Buried under a BMW M3

Are you a true fan of a particular car brand? Yes you may be! But not more than Steve Marsh who was a hardcore BMW fan. He was so much in love with BMW that he could not resist leaving the world without one. That’s true, as after his death he lies with a BMW M3 convertible replica above his grave. Steve was 51 when he died.

Strangely, Marsh was an engineer at Ford even though he had this high magnitude liking for BMW. The BMW M3 convertible was in the top of the list of his favorite BMWs. His wife and children believed that it would not be a problem to get a headstone designed in the exact shape of his favorite car. The replica is an exact copy of the car both in looks as well as dimensions and is carved out of a single block of granite.

The M3 convertible replica costs more than $75,000 and was shipped from China. The replica weighs a ton and took the aid of a crane and 20 operators to put it in place at the Manor Park Cemetery in East London. “You have to admit it's totally different to everything else around it. It's definitely not my taste. I think some people will say it's tacky and it could end up as a target to be vandalized. It could open the floodgates for anything to be built in a cemetery. When I walked past it the other day, though, I have to admit it did make me smile,” said a local resident Rene Dryden.

BMW 5 series will hit the streets on 30th April

BMW has confirmed that it will roll out its 5 series (F10) in India by the 30th of April which is a few months earlier than the actual date of its launch. The German manufacturer’s saloon however is slated for a few month later launch in Europe.

Originally, the German car maker had scheduled the launch of the car between the July-September period. Thus, the earlier-than-scheduled launch has proved to be a surprise to the Indian market. We can say that Newton’s third law has been applied here (every action has an equal and opposite reaction). BMW had to react aptly to its rival, Mercedes’ action of introducing the new E-class and discounted sale of its 5-series, by introducing the new model as soon as possible. The firm has provided its Chennai plant with all necessary equipments and facilities for the 5-Series. The firm has also achieved record time shipping of its knocked down units to assemble the models well before time.

Mercedes managed to sell 642 E-class models in the first quarter of 2010 where in the other hand, BMW could only manage to sell 305 5-series. BMW expects to recover its market share in the luxury car segment with the introduction of the all new 5-series.

There is no confirmation as in which models of the 5-series will be available in India. However, there is a possibility for the 535i and 530d to hit the streets for sure.

5 variants of BMW 3 series + No more M3 sedan

Platform technology is something car makers love making use of. Take for instance the luxury segment where Mercedes-Benz has the E-class in various forms like sedan, cabrio and estate. Or our very own Tata Indica platform which has a hatchback, a sedan, an estate, a sub 4m sedan and a limousine made on the same platform. But having a Beemer in 5 different body styles based on the same car is a little hard to digest. The hard working guys in Munich however, who slog day and night to provide us 'Sheer Driving Pleasure' dont think the same way. They are about to create yet another landmark in BMW's history by making 5 variants of the same car!

Automobile claims that the new 3er which is likely to be launched in 2012 will hit the market in 5 body styles. The new 3-series, codenamed F30, will be available in coupe, sedan, estate and a convertible. Each variant will be launched at a gap of 6 months (so that means Q2 2014 for the 5th variant). These are just four variants, the biggest surprise comes in the form of the fifth variant. The fifth one is going to be the Gran Turismo version which was first seen in the 5er family. Though it wont be getting the two piece hatch as found in the bigger 5-series GranTurismo, it will be sportier than the 5er GT. The wheelbase would be bigger than the normal 3-series for its GT variant. A full size panorama glass roof will be available as an option.

 

The new coupe will be donning a sportier design with a lower roofline while the convertible sibling will get a hardtop instead of a canvas one. And for all the sideways action lovers,the M3 will get a heart transplant. The newer powerplant is going to be an inline 6 which will manage to produce 450 horses, a clear increment of 30 over the current V8. Rumors suggest that a speedster might also get a place in the line up but chances are slim. But they might bring the shooting brake avatar of the 3 maybe to offer some competition to the E-Concept Fascination. This will make the 3er one of the most driver oriented sedan err platform among its peers. We will have to wait till 2012 to see all the action. Hope it is worth the wait. But another sad aspect of the new 3-series is that there won't be a M3 sedan anymore! All that you can lay your hands on is a M3 coupe or a M3 convertible...

by Motoroids

Last 20 Limited Edition Gran Turismo from BMW

BMW India, who recently launched the limited edition of the new Gran Turismo at the Auto Expo this year in New Delhi, has already hit the sales figure of 80 units till date. The company's target is set on selling 100 units of such kind in the country which means only 20 more units remain up for grabs!

