BMW has decided that it would be prudent to abandon high-end halo cars in the wake of the global economic downturn and the low profit margins of such low-volume vehicles. That means that we should not expect a production version of the range-topping Concept CS that has been paraded around by the German automaker these last few years. Instead, expect BMW to refocus its efforts on efficiency, with city cars and electric cars taking a new priority. Sure, cars that use electric motors and expensive batteries are also likely to post low profit margins at first, but the research and development into the new fuel-savers could prove invaluable as the technology filters on down the line to more mainstream models.

The long-rumored return of the Isetta brand seems like a virtual lock, if not in name at least in spirit as part of BMW's Strategy Number ONE plan. Included in the new plan are further inroads with the automaker's EfficientDynamics project and both electric and gas-powered city cars.

[Sources: Automotive News - sub. req'd, BMW]

Somebody needs to break out the Handiwipes, what with all of the celebrities and politicians who have shared the BMW Hydrogen 7 recently (granted, there is a fleet of them). The latest is Hilary Swank, who drove the H7 and gave BMW the chance to combine references to Swank's role in the movie Million Dollar Baby with the fact that the H7 fleet now has over two million miles under its dual-fuel powertrain. While BMW has a point when they say the car is "virtually emission-free" when running on H₂, they decline to mention how many of these miles were done using gasoline in the ICE. We'll see if the Bavarians get any more specific when they toss the keys to the next celebrity on the schedule.


[Source: BMW]

Green supercar. is is an oxymoron? A contradiction in terms? Not so, according to BMW, which is currently working on just such a machine. Still in its early stages, the Bavarian vehicle is not expected to hit the market until 2012 or so and will reportedly be based on the M1 Homage concept that the automaker showed just a while back. That wedge-shaped supercar will be moved by a 3.0-liter inline six cylinder engine that should receive direct injection to go along with its twin turbochargers. A version of this engine is already powering models from BMW that end in 35i and it puts out over 300-horsepower in its current state of tune. We'd expect more than that from the supercar version, and rumors also indicate that Efficient Dynamics will be adding stop/start, regenerative braking and possibly even a road-going version of the Kinetic Energy Recovery System that is current being refined for Formula 1 use starting next year. Fuel economy, emissions and carbon output should match that of the firm's 5 Series midsize sedan.

[Source: AutoCar via Autoblog]

BMW's upcoming 7 Series ActiveHybrid (where do they come up with these names, anyway?) will use a 120 volt lithium ion battery pack that will be supplied by Johnson Controls-Saft. That battery will be assembled at the Johnson Controls-Saft production facility in Nersac, France. BMW will place the lithium ion battery in the trunk, while a BMW standard-fare 12 volt Absorbent Glass Mat battery will reside under its hood. This is the same heavy duty battery already used in BMWs with brake energy regeneration. While BMW's 7 Series shares hybrid technology with the new Mercedes-Benz S400 BlueHybrid, that uber-sedan will use a 120 volt battery supplied by Continental that will be placed under the hood where the normal lead-acid battery would go. Mercedes has opted to use a single battery configuration with a step down to supply the usual 12V accesories. These two big machines will go up against each other for hybrid luxury car supremacy sometime next year.

[Source: Johnson Controls]

BMW is launching a refreshed version of its mainstream 3-Series sedan this fall with tweaked front and rear styling. On the mechanical side, we already know about the coming 3.0L dual turbo diesel for the U.S. market. One other change that's coming is the addition of a 7-speed dual clutch transmission. The sports automatic transmissions, as BMW calls them, debuted on the M3 earlier this year and now join the 335i Coupe and Convertible models. The automated shifting of the DCT provides a slight 0.1 second improvement in 0-62 mph acceleration while also providing a five percent reduction in fuel consumption compared to the previous 6-speed automatic. The convertible now has a combined rating of 25.8 mpg (U.S.) while the coupe is up to 26.7 mpg (U.S.). Now, if they would just offer up the DCT with the new diesel, we'd have a killer combination.

