2009 M3 on 2040-cars

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BMW stripes up X6 M Design Edition

There's something that makes red, dark blue and light blue stripes running up the fenders and down the flanks of a white car just that much more eye-catching. Whether it's a Martini Racing liveried racecar or something from the BMW skunkworks, they just draw long looks nothing else can. And here's the latest.
The BMW X6 M Design Edition upgrades on the standard X6 M with such special touches as 21-inch alloys, a carbon front splitter and rear splitter, black grilles and diffusor, and of course, those iconic racing stripes, which come as an option on this model.
The interior has been done up in black leather with Mugello red accents and piano black trim. Only 100 individually-numbered examples will be offered, and given that this one's wearing German plates, we doubt there's much chance many (if any) will make it Stateside. But then again, you could always spec up your own X6 M with most if not all of the same trim and forgo the little number plate on the dashboard.

TRANSLOGIC 147: CES 2014 Autonomous Vehicles

We head back to CES in Las Vegas to check on the progress of autonomous vehicles in 2014. We go hands-free on the highway with Audi, narrowly avoid a collision with Ford and hear all about BMW's drifting driverless car. But first we take a ride on Induct's self-driving Navia shuttle.

Why BMW doesn't plan to integrate Apple's iOS in the Car

While watching Apple introduce iOS in the Car during its WWDC keynote on Monday, we wondered how automakers, even the 14 who've already signed up to integrate this new in-car functionality of iOS 7, will feel about having the Cupertino company's mobile operating system supplant their own in-car systems. After all, some OEMs like Ford, General Motors and many luxury automakers have sunk millions of dollars into developing their own advanced infotainment, navigation and communication platforms like MyFord Touch, CUE and older systems like iDrive.
One automaker has now spoken up. A BMW spokeperson was interviewed by someone in the news department of British auto dealer group Arnold Clark and confirmed that the company would not be getting in line to integrate iOS in the Car anytime soon. The reason, as we suspected, is that BMW believes its own products developed over the last decade are both plenty good and already so deeply integrated with other systems of the car that, as told to Arnold Clark, "it would not be that straightforward to start changing all of the architecture of a car as has been implied [by Apple]."
While BMW isn't interested in spending more money to integrate Apple's services and functionality over its own, it has spent a good bit already to integrate iPhone functionality in its cars, including the relatively rare ability to support iPod Out and display Apple's own interface on Mini models with the optional Mini Connected feature, as well as committing to integrate Siri 'Eyes Free' functionality.