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Audi Vets to Techs (with US Marines)
The Audi of America Veterans to Technicians program now employs more than 100 veterans from the U.S. armed forces at Audi dealerships across the country.
The milestone was reached at the one year anniversary of the program launch.
Subaru WRX STI vs The Drones
The new-generation 2015 Subaru WRX STI is engineered to perform. In this brand new course concept, power, precision and agility are put to the test as the WRX STI navigates through an autocross track made entirely of moving drone quadcopters.
It’s pure performance, pushed to the limit …
The amazing future of car tires?
The high performance tyre of the future will be very different to the tyres we drive on today, if the results of a recent design competition are a guide.
A Hankook Tire competition in the US has challenged some of the country’s brightest industrial design students to imagine the role of tyres in automotive design from new angles.
The winning entry by University of Cincinnati student Ben Zavala took the brief somewhat literally, with his Tiltread car tyre rolling into corners at an angle like a motorcycle tyre.
Zavala’s breakthrough idea was to split the tyre into three parallel ring sections, each mounted on a corresponding split section of wheel.
As the wheel turns and leans, the three tyre sections are individually raised or lowered, allowing them all to maintain traction with the road surface.
Tiltread’s wheels are hubless and contain an electric drive motor which varies power to each tyre section, allowing the sections to spin at different rates during cornering.
University of Cincinnati associate professor Ralph Zammit said the competition demonstrated just how great an impact improvement in tyre design could have upon the overall efficiency, ecology and economy of road transportation.
“Hankook proposed a very challenging assignment that provided the students with real-world insights as to how tyres are currently designed, manufactured and the performance issues they must address,” said associate professor Zammit.
“Students were especially encouraged to consider sustainability needs such as reducing and reusing raw materials.”
Second place in the competition was taken by Mark Hearn who imagined an off-road tyre called Motiv, which features numerous height-variable, non-pneumatic tread blocks that can adapt to extremely rough terrain without risk of blow-out.
Third-placed Miranda Steinhauser’s proposal for an eco-friendly tyre also impressed the competition judges.
The Tessela tyre’s easily removable tread components allow consumers to replace worn-out tread when required, rather than the whole tyre carcass, reducing tyre waste and landfill.
Models of the first, second and third placed tyres were displayed on the Hankook stand at the 2012 SEMA automotive show in Las Vegas.
The all-new BMW 2 Series Coupe
The BMW 2 Series Coupe was introduced in early 2014 as a replacment for the 1 Series Coupe. It’s based on the latest 1 Series hatchback but slightly stretched to create a sportier coupe bodystyle. Rather than thinking of it as a fancy 1 Series, though, BMW wants you to imagine it as a rival to cars like the Audi TT, Volkswagen Scirocco and Toyota GT 86.
The engine line-up is borrowed from the 1 Series, including a flagship 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo in the M235i, which boasts 322bhp. The majority of UK sales will consist of the 220d model, though, which gets a 181bhp 2.0-litre diesel.
The legendary 1968 BMW 2002 ‘passes the torch’ to the all-new BMW 2 Series Coupe.
Discover all-new 2014 BMW X4
The new BMW X4 is based on the technical blueprint of the BMW X3, but displays a sporting character very much its own and takes dynamics to another new level. That much is clear when you view the new model head-on. The look & feel is similar with BMW X6
The large air intakes positioned on the outer edges of the front end and the character lines in the front apron allow the BMW X4 – with its signature BMW twin headlights and front fog lamps (both optionally with LED technology) – to maximise its visual presence on the road. The roofline reaches its highest point above the driver and then swoops down smoothly to the trailing edge of the tailgate, mimicking the design language of a classical sporting coupe. The signature swage line running along the flanks of BMW models is split into two on the X4.
The new BMW X4 (fuel consumption combined: 8.3–5.0* l/100 km [34.0–54.3 mpg imp]; CO2 emissions combined: 193–130* g/km) blends the hallmark features of the successful BMW X family with the sporting elegance of a classical coupe, and introduces the unique Sports Activity Coupe concept to the premium mid-size segment.
Its dynamic pedigree is underlined by a wide range of cutting-edge high-performance engines, the xDrive all-wheel-drive system and an exclusive spread of standard equipment features such as variable sport steering, Performance Control and a sports leather steering wheel with gearshift paddles.
In keeping with the vivacious character of the new BMW X4, customers can choose from three petrol engines and a trio of diesel units from the BMW EfficientDynamics engine family, whose output ranges from 135 kW/184 hp to 230 kW/313 hp. All the engines meet the EU6 exhaust gas standard.
