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GRAND-AM, IMSA announce deal to bring DTM racing to US

It won't be until 2015 at the earliest, but the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA), Grand-Am and the Internationale Tourenwagen-Rennen have agreed to a licensing and cooperation deal that could bring a version of Germany's DTM series to the US.
When the American Le Mans Series and Grand-Am are officially combined next year, the resulting body will be called United SportsCar Racing (USCR). IMSA will be the sanctioning body for that series, and DTM races could be run as support events. It was also suggested by an ALMS chief that DTM races could be standalone or join NASCAR and IndyCar weekends.
With the so-called DTM America finally agreed to, there is now a way for manufacturers to run the same DTM-type cars in Europe, the US and Japan - last year Japan's Super GT series agreed to adopt "the basic technical regulations" of DTM for the GT500 class, the top class in the series. That already puts six manufacturers in play: Mercedes-Benz, Audi and BMW that run in Germany's DTM and Honda, Nissan and Lexus that run in Super GT. The DTM oversight body has invited American brands to Germany for the opening round of the 2013 season, and will begin actively courting their participation in the US series. Check out the press release from Audi with comments on the deal below.

2015 BMW M4 Convertible is here to put wind in your sails

Each generation of the BMW M3 has included a convertible model. Even the distant E30, the patriarch of the M3 line, had an ultra-rare (only 787 were built) droptop model. The convertible became more common on the successive generations, with the hardtop-convertible E93 being the most recent. Considering this history, there seemed very little doubt that as the M3 became the M4, a convertible would be in the cards. Now, the new droptop has arrived.
Set for its global debut at the 2014 New York Auto Show, the 2015 BMW M4 Convertible features, like its forbearers, everything that's great about the hardtop variant while adding an unlimited amount of head room. That means the same 3.0-liter, 425-horsepower, 406-pound-foot, twin-turbocharged straight six sits under its domed hood, while either a six-speed stick or a seven-speed M dual-clutch transmission dispatches power to the fat rear tires.
As for specific differences between the hardtop and the new convertible, obviously, the droptop is heavier. A lot heavier. Where an M4 with a six-speed manual tips the scales at 3,530 pounds, the M4 Convertible weighs in at 4,055 pounds. Believe it or not, BMW has actually trimmed 90 pounds from the last-generation M3 convertible, code-named E93. This marginal weight reduction from the third-generation convertible to the fourth is barely half of the 174 pounds BMW was able to subtract when transitioning from M3 Coupe to M4 Coupe.

2015 BMW X6 M First Drive [w/video]

Please forgive my bluntness, and allow me to cut to the heart of the X6-dissenter argument right at the top. Yes, BMW will sell you a 2015 BMW X5 M that is the motive twin (I assume) of the X6 M you're here to read about, that is also cheaper, roomier, and more conventional in appearance. For many of you – especially the old guard that hears the descriptor "Sports Activity Coupe" and proceeds to unlock the gun cabinet – that's all you need to hear. Because, although the fickle community that consumes and comments on internet car culture seems to be fine with typical-looking SUVs and wagons packing performance-enhancing goodies, the idea of slanting the back of one turns them right off. And yet, BMW continues to sell the things; more than 250,000 units have be delivered in the X6 series' history. As if that weren't proof of concept enough, blood-rival Mercedes-Benz has unleashed the GLE, a coupe-like crossover of its own, complete with AMG pedigree. All of this brought me to Austin, TX, home of Hill Country, The Circuit of the Americas and the 2015 X6 M launch. On both road and track I found a car that was more powerful and blithely capable than ever, while also being exactly as weird to drive as it is a concept to comprehend. Given that the X5 M exists, and offers styling that is more like normal for the SUV genre, both the lovers and the haters of the X6 M are likely to be focused on the way it looks. Here, the 2015 model isn't very much changed from the original, meaning you aren't liable to change sides on the styling debate for this refresh. The '15 model has a slightly fewer black accents on the exterior, along with revised front and rear fasciae and vented (and chromed) front fender gills. The car is almost two inches longer than the existing model, but is near enough the same size in every other direction that you'd have to study the specification sheet to know different. Inside the X6 M that I tested was a beautiful, fully optioned cabin that boasted gripping sport seats and BMW's wide, easy-to-read infotainment screen. The leather-wrapped everything and carbon-fiber trim were both well executed, and my hands rejoiced at the feeling of the thick-rimmed, serious-looking steering wheel. Veterans of the current M5 or M6 will see a lot that looks familiar here, but to my eyes that's high praise. The most impactful changes aren't visual but visceral.