[Source: BMW]

BMW has won an ÖkoGlobe award for the second straight year. The award was presented to the Bavarian automaker for its work on a thermoelectric generator. Um, what's that? Basically, using a process known as the Seebeck effect, electricity can be generated by a difference in temperatures. All right, fine... who cares? Under the hood of every car ever sold that has an internal combustion engine, a huge amount of heat is generated while the engine creates power to drive the vehicle. In fact, only about a quarter of all the energy released by the fuel's combustion is utilized in even the most efficient engines. Therefore, there is a great source of untapped energy already in each car on the road. BMW's researchers and engineers would love to tap into that unused energy with a thermoelectric generator, which could help capture some of that potential energy in the form of electricity that could then help power either the car directly or at least some of its peripheral systems. Very cool, and we hope something good comes from the research.

[Source: BMW]

BMW's North American CEO, Jim O'Donnel has ended the rumors of a new BMW four-cylinder engine option. It's true. And it sounds great. Not only will the new turbocharged engine outperform the current inline-six, it will get better fuel mileage and produce fewer emissions. Perfect! When is it coming? Could be soon for Europe. The United States, though, reportedly won't learn its fate until the upcoming Presidential election is complete. Um, sorry... what?

You're telling us all about this great new engine and how it's going to outperform the current engines, and then tell us that you'll only bring it here if the Feds force you to? That doesn't sound so good, especially for an automaker that is so proud of its "Most Sustainable" title. If the automaker has a good engine, we want it. It really is just that simple, and this includes those great diesels we've been taunted with.

[Source: BimmerFile]

Click above for a high-res gallery of the 2009 BMW 3-Series

BMW's Efficient Dynamics program has prompted the Bavarian automaker to add fuel-saving technologies to its line of vehicles. Most of the changes have been made first to the most fuel efficient models, including the adoption of stop/start technology. By bringing the engine to a stop instead of letting it idle away, a huge improvement can be realized, especially in city-style stop-and-go driving conditions. So far, all of the models to be so equipped have featured four-cylinder engines underhood. No longer. BMW will soon be waving its stop/start wand over its excellent inline six-cylinder engines.

Expect to see the stop/start make its first six cylinder appearance in the 3 Series. A bit later on down the line, the technology will spread across the entire brand's range of vehicles. Now that the United States may finally be getting four cylinder BMWs again, is it too much to ask for them to allow us to save some gas with the stop/start too? We'll see.


[Source: Channel 4]

Preparing for the next-generation of auto dealerships, the Bill Jacobs BMW/MINI shop will break ground September 12 in Naperville, IL. The dealer's website features a countdown timer and a whole heap of information about how Bill Jacobs' crew hopes to make the building a way to "discuss the importance of eco-friendly initiatives in the automotive industry, as well as why automotive retailing is ready for these sorts of changes." How ready? Well, the shop will have a BMW Hydrogen 7 on hand on the 12th, so let's just say that they're ahead of the curve. The building will also feature sun shading, low VOC paints and "will take advantage of water, recycling and ventilation technologies to make the dealership more environmentally stable." Sensible.

[Source: Bill Jacobs Groundbreaking]

Click to view the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics concept in hi-res

The automotive industry seems to be heading in two diametrically opposed directions: developing fuel-efficient, environmentally-friendly cars on the one hand, and a seemingly never-ending race for more horsepower on the other. While BMW continues to produce overpowered performance vehicles like the V8-powered M3 and V10-powered M5 and M6 to gun for top honors in the latter category, executives in the Bavarian automaker insist that their main focus is on the former.

In an interview with AutoTelegraaf, Klaus Draeger, the BMW board member spearheading the EfficientDynamics program, says that, despite the unveiling of the M1 Hommage supercar concept, BMW will not be producing a competitor to the Audi R8 supercar. Citing deployment of the EfficientDynamics system in 850,000 vehicles this year alone, Draeger says that the company will instead focus on green technologies. "That is our biggest investment in the coming years." We'll see.