The BMW TwinPower Turbo technology of the state-of-the-art engines offers a promise of superb performance married with exceptionally low fuel consumption. For example, the flagship petrol unit in the BMW X4 xDrive35i (fuel consumption urban/extra-urban/combined: 10.7/6.9/8.3 l/100 km [26.4/40.9/34.0 mpg imp]; CO2 emissions combined: 193 g/km) develops an outstanding 225 kW/306 hp and peak torque of 400 Nm (295 lb-ft). The BMW X4 xDrive35i requires just 5.5 seconds to sprint from 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph).
And an equally impressive performer in terms of power delivery and CO2 efficiency is the BMW X4 xDrive35d (fuel consumption urban/extra-urban/combined: 6.7/5.5/6.0 l/100 km [42.2/51.4/47.1 mpg imp]; CO2 emissions combined: 157 g/km). Its 3.0-litre six-cylinder in-line engine generates 230 kW/313 hp and peak torque of 630 Nm (465 lb-ft).
The BMW X4 xDrive35d accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 5.2 seconds. The new-generation 2.0-litre diesel engine in the BMW X4 xDrive20d (fuel consumption urban/extra-urban/combined: 5.8–5.4*/5.1–4.8*/5.4–5.0* l/100 km [48.7–52.3/55.4–58.9/52.3–56.5 mpg imp]; CO2 emissions combined: 141–131* g/km) with eight-speed Steptronic transmission also sets the benchmark when it comes to fuel economy and CO2 emissions. Its four-cylinder unit produces 140 kW/190 hp and peak torque of 400 Nm (295 lb-ft).
The new BMW X4 Media Gallery
2014 BMW X4 | Source BMW, please read more.
BMW’s history in 1 minute
BMW became an automobile manufacturer in 1929 when it purchased Fahrzeugfabrik Eisenach, which, at the time, built Austin Sevens under licence under the Dixi marque. BMW’s team of engineers progressively developed their cars from small Seven-based cars into six-cylinder luxury cars and, in 1936, began production of the BMW 328 sports car. Aircraft engines, motorcycles, and automobiles would be BMW’s main products until World War II. During the war, against the wishes of its director Franz Josef Popp, BMW concentrated on aircraft engine production, with motorcycles as a side line and automobile manufacture stopped altogether.
After the war, BMW survived by making pots, pans, and bicycles until 1948, when it restarted motorcycle production. Meanwhile, BMW’s factory in Eisenach fell in the Soviet occupation zone and the Soviets restarted production of pre-war BMW motorcycles and automobiles there. This continued until 1955, after which they concentrated on cars based on pre-war DKW designs. BMW began building cars in Bavaria in 1952 with the BMW 501 luxury saloon. Sales of their luxury saloons were too small to be profitable, so BMW supplemented this with building Isettas under licence. Slow sales of luxury cars and small profit margins from microcars caused the BMW board to consider selling the operation to Daimler-Benz. However, Herbert Quandt was convinced to purchase a controlling interest in BMW and to invest in its future.
Quandt’s investment, along with profits from the BMW 700, brought about the BMW New Class and BMW New Six. These new products, along with the absorption of Hans Glas GmbH, gave BMW a sure footing on which to expand. BMW grew in strength, eventually acquiring the Rover Group (most of which was later divested), and the license to build automobiles under the Rolls-Royce marque.
Follow the evolution of the Ultimate Driving Machine through 10 decades of iconic design.
New Fiat 500L Global Advertising Campaign “Mirage”
The FIAT Brand to Debut New Fiat 500L Global Advertising Campaign “Mirage” Featuring Sean “Diddy” Combs
FIAT Brand North America will launch a new global advertising campaign featuring entertainment powerhouse Sean “Diddy” Combs this week entitled “Mirage.” The advertising campaign, which debuts across television beginning on Thursday, February 13, introduces the new Fiat 500L tagline, “Unbelievably Big.”
In the new commercial, two guys, lost and desperate in the desert, witness two Fiat 500Ls pass by, one with “Diddy” inside, who calls out to them, but they dismiss him as a mirage.
The pair ultimately stumbles upon a desert oasis where an unbelievable party hosted by REVOLT is in full gear. “Diddy” greets them and encouragingly says, “Welcome to the soiree.” However, the pair rejects his invitation to the party, attributing the whole thing again as a mirage, after pointing specifically to the Fiat 500L, believing that “FIAT doesn’t make a four-door car.”
The commercial challenges the notion that the FIAT brand only makes small cars. Further highlighted by the tagline “Unbelievably Big,” the Fiat 500L expands the FIAT showroom, offering the consumer with additional choices that best meets their needs.
Source Fiat, please read more.
