2005 Bmw 645ci Base Coupe 2-door 4.4l on 2040-cars

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DC fast charging standard on 2015 BMW i3 EV

The BMW i3 is about to get a lot cooler. No, wait, a lot warmer. That's because there will a few new standard features in the i3 plug-in vehicles sold in the US, including seat heaters and satellite radio. Oh, and DC fast charging. The department head of BMW i USA, Jacob Harb, told BMW Blog that the company is, "now confident enough that in 2015 we will have the right infrastructure for DC fast charging, so it makes to include it standard in the MY2015." We can expect more details at the Detroit Auto Show in January and Harb told BMW Blog that, "you will be pleasantly surprised" by the announcement. There are a few other potential changes in store for the i3, including a configurable keyfob (like European i3 drivers get) and a heated steering wheel. It's unlikely that a sunroof or Lane Departure Warning will be offered, but Harb said BMW is always open to suggestions.

BMW wheels out single-cylinder G 310 R motorcycle

BMW makes a lot of motorcycles, including cruisers, enduros, off-roaders, sport bikes, and scooters. The one thing it hasn't done is a single-cylinder motorcycle with less than half a liter of displacement. But that all changes with the arrival of the G 310 R. Previewed by the Concept Stunt G 310 revealed last month in Brazil, the new G 310 R is BMW Motorrad's first sport bike with an engine smaller than 500cc. Though developed in Germany, the G 310 R is built in India around a new liquid-cooled single-cylinder engine displacing just 313 cc. That tiny cylinder does boast four valves, along with dual overhead camshafts and electronic fuel injection. It makes 34 horsepower and 21 pound-feet of torque. The engine is nestled into a compact tubular steel frame. It features a single headlamp up front, a molded fuel tank, 17-inch wheels, disc brakes with ABS, and aggressive styling. It all weighs just 350 pounds, with a seat that's less than 31 inches off the ground. Along with the G 310 R, BMW also revealed an electric motorcycle concept based on the S 1000 RR. That one you can check out on Autoblog Green. For a closer look at the G 310 R, you'll want to peruse the extensive image gallery above, and for further details, the press release below. BMW Motorrad G 310 R The new BMW G 310 R – the first BMW roadster under 500 cc. One cylinder, low weight, powerful dynamic performance – the BMW G 310 R embodies the pure essence of a BMW roadster: it has neither too little nor too much of anything. Pragmatic in the best sense of the word, it offers precisely what is needed – for dynamic performance and comfort, both in town and out in the country. The BMW G 310 R takes these essential qualities into a capacity segment that is new to BMW Motorrad. As a genuine BMW roadster it masters a range of disciplines: it is just as happy winding its way nimbly and flexibly through the narrow streets of a city as it is travelling supremely and powerfully along country roads. And thanks to its exceptionally low level of fuel consumption and a relaxed, comfortable seating position, it offers the welcome capability of being able to cover a long distance at a time. At home on the roads of the world. Newly conceived from scratch, the G 310 R represents everything BMW Motorrad stands for: innovation, quality and of course many years of carefree partnership with its owner.

A car writer's year in new vehicles [w/video]

Christmas is only a week away. The New Year is just around the corner. As 2014 draws to a close, I'm not the only one taking stock of the year that's we're almost shut of. Depending on who you are or what you do, the end of the year can bring to mind tax bills, school semesters or scheduling dental appointments. For me, for the last eight or nine years, at least a small part of this transitory time is occupied with recalling the cars I've driven over the preceding 12 months. Since I started writing about and reviewing cars in 2006, I've done an uneven job of tracking every vehicle I've been in, each year. Last year I made a resolution to be better about it, and the result is a spreadsheet with model names, dates, notes and some basic facts and figures. Armed with this basic data and a yen for year-end stories, I figured it would be interesting to parse the figures and quantify my year in cars in a way I'd never done before. The results are, well, they're a little bizarre, honestly. And I think they'll affect how I approach this gig in 2015. {C} My tally for the year is 68 cars, as of this writing. Before the calendar flips to 2015 it'll be as high as 73. Let me give you a tiny bit of background about how automotive journalists typically get cars to test. There are basically two pools of vehicles I drive on a regular basis: media fleet vehicles and those available on "first drive" programs. The latter group is pretty self-explanatory. Journalists are gathered in one location (sometimes local, sometimes far-flung) with a new model(s), there's usually a day of driving, then we report back to you with our impressions. Media fleet vehicles are different. These are distributed to publications and individual journalists far and wide, and the test period goes from a few days to a week or more. Whereas first drives almost always result in a piece of review content, fleet loans only sometimes do. Other times they serve to give context about brands, segments, technology and the like, to editors and writers. So, adding up the loans I've had out of the press fleet and things I've driven at events, my tally for the year is 68 cars, as of this writing. Before the calendar flips to 2015, it'll be as high as 73. At one of the buff books like Car and Driver or Motor Trend, reviewers might rotate through five cars a week, or more. I know that number sounds high, but as best I can tell, it's pretty average for the full-time professionals in this business.