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BMW X6 M said to lap the 'Ring in 8:20

Bimmer Today reports that the German rag Auto Zeitung ran an Audi RS3 and a BMW X6 M around the Nurburgring together, and the hotted-up sports activity vehicle came in just five seconds behind the white-hot hatch. Driven by 'Ring regular Horst von Saurma, the RS3 ran its lap in 8 minutes, 15 seconds, and the X6 M ran an 8:20. If those times are accurate, that makes the X6 M the second fastest production SUV on the lap-time list according to Wikipedia: ahead of it is the 550-hp Range Rover Sport SVR, which ran a time of 8:14. That time puts BMW's 575-horsepower, 5,200-pound SUV four seconds ahead of the time registered by the last-gen, 555-hp X6 M, and well ahead of the Porsche Cayenne Turbo S that Sport Auto clocked an 8:34 with. It would not, however, match the predictions that X6 M project manager Herbert Bayerl made for it in an interview with Sport Auto earlier this year. Bayerl said "The new BMW X6 M moves at the level of M3," speaking of the E92 BMW M3 that Sport Auto ran around the 'Ring in 8:05. It is, though, two seconds faster than the E46 M3, which lapped in 8:22. Bayerl called out the Range Rover Sport SVR directly, saying, "We have been traveling much faster in testing and have undercut the time of Range Rover several times," and "We don't need any special attachments to go faster." Auto Zeitung's report on the lap is only for subscribers so we'll have to wait for more official news. For the apples-to-apples comparison we'll be looking forward to Sport Auto's hot lap, then we'll know if the Range Rover has anything to fear. Related Video:

Confident new Cadillac marketing boss ready to take on Tesla, BMW

When there's a former BMW executive heading Cadillac's efforts to boost sales of its only plug-in, it's a pretty safe guess that the marketing emphasis won't be on environmental friendliness and tree-hugging tendencies. The General Motors luxury brand has appointed ex-Bimmer executive Uwe Ellinghaus to be its marketing chief late last year, and the German-born Ellinghaus is now saying that he's targeting potential customers of Tesla Motors, in addition to BMW, for potential growth in sales of the Cadillac ELR extended-range plug-in. Appointed to Cadillac's head of marketing last November, Ellinghaus recently told Advertising Age that GM needs to highlight the Cadillac's looks and performance. He complimented Tesla for putting more emphasis on those attributes in the Model S than on its lack of emissions or lack of refueling costs (but Tesla hasn't shied away from highlighting the EV's savings). Ellinghaus says that trying to gear advertising "for people who are tree-huggers and green-wash an entire brand" won't be successful. You don't say. So far, the ELR hasn't made much of a dent in US car sales. Through May, Cadillac, which spent about $280 million on all of its US marketing last year, sold 293 units, whereas Tesla had been approaching the 11,000-unit figure for the Model S. With that in mind, Cadillac may be working on a sportier version of the ELR, as spy shots of a test vehicle from May revealed larger brakes and wheels. You can read our First Drive impressions of the ELR here.

Recharge Wrap-up: Tesla Gigafactory gets high-tech neighbors, BMW i8 still comes with a long wait

Switch plans to build a large data center near the site of Tesla's Gigafactory battery production facility in Reno, Nevada. The 3 million square-foot facility in the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center will cost $1 billion to build, and eBay is expected to be the main tenant when the first portion is finished in 2016. Apple is also building a data center nearby. One draw for companies like Switch, Apple and Tesla is access to the region's clean power, and the Reno area could become the next big center for high-tech manufacturing. Read more at GigaOm. Daniel Sparks of investing website The Motley Fool has shared his insights after living with the Tesla Model S for four months and 10,000 miles. After driving his 85-kW version through various conditions, including a 2,200-mile road trip, Sparks is optimistic about the car and the company behind it. From his experience, he says that charging is easier than most people believe, and that range anxiety isn't a problem. He calls Tesla's growing Supercharger network a "game changer," citing their quickness, availability and the fact that charging is free for life. He also says that most people seem to know very little about the car. Still, he calls Tesla stock "pricey" with the growth already priced into the shares. Read more at USA Today. The wait for a BMW i8 is about a year, despite efforts to ramp up production. BMW is reducing production of the i3 in order to increase the number of i8s by more than 50 percent for 2015, but the bigger batch won't become available in the US until October. Ludwig Willisch, CEO of BMW North America, says that he doesn't expect cheap gas to slow sales of the i3. He also denies rumors of an i9 positioned above the i8. The new 7 Series appears to be taking some cues from the i8, though, with carbon fiber, magnesium and aluminum construction, as well as improved connectivity. Read more at Automotive News.