BMW is working on its own compact, more affordable four-door coupe to rival the likes of the Audi A5 Sportback and the upcoming Mercedes-Benz CLA.

The 4 Series Gran Coupe is set to debut sometime next year and will go on sale before the end of 2013. The 4 Series Gran Coupe will follow in the footsteps of the recently released 6 Series Gran Coupe, sporting four doors and a slightly longer wheelbase than its two-door counterpart. It’s not exactly classified as a sedan however – that’s reserved for the 3 Series moniker – as the 4 Series Gran Coupe will sport a nice, sweeping roofline.

Chances are the front end will resemble that we see now on the newly-designed 3 Series but with larger air intakes. Under the hood, the 4 Series Gran Coupe will be equipped with the same engine variants offered in the coupe and convertible models: a 428i with a 2.0-liter turbo-four and a 435i with 302-hp. Out in Europe, a 420d diesel is offered boasting 65-mpg.

BMW will also ultimately release an M4 Gran Coupe model, powered by the rumored inline-six, turbocharged engine that will pump out around 450-hp.

[Source: Auto Express]

Racing is all about getting the shortest lap time, and following this past weekends Ferrari Challenge North America race at Laguna Seca, the Italian sports car company can now claim the fastest lap around Laguna Seca. 

Driving a F2003 GA Formula 1 car, Spanish driver Marc Gene set a new record of 1.05.78. However, the lap was recorded during testing, and is therefore classified as an unofficial lap time. However you wanna look at it, there is no denying that this is the quickest time around Laguna Seca.

The previous record of 1:05.880 was held by Sebastian Bourdais, and was bested by just ten tenths of a second. A track as complex and demanding as Laguna Seca demands that the lap time records be highly contentious, and Ferrari will no doubt flaunt its new crown as often as possible.

Mercedes-Benz released a thank you video a few weeks ago for its fans, but it wasn’t enough to whet our appetites for the tuned up German cars, and so the company has re-released the video with all of the footage that was cut from the original. 

The fans were skeptical of a few things, especially the drift of the infamous corkscrew turn at Laguna Seca, as the footage in the first video is cut together in such a way that makes it look like movie magic. This new video is careful to display the drift as one continuous shot, quelling all claims that the move wasn’t real.

The footage is strictly aerial footage taken from a helicopter camera, and give a great birds eye view of the car and the track.

Watch the video below to see the C63 flawlessly drifting around Laguna Seca.

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Porsche has announced that it will be relocating its Porsche Motorsport North America (PMNA) subsidiary to the new Porsche Experience Center in Los Angeles once it’s completed in fall of 2013.

The German automaker is currently working on building the new 53-acre Experience Center out in Carson, California and will feature a world-class test track and handling course, a leading sports science laboratory, a Porsche Cafe, and gift shop. Additional dining facilities will also be available for those upscale business meetings and events that could benefit with some track side views.

Porsche Motorsport North America will be relocating to the new Experience Center where they will continue to sell and service the North American customers sports programs. PMNA supplies a wide range of products from 911 Cup cars to the ultimate 911 RSR to race teams all across America.

“This not only makes sound business sense, but is symbolic as well,” said Detlev von Platen, PCNA’s President and CEO. “Aside from offering a modern, purpose built working environment, the motorsport specific operations will provide additional energy and dynamics to a facility that is all about performance both on the vehicle and human side. Thus our new Experience Center will perfectly symbolize the core of the Porsche brand, which has always been a successful blend of a passion for racing and for spirited yet responsible driving on open roads,” he added.

Nissan has confirmed that the e-NV200 all-electric van will begin production in Barcelona, Spain in early 2013. 

The announcement coincides with Nissan’s plans to offer four all-electric models by 2015, and will be the second EV in the companies fleet, joining the Nissan Leaf. We first saw the e-NV200 at the Detroit Auto Show, where it debuted as a concept vehicle.

The power source of the e-NV200 was not specified by the company, although it is supposed to garner a range very close to that of the Leaf. Most of the technology and drive-train will most definitley be sourced directly from the Leaf, with some retrofitting needing to be done to fit the e-NV200′s larger size.

Nissan is putting up a $51 million investment to ready the Spanish plant for the task of building the electric van, as this will be the only production facility in the world putting together the e-NV200. The plant expansion will also add 700 new jobs to the facility.

Delivery companies are the focus of e-NV200, as Nissan envisions its electric van as the perfect vehicle for inner city drop offs, but also makes sure to stress that all that cargo space is good for the kids and dog as well. “Crucially, it will also offer class-leading running and maintenance costs which makes it an exceptionally attractive proposition to both businesses and families,” said Andy Palmer, Nissan Executive Vice President.

Although the Leaf has not had the greatest sales number, Nissan is staying true to the plan of investing in electric vehicle technology, which may or may not pay off for them in the future.

Volvo, the Swedish car brand known for a promoting safety first is at it again, this time with pedestrian airbags, a system which is meant to absorb the impact of a car hitting a person. 

The system has one objective: to keep the pedestrian as safe as possible in the event of a collision. Sensors in the front bumper of the car are always active and alert, waiting to inflate the airbag in less than a few hundredths of a second. When fully deployed, the airbag covers the windshield wiper area and the bottom of the A-pillars, the two most common places that pedestrians strike their heads during a collision. The system is only active from about 12 mph to 30 mph, as Volvo calculates that 75 percent of pedestrian accidents occur at around 25 mph.

This system acts in congruence with Volvo’s full auto brake pedestrian detection setup, which debuted in 2010, and activates the brakes of the car if pedestrians are detected.

To facilitate the deployment of the pedestrian airbag, a pyrotechnical release mechanism is used at the back end of the hood, and when deployed raises the hood by ten centimeters. This serves a double purpose, as now the hood also has some absorption properties and added angle, to lessen the severity of an impact.

