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BMW X4 Concept images leak ahead of Shanghai debut

Last month, BMW confirmed that its long-awaited X4 crossover would debut next year, but other than imagining a smaller X6-shaped crossover, we really had no idea what the new niche model would look like. That is until a Russian website, Autowp, leaked a handful of embargoed images this morning showing the X4 Concept that will be unveiled in a couple of weeks at the Shanghai Motor Show.
From what we can see of this concept's styling, there are more elements shared with current BMW models than not. The face of the concept is an attractive blend of the current 3 Series sedan and the X3, while the roofline has definitely plucked right from the X6. This thinly veiled concept should carry over almost untouched when it enters production with the exception of the door handles and the overly stylized fascias and side mirrors. According to CarScoops, it will measure the same length as the current X3 and use the same engine lineup as well. Stay tuned, as we'll have more information on this concept shortly.

BMW Shanghai: Driving in mega cities, designing the future and more

The BMW enclave is a suitable mix of high-tech and throwback cool.
A few days before the Shanghai Motor Show kicked off, we were part of an international group of media that was invited to have a look at the BMW Designworks Shanghai Studio and ConnectedDrive Lab facility. The building that BMW found to house its Chinese think tank is in a lovely part of Shanghai known as the former French Concession. The late 1890s and early 1900s French architectural style, brick-paved streets and tree-lined spaces feel a world apart from the ultra-modern heart of Shanghai, and the BMW enclave is a suitable mix of high-tech and throwback cool.

BMW to offer carbon fiber wheels in a year or two

The Citroën SM sat on the first set of production glass fiber and resin wheels in 1972 when parent company Michelin developed the exotic hoops in order to take the SM rallying. It wasn't until 2008 that we got the first all-carbon-fiber wheel for passenger cars in the form of a prototype model from Weds Sports in Japan that remained a prototype. Australian company Carbon Revolution followed that a year later with its CR-9 all-CF wheel, first introduced on the Shelby Ultimate Aero and now available for independent purchase for about $15,000 per set. BMW could be the first OEM to offer entire wheels in carbon fiber reinforced plastic in two years.
The wheels - either all-CFRP or using a CFRP rim and alloy spokes - were shown off during BMW's Innovation Days in Munich and are products of the development work done on its i-branded cars. The full-CFRP wheel is 35-percent lighter than a forged alloy wheel, the hybrid alloy and CFRP wheel is 25-percent lighter, making for a decent drop in unsprung rotating weight. As demonstrators during a tech day the wheels aren't yet in the pipeline for production and EU approval, but an article in Auto Express claims that they could be on the market as soon as two years from now.
Other possible parts include a full carbon fiber steering wheel and propeller shaft, the latter of which is coming as a single-piece component on the new M3 and M4. BMW is also talking up its use of secondary carbon fiber - waste material from i3 and i8 production - that can be used for items like IP support structures, seat frames and spare wheels in place of traditional metals like aluminum and magnesium. There's an excerpt of the Innovation Day press release below with more details.