The BMW Gran Turismo housed with a 3.0 diesel engine is priced at Rs. 6,300,000 and is available as a Completely Built-up unit (CBU). On the occasion, Mr. Peter Kronschnabl, President, BMW India said, 'The BMW Gran Turismo is a completely new vehicle concept, adding a unique and distinctive model variant to BMW’s product line-up. The BMW Gran Turismo combines the benefits of a prestige sedan, a modern Sports Activity Vehicle, and a classic Gran Turismo (Grand Touring). Only the elite few in India will have the opportunity to own one of the 100 exclusive limited edition BMW Gran Turismos.

Audi v/s BMW commercial wars

Remember the advertisement hoarding wars between Audi and BMW in the US that revolved around the R8 supercar? Well, it hasn't stopped there! The two German rivals are at it again, albeit with new cars this time. Audi has drawn first blood with a new commercial that highlights Audi's victory in three comparison shootouts recently conducted by the Car and Driver magazine. Further more it hits BMW where it hurts the most by stating that there is nothing wrong about finishing second in a 'friendly' competition. Sure! Let's cut the words then and watch the new video:

BMW unveils Gran Tourismo, X1 & the X6M

BMW just unveiled the new 5 series Gran Tourismo and X1. The GT will come with a price tag of Rs.63 lakh and only 100 of these kinds will be produced. Also on display in the BMW pavilion were the BMW X6 M and the 760 Li. The 5 Series GT will come with a price tag of Rs.63,00,000, the new BMW X6 M will be priced at Rs. 1,30,00,000, and the BMW 760 Li will cost Rs. 1,29,00,000.

The 760 Li houses a mighty 6.0 litre v12 engine with Twin Power Turbo technology, High Precision Injection and double VANOS camshaft and is able to churn out a max torque of 750 Nm at just 1,500 rpm. The 7- Series comes with brand-new eight-speed transmission, with its innovative gear set configuration, offering additional gears while maintaining the dimensions and weight of a conventional six-speed automatic.

New BMW 5-Series Unveiled

The oldest surviving mainstream BMW, the 5 Series is up for replacement. (has been around since the 3rd season of TopGear, you know!). Here are some leaked pictures released on the internet ahead of its release tomorrow. Thanks to Adrian Van Hooydonk’s (BMW’s design head) de-Bangling of all BMWs, the new 5 series looks much more conservative than its predecessor.

It is based on the recently-launched 5 series GT’s platform, which itself is based on a shortened 7-Series’ platform.


What will be music for the enthusiast’s ears is the fact that the M division has already started work on the next M5, which will get the X5M’s force-inducted heart, a clean departure from its naturally aspirated lineage. And for the benefit of the geeks, BMW has gone all out and progressed one character further in their nomenclature calling it the F10 (there will be separate codes for the estate/touring – F11, F10M for the M5 and F7 for the GT).

BMW cancels 5 Series convertible launch

BMW has confirmed that it had plans to launch a convertible variant of the M5. The M5 convertible had been developed around two decades ago and was going to be launched at the next Geneva motor show. The plan of launching the car was called off owing to sales concerns. The manufacturer felt that launching a M5 convertible would drastically reduce demand for its other drop-top car. At that time the 3 series convertible was registering high profits for BMW and it didn’t want any in-house competition.

The M5 convertible was revealed to a select gathering of journalists. BMW also revealed that the car had been developed to be sold at a price of £50,000.

BMW Launches Z4 Roadster (59 Lakhs)

German BMW today announced the launch of its sports car Z4 Roadster. The car is being launched with a 3 Litre petrol engine. The car is priced at 59 lakhs ex-showroom.