2005 Bmw X5 3.0i Sport Utility 4-door 3.0l on 2040-cars

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LA Design Challenge invokes biology for 2025 concepts [w/poll]

Participants in the annual LA Design Challenge always manage to come up with edgy, wacky designs for future vehicles, but with a theme of "Biomimicry and Mobility: 2025" this year's crop of cars might be the quirkiest we've ever seen. As usual, automotive designers from around the world participated in this year's competition, and all the designs will all be unveiled next week during the LA Auto Show with a winner being announced on November 21.
Chinese automakers made a strong showing with Qoros, SAIC Motor, JAC Motors (the company responsible for the Ford F-150 clone) and Changfeng all bringing interesting takes on the biology, human intelligence and sustainability theme. One of the more innovative ideas among these automakers is the Qoros Silk Road System allows autonomous vehicles to drive in packs similar to how ants travel. Speaking of ants, the SAIC Motor Mobiliant (shown above) gets its design from the shape of an ant's body, and, like the insect, it can climb building acting as a personal elevator as well. The JAC Motors design also merges vehicle and building design, while the Changfeng LaBrea inspired by the design of muscle fibers.
Other entrants include Subaru and US-based design teams for BMW, Toyota and Mazda. BMW's duo of concepts mimic plant and animal life. The LA Subways concept acts as a submersible, single-person vehicle to take advantage of the LA river, with a shape similar to an Ocean Sunfish. The Sustainable Efficient Exploratory Device (SEED) imitates the shape of a seed pod, and uses propulsion methods inspired by a shark, dragonfly and a water bug. Mazda's Auto Adapt might be the most car-like concept of the bunch, while the Subaru Suba-Roo and the Calty-designed, Toyota e-grus are the most mind-blowingly awesome.

BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe spotted wearing minimal camo, M Sport pack

The new BMW 4 Series is essentially the coupe version of the latest 3 Series. So it would stand to reason that the four-door version of the 4 Series, in turn, would be the 3 Series - right? Well, yes and no.
Just as BMW offers both a 5 Series sedan and a four-door version of the 6 Series called the Gran Coupe, so, too, will its 4-Series family expand. So following the release of the new 4 Series Convertible, here we have the latest batch of spy shots showing the upcoming 4 Series Gran Coupe - which in turn should not be confused with the hunchbacked 3 Series Gran Turismo, which is more of a sporty wagon than a four-door coupe.
The nearly ready test vehicle pictured here is wearing only minimal camouflage to hide some last few details, but also appears to be wearing the M Sport package that will bridge the gap (at least, visually speaking) between the base models and the M4 Gran Coupe that is all but certain to follow.

Two rare Alpina BMWs given the Petrolicious treatment

Alpina is getting more and more ink because of because of that rolling cannonade known as the B7 and its closer ties with BMW. The company's tuning business dates to 1962 when Burkard Bovensiepen began fiddling with Weber carburetors, then his company began racing in 1968 and was eventually certified as an automaker in 1983.
Two of its rarer specimens from those early years have gotten a glance from the folks at Petrolicious: the E24 B10 and E24 B7S. Based on the BMW 6 Series, the Alpina versions made one of the most special coupes from the Eighties even more so. According to the video, there were only 44 B10s made, and the turbocharged, 333-horsepower B7S - this was in a luxury coupe in 1982, mind you - saw only 33 examples produced.
You won't be sorry to find out more about them - and see how they run - in the Petrolicious video below.