Remember the days when ribbon cable was popular? Okay, maybe you’re too young to remember its popularity, but if you’ve cracked open a computer, you’ve likely seen flat ribbons connecting drives to the motherboard. While flat cables are still used to connect components inside certain devices, they’re no longer used externally. Cable styles have shifted along with technology, leaning toward the thin side.
This week we reviewed another coupe from BMW. Another sports activity coupe that is, and in BMWspeak that means, well, it’s not a coupe. The EPA calls it a small SUV, and I pin it somewhere in the crossover utility/activity vehicle genre. Either way, this is the 2019 X4 from BMW.
BMW and I are going to have to agree to disagree on the all-new X2. The Bavarian automaker is billing the new model as a sports activity coupe, but I fail to see much coupe-ish about it. What is offered is a great combination of a hatchback and crossover utility vehicle, just not a coupe.
Truly one of the most unique vehicles I have driven in some time, the 2018 i3s from BMW was as fun as it was quirky, and all the while quite impressive. Think of a luxury electric golf cart with windows and infotainment center and add an onboard power generator to calm range anxieties.
The last time I reviewed the compact luxury X3 crossover from BMW I proclaimed it the best in its class. Recently I drove the all-new third-generation 2018 BMW X3 and despite the competition rising to the challenge of the Bavarians, BMW has seen to it that this model remains the class leader.
BMW calls its 5-Series four-door the most successful premium sedan. For 2017 it arrives in its 7th generation form that is loaded with state-of-the-art technology and is every bit as dynamic to drive as the models that have come before it.
BMW has launched the next chapter in its EffecientDynamics initiative and it arrives in the form of a plug-in hybrid on the X5 Sports Activity Vehicle. Arriving in showrooms is the X5 xDrive40e that mates the TwinPower turbo 2.0-liter I-4 gas engine to a synchronous electric motor powered by a high-voltage lithium-ion battery pack.
I think most folks (people like me anyway) remember the BMW 2002 from several decades back. The German automakers has resurrected the iconic 2 Series when they introduced an all-new Coupe last year that hit the streets in the form of the 228i and M235i as the successors to the 1 Series Coupe in this subcompact sport class.
As media days for the 2014 North American International Auto Show come to a close, Detroit prepares for the onslaught of visitors to the show that is boasting some 50 concept and new model debuts from automakers. Before the doors open to the public in Motor City Jan. 18-26 we bring you a photographic look at the rest of what was debuted this year.
BMW is a marque used by many automotive journalists as their “industry standard.” While I do not agree with many of my colleagues across the board on this, for me the X3 crossover from Bavaria is at the top of its game so there was much anticipation when the automaker brought its newest cute ute to the states in the form of the X1 Sport Activity Vehicle (BMW-speak for crossover utility vehicle). The 2013 BMW X1 is based on the 3-series automobile platform and offers many of the same creature comforts and attributes of the sedan and coupe models albeit with…
The BMW 3-Series luxury sport sedan has long been held up as the “industry standard” in its segment and for 2012 the Bavarian automaker gives us the sixth-generation of this modern icon. Globally, however, the 5-Series sedans sell better and here in the states sales have fallen off a bit for the champ. The reason? The field has become so crowded consumers are spreading their investments across three theaters of production now, those being traditional Europe, Japan, and now newcomer Detroit and the likes of the Cadillac ATS. There is not much I can say here that Bimmer enthusiasts don’t…
Over the course of an average Gear Diary calendar year, I drive more than 80 new vehicles for review. During that time, there are many vehicles I will not shed a tear over when it is time to relinquish the keys, as they’ve fallen just a bit short of making any sort of emotional connection with me. And then there is the BMW 650i Coupe. “I can’t find the keys;” “BMW called and said I could just keep it;” “The dog ate my homework.” (Wait, saving that last one for school this week. Sorry.) Alas, the week was over all…
A short time ago we brought word that Nuance Communications, the company behind Dragon Dictation and many other voice-to-text technologies, was bringing even more woeful voice to the case through Dragon Drive! Messaging. Dragon Drive! Messaging ‘is Nuance’s new automotive-grade connected car service that lets people speak emails and text messages”. Now word comes that it will be available in the new 2012 BMW 7 Series, BMW 3 Series Touring and BMW 3 Series ActiveHybrid vehicles. Better still, the 2012 BMW 7 Series will be the first car ever to feature Dragon Drive! Messaging and it is coming to market…
I know what you’re thinking, “Oh, here we go, another fanboy litero-gasmic rambling extolling BMW as the king of the blah, blah, blah…” Yep. Only I am not your typical “drank-the-Bimmer-koolaid” automotive journalist, in fact, it took me a long time to even recognize some of BMW’s prowess in the driving arena, and I still believe there are many other vehicles out there in their respective categories that outshine these Bavarian crèmes. Not so in the case of compact crossovers. After a week with the new BMW X3 I believe this is the best little CUV on the market today….
The calendar says we haven’t hit the first official day of winter yet and your mind may be displaying visions of sugarplums in preparation for the quickly approaching holiday season. But should there be an interest in a convertible in your near future – especially a convertible with a German accent – you might want to start thinking about cheaping-out on gift giving this season so you can save your pennies in time to enjoy topless cruising weather when the northern hemisphere welcomes the return of the sun’s warmth. BMW makes a very nice little hardtop convertible on the 3-series…
Stop the presses. An automotive journalist has been discovered that does not love, love, love the BMW 3-series. What is this heresy? Refusing to drink the Kool-Aid? Next they will be telling us this global warming scare is not all it is cracked up to be and that American automakers will be profitable despite all of the new fuel economy standards around the bend. I was really looking forward to my week in this BMW 335i coupe. I figured all I would have to do is drive it a few days and I would be able to regurgitate every word…
Despite the uncertain state of fuel prices and overall economy, there are still a few who place “fun” above “sensible” when making a new car purchase. We recently got to test a pair of German imports aimed at that extreme side of the “fun” factor: a BMW M3 sedan and Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG sedan.
While perusing eBay Motors, I stumbled upon a gem of a vehicle, one I just had to share. Have you ever seen such a cutie? Meet the BMW Isetta 600, circa 1959. This auction is for the larger model, not the more commonly seen little egg-shaped version. Well, “commonly seen” is said tongue in cheek, because I think the last time I remember seeing an Isetta was in the late 80s Depeche Mode videos “Behind the Wheel” … … and “Never Let Me Down Again“. According to an auction I found on eBay, this Isetta 600 has been “meticulously restored…