips of a guerrilla insurrection funded, in part, by illegal mining. The same commitment would figure to extend to Colombian mining, but as BMW points out, it's difficult for a multi-national manufacturer to know where every item in its supply chain comes from. A company spokesperson says as much, telling Bloomberg, "These few grams out of the billions of tons of raw materials passing through the BMW supply chain are of no practical relevance."

It's a good time to get a great deal on a new sports car

Anyone who regularly follows our reporting on the biggest discounts on new cars already knows that the largest sums of money are generally lopped off the sticker prices of the priciest vehicles. It just makes sense. The formula holds true in April, with the 2020 Audi R8 leading the way. It's important to note that the Audi R8 comes in both coupe and convertible flavors and, despite coming standard with a V10 engine, multiple power levels. On average, customers are paying $18,551 less than the R8's $191,136 sticker price. That's nearly 10% off, with the average out-the-door price hovering at $172,585. Up next is the 2020 BMW M8, a vehicle we've grown used to seeing on this list. It's sold in hardtop, convertible and four-door Gran Coupe body styles, and when you average out all of its transactions, buyers are scoring discounts of $16,930 with an average transaction price of $139,891. That's 10.8% off the German car's sticker price. Another familiar face is in third place this month. The 2020 Acura NSX often leads the biggest-discounts list, and even though it's fallen a bit behind in the savings race, we doubt buyers who see $16,675 cut off the sticker are complaining. With an average transaction price of $143,013, that discount equals a savings of 10.4%. For a look at the best new car deals in America based on the percentage discount off their suggested asking prices, check out our monthly recap here. And when you're ready to buy, click here for the Autoblog Smart Buy program, which brings you a hassle-free buying experience with over 9,000 Certified Dealers nationwide. Related video:

A closer look at the 2015 BMW M3 and M4

It's fair to say we're going to miss the E92 BMW M3. Its high-revving V8, flame-styled looks and excellent driving character made it quite simply one of the best cars of the 2000s. Its replacements, the new M3 Sedan and M4 Coupe have a lot to live up to.
We still have a few months to wait until we can drive the new cars, but that doesn't mean we can't get excited in the meantime, learning everything we can. To find out, we sent west coast editor Michael Harley onto the Detroit Auto Show floor earlier this week to talk about the new M cars with BMW product manager Victor Leleu.
If you want a concise, but highly informative rundown of these new cars, look no further than this video. Leleu talks about the styling, weight savings and engines in a lot of detail, making this an interview M fans aren't going to want to miss. Scroll down for the full video.