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Porsche tops JD Power APEAL study for 12th time

JD Power's 2016 Automotive Performance, Execution, and Layout (APEAL) study hasn't changed much this time around with Porsche coming in at No.1 for the 12th consecutive year, while BMW was close behind in second. Jaguar and Mercedes-Benz tied for third with Land Rover, Lexus, and Lincoln tied for No.5. The APEAL Study, according to JD Power, measures owners' level of excitement and emotional attachment across 77 parameters. Brands and cars are rated on a 1,000-point scale. The study found that new cars with modern safety features including low speed collision avoidance and blind spot monitoring have higher APEAL scores than vehicles without the features. The overall industry score increased from 798 to 801, which JD Power claims was helped by the launch of a variety of new vehicles. This year, 22 out of 30 new or redesigned cars received a higher score than the vehicle's respective segment average. Porsche is once again at the top of the list as the automaker's score increased by three points to 877. BMW outscored Jaguar to take second place with a score of 859, while the British automaker dropped three points from last year with 852 points. Volkswagen overtook Mini to become the top-ranked non-premium brand with 809 points, while the latter automaker trailed behind by one point. At the end of the scale, Smart came in at the very bottom for the second year in a row with a score of 745 points, which represents an increase of 62 points over last year. Fiat's score increased by six points to 755, but still confined the automaker to second-to-worst place for a consecutive year. Mitsubishi's score increased to 770, up from 755, to become the fourth-worst brand, while Jeep fell to third-worst with a decrease in seven points to 756. General Motors received six segment-level awards, followed by Hyundai with five, and BMW and VW earning four apiece. Surprise segment victories include the Chevrolet Camaro, which outscored the Dodge Challenger, and the Lexus RC which ranked above the BMW 4 and 3 Series. For more information on how the automakers ranked, check out the official release on the 2016 APEAL Study below or visit JD Power's website to analyze the graphs. Related Video: Porsche Ranks Highest in APEAL for 12th Consecutive Year; General Motors Receives Six Segment-Level Awards, Hyundai Motor Company Receives Five DETROIT: 27 July 2016 — Popular driver-assist technologies help make vehicles considerably more appealing to their owners, according to the J.D.

BMW ReachNow just became a full-fledged mobility services program

Since officially opening its doors with 370 cars in Seattle in April, BMW's ReachNow has made little expansions. It stared operations in Portland and grew to 760 cars. Today, it also announced that Brooklyn would join the list, and that the number of available cars to share would climb to 1,030. But the big news is that the scope of ReachNow's efforts has just grown tremendously. Instead of just the original, short-term car rental option ReachNow will now be able to do all sorts of things. These include: ReachNow Ride: Similar to Lyft and Uber, this is a ride-hailing program where someone drives you to your destination. You can request a driver and set personal experience options, like setting a radio station or requesting silence for the ride. A pilot program will start in Seattle. ReachNow Fleet Solutions: BMW's version of Zipcar, but only for residents of specific apartment buildings. This is a station-based, dedicated car sharing plan and the first pilot will be in Manhattan, starting in a few weeks. It will be based at The Solaire in lower Manhattan and will use plug-in i3s exclusively. ReachNow Reserve: Remember good, old-fashioned rental cars? This is like that, but a bit fancier. BMW's longer-term rental service will let you schedule a particular model, which will then be delivered to you. You can keep it as long as you like, but we assume that if you're thinking of not giving it back for a few months, you're doing it wrong. ReachNow Share: BMW saw what Turo (nee Relay Rides) was doing and figured it was a good idea. With this program, you will be able to rent out your own 2016 or 2017 Mini for a minimum of two days, making you a bit of cash from your car when you're not using it. This rolls out in December in Seattle, and ReachNow CEO Steve Banfield said that it may expand to other models in the future. At #AutoMobilityLA, @turo says it has 2 million activated users and 120,000 listed vehicles. Claims the average monthly earning is $536* pic.twitter.com/gWHdrvPRWV — AutoblogGreen (@AutoblogGreen) November 15, 2016 ReachNow currently have 32,000 members, and all of these services are available to them through the ReachNow app. For a "limited time," new users can save the $39 registration fee as part of an introductory offer, and per-minute charges for the regular ReachNow service are 41 cents a minute instead of 49. At #AutoMobilityLA , @reachnow announces third city for @BMW's car sharing services: Brooklyn.

Mini's matte Countryman Black Knight Edition rises

Mini is certainly no stranger to a special edition, as unique option and styling packs have been a staple of the Mini line since its return to the US market, but it's next special trim is quite a big departure from previous cars. It's based on the Countryman, and is called the Black Knight Edition.
As you cans see from the image up top, it'll sport a sinister, matte-black paint scheme, making this Mini not unlike BMW's range of Frozen Edition cars. First reported on by those Mini-obsessed folks at MotoringFile, the Black Knight Edition Countryman will be limited to 60 units, and will be offered on a first-come, first-serve basis, making this car quite a bit different from previous special editions, which generally stuck around for a full model year.
According to MF, the matte finish will only be available on the Cooper S Countryman, although oddly, one of the teaser images shows a John Cooper Works badge. BKE models should be coming nearly loaded, which means that there's not a lot of customization done and the price tag is probably going to be exorbitant for a Mini. Buyers will, though, have the choice of front- or all-wheel drive and a choice of six-speed manual or six-speed automatic.