[Source: AutoTelegraaf via eGMCarTech]

Two weeks ago, the 2008 Hydrogen Road Tour started up in Maine. Today, the tour made its final stop in Los Angeles, following a cross-country tour that opened new hydrogen stations in Missouri and Massachusetts along the way. BMW's Hydrogen 7 was along for the ride and the Bavarians sent out a press release today announcing the completion of the 4,000-mile trip (read it after the jump). BMW sent along two dual-fuel Hydrogen 7 and two mono-fuel versions of the luxury sedan. The hydrogen-only version of the 7 has a range of 200 miles of hydrogen-only driving. This is just one more example of the many, many miles of PR BMW has gotten out of these vehicles and with the Hydrogen Road Tour now over, do you think this is all we've heard about the Hydrogen 7? Not very likely.

[Source: BMW]

Apparently, the problems that BMW Sauber had with its Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS) are completely correctable. The racing team also believes that its mechanics and drivers were never in any real danger despite the high voltage system carried by the Formula 1 car. It seems that there was some sort of discharge due to a faulty controller. Whoops! The mechanic was thrown to the ground after touching both the carbon chassis and steering wheel of the race car. Why then, you may wonder, was the driver not harmed? BMW believes that Christian Klien was protected by his racing suit and gloves.

The problem was difficult to trace due to the controller's sporadic failure... sometimes it worked, sometimes, well, not so much. Fortunately, the lengthy period BMW spent searching for the problem will result in a much safer system and the team plans to begin testing again in the autumn. For the 2009 season, the entire roster will be racing with the KERS hybrid systems installed.

[Source: F1-Live]

Click above for a high-res gallery of the 2009 BMW 3-Series

Earlier this morning we were tipped that BMW would be delaying its 335d until some time next year. According to BMW, this is not the case. While we were attempting to get a hold of a Bavarian spokesperson ourselves, we were beat to the punch by Kicking Tires, who confirmed with BMW spokesman Tom Plucinsky that the vehicles will begin production in September and go on sale in the U.S. in November of this year. The machines will be marketed as 2009 model-year vehicles. A short time after the 335d reaches a showroom near you, the X5 xDrive35d will show up, still likely in November. The official debut of the car in North America will be at the upcoming L.A. Auto Show.

Related:

• BMW confirms fall launch for U.S. diesels, racing to beat Mercedes
• BMW estimates US spec 335d will achieve 23/33 mpg

[Source: Kicking Tires]

Although BMW's Formula 1 team has had its fair share of troubles getting the Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS) to work properly, those minor setbacks may not be enough to stop the Bavarian automaker from using a similar system for its line of high performance M Division vehicles. The sophisticated hybrid system uses a high-speed flywheel to store energy which would otherwise be lost while braking which is then fed back into the driveline when the vehicle next needs to speed up. Besides being more efficient than battery storage, the KERS system is significantly lighter, coming in at just fifty-five pounds in racing configuration. On a production car, the KERS system could be combined with a much smaller battery and electric motor for true full-hybrid operation.

If these rumors hold true, the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile's (FIA) goal of letting racing perform the research and development for new car technology would be achieved. We'll just need to wait and see how effective the innovative hybrid system proves in Formula 1 before making any judgements.

[Source: Auto Motor und Sport - translated]

The deadline for automakers to comment on the latest CAFE standard proposal is today, and at least one manufacturer has decided to speak up. BMW is calling the fuel efficiency standards it would be required to meet 'unattainable.' As you may be aware, the latest proposal takes into account the overall footprint of the vehicle, and manufacturers which sell large vehicles won't be required to meet the same goals as those which produce smaller vehicles. While that's great for manufacturers with truck-heavy lineups, automakers like BMW are in for a world of hurt as they tend to produce smaller, sportier machines. For this reason, BMW would be required to average 37.3 miles per gallon for its cars, quite a bit higher than the 35.7 mpg industry average. The Bavarian's trucks would need to achieve 31.7 mpg, compared to an industry average of 28.6 mpg.

While it may seem a bit unfair (or maybe not) that BMW should be required to hit higher numbers than some other manufacturers, it should be pointed out that BMW currently offers no engines with fewer than six cylinders and is on a bit of a crossover binge as of late. What's more, the marque has proven rather adept at squeezing high power outputs from relatively small displacement, so we'd stop a bit short of suggesting that the numbers being asked of it are unattainable.

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]