So if you are a constant jay-walker, just hope that the next car to hit you is a Volvo.

This new technology will debut on the Volvo V40.

Watch the video below to see the technology explained.

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McLaren Automotive is expanding around the world, especially in markets where the demand for such high end super cars is in large supply, hence the release of this promo video, which solidifies the companies presence in the Middle East. 

A desolate desert backdrop sets the scene for a ride in a McLaren MP4-12C, eventually giving way to the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, where we get to see the car perform on the track. The spot is put together well, with high production value, adding more allure to the already beautiful car.

The Middle Eastern market’s need for expensive bespoke cars is higher than ever before, and a super car such as this will fit in nicely with the typical demographic of middle eastern car buyers. The promo even goes as far to list exactly where the dealers are located, just in case you didn’t know.

Watch the video below.

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BMW has anointed its newest Head of Design, Karim Habib, who will effectively take the position starting June 1st, 2012.

Habib is credited with styling the exteriors of the current BMW 7-Series, a vast improvement over the previous generation’s styling designed by Chris Bangle. Even though the E65 7-Series was fairly popular in terms of sales, it’s undoubtedly ingrained in many minds for its ‘Bangle Butt’, the oddly shaped two-level rear end. Ironically enough, the ‘Bangle Butt’ was actually designed by Adrian van Hooydonk, who worked closely with Bangle on the previous generation 7-Series.

Regardless, the German automaker is looking forward to ushering in a new era of design with Habib at the helm. He is a 42-year old Lebanese-born Canadian who has been in charge of exterior design on BMW Automobiles up to this point. Habib will report to the previously mentioned Hooydonk, who is Senior Vice President of BMW Group Design.

Habib joined the BMW Group back in 1998 and worked with the automaker for ten years. In 2008, Habib jumped over to BMW rival Mercedes-Benz for a two-year stint before returning to Munich in 2010.

“Karim Habib is an outstanding designer who has had a significant impact on the design of the BMW brand over many years,” said Hooydonk. “His longstanding experience and subtle instinct for timely elegance and dynamics are the ideal prerequisites for this demanding task. I look forward very much to his support and collaboration,” he added.

The Volkswagen Golf R Cabriolet is the drop top version of the powerful Golf R, and we now know thanks to patent drawings that the cabriolet concept we saw last year will be put into production, although it likely won’t make it the the States. 

When the concept convertible version of the Golf R debuted at the Worthersee GTI meet in Austria last year, it was with the intention of collecting customer feedback which would be used to decide if the car should be produced. The feedback was positive, and the sales of the Golf R and GTI have been good, so VW filed these patent images in China, all but confirming that the car will be built.

The Golf R Cabriolet will utilize the same turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder as the standard Golf R, making 265-hp and 258 lb-ft of torque, enabling a 0-62 mph time of under 6.0 seconds. The convertible Golf R will also get some aesthetic upgrades, including color themed sport seats, 19-inch wheels, black carbon and piano black accents and LED running lights. Center mounted tailpipes will also be outfitted on the cabriolet.

Volkswagen is saying that we will not get a current generation Golf R Cabriolet on our shores, but that does suggest that there is a chance we will get the next generation here in America.

[Source: China Car Times]

The famous movie franchise Men in Black is returning this year with its third installment, and the new movie will find the two protagonists fighting intergalactic crime in a new Ford Taurus SHO.

The original car for the duo of Agent J and K, played by Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones respectively, was an eighties era Ford Crown Victoria, the go to car for any FBI, CIA, or government agent. The second movie saw the guys modernize to a Mercedes-Benz E-Class, which fit right in around the spaceships and futuristic weaponry in the movie.

For the 2012 movie, a Ford Taurus SHO will do the duties of transporting the agents, along with monocycles and jetpacks, all being grouped together by Ford in its latest commercial for the movie, to make us believe that the Taurus SHO is just a futuristic as a jet pack.

Even if it can’t fly, the Taurus’s looks do suit the movie well. Although a matte black Audi R8 might have been a little better for the spaceship look.

Watch the trailer for Men in Black Three featuring the Ford Taurus SHO below.

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Back in January, Ford unveiled its 2013 NASCAR Fusion entry, closely resembling the upcoming model with styling borrowed heavily from Aston Martin.

Now Ford Racing will show off the first version of its new race car with a full, race-ready paint scheme at the upcoming annual Roush Fenway Fan Day out in Concord, North Carolina. The vehicle on display will be the 2013 Motorcraft Ford Fusion of the Wood Brothers which will head to the Ford consumer display at Charlotte Motor Speedway and will become a regular part of a traveling exhibit through the remainder of the 2012 season.

The vehicle pictured above, as realistic as it looks, is actually a full-size clay model produced by the Ford Design Center out in Michigan.

GALLERY: 2013 Wood Brothers NASCAR Ford Fusion

[Source: Autoweek]

True automotive enthusiasts might find a “How It’s Made – Rally Cars” a little comical, especially with the use of laymen terms to explain the process in building a formidable rally car.

But it’s nice to see a mainstream show on the Discovery and Science Channel spotlighting the form of motorsport, as they try to depict the hard work put into converting a standard Ford Fiesta into a 300-hp rally competitor, or as they say “a compact vehicle that has had a radical makeover.”

The video is clearly made for the general public, lightly touching on the process of stripping a car and building it to the regulations and standards for rally racing. It does do a nice job with an overview of the process, from tearing the car down, lightening the weight, to building the motor and bolting on a turbocharger. Our favorite tidbit is its focus on the graphics that make the car look “fierce.”

Watch a five minute segment from How It’s Made – Rally Cars after the break.

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