Automobile Mag Awards Funky Ergonomics – BMW Top Of List Again

Those fine folks over at Automobile magazine have bestowed their “Funky Ergonomics Awards” again this year. As one could imagine, BMW’s iDrive and 7 Series interior (pictured above) again tops the list of bad designs. (Rightly so.) Their list includes convenience keys that are downright inconvenient, window switches that require broken wrists to operate, touchscreens that are dangerously slow to respond, all center-of-the-dashboard mounted instrument clusters, complicated navigation systems, reverse-action manu-matic transmissions, and dimly lit interiors.

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VIDEO: WebridesTV Compares The BMW M3 Against The Dinan 335i Stage 3

This is one of those head-to-head battles everyone wants to see: Manufacturer BMW’s brand new V8 Powered M3 versus the aftermarket Dinan tuned 335i coupe. So here’s the facts, we’ll let the video do the talking.
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G-Power Annouces Twin Supercharged M6 Hurricane Convertible

Tuner company G-Power is no stranger to BMW’s. Having success with tuning the BMW M5’s, by twin-supercharging the V10, G-Power was able to produce nearly 50% more power than the stock M5, and giving it a top speed of 211 mph. Stats which G-Power claims to be faster than any other street legal Bimmer.

Since the BMW M6 packs the same 5.0-liter V10, it was only a matter of time before BMW buyers could look forward to receiving the same treatment… Well wait no more! Introducing the G-Power M6 Hurricane! While the twin blowers are set for lower boost, only 6 psi compared to the M5’s 10 psi, the M6 still produces an impressive 635 bhp @ 7300 rpm and 469 lb-ft torque @ 6300 rpm. Making the G-Power Hurricane good for a 4.5 second sprint to 60 mph and a top speed of nearly 200 mph.

Of course, with those figures, one can’t forget appearance matter. G-Power also provides a new front and rear fascia, rocker panels, and carbon fiber rear diffuser along with 21-inch wheels that make room for a 15-inch brake system up front. Since the BMW M6 has been out for a while already, current M6 owners can drop off their car at G-Power’s German headquarters besides just ordering a fully assembled car starting for a mere 183,000 Euros.

Full details can be found in the press release after the jump.
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VIDEO: BMW GINA Light Visionary Concept Model Revealed

The BMW GINA Light Visionary Model is a futuristic design study shows how BMW designers are thinking “outside of the box” when it comes to the materials that make up a car and also how the car relates to the driver. Just like all spiffy ideas, GINA is actually just an acronym. GINA stands for “Geometry and Functions in ‘N’ Adaptations”, which basically means that designers from both BMW and BMW Group DesignworksUSA were allowed to throw out the rulebook.

In this case, the result when the rulebook was thrown out is GINA’s Light Visionary Model’s outer skin, which is made entirely out of textile fabric that’s pulled taut around a frame of metal and carbon fiber wires. The skeleton of the car is controlled by electro-hydraulic devices and can actually move and change shape beneath the fabric skin.

For instance, the headlights of the concept car can be open or closed by the car’s skin just like blinking eyes, and the hood opens from the center as the fabric parts to expose the engine. This “skin” idea extends to the interior of the car as well, where BMW designers have made visible only those instruments that are required at a certain time, while the rest of the time the same fabric interior “blinks” them out of view.

The car itself looks like a next gen Z4 Roadster covered in a tight fitting dress, though after viewing the gallery of high-res images below, you’ll be amazed how much the outer skin can look a lot like normal sheetmetal. Until, that is, you see how the doors open. They lift up in a semi-scissor fashion and since there are no exposed hinges, the fabric artfully binds up as the door swings open.
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2010 BMW F3 Caught With These Spy Photos

Usually, when we see BMW’s covered in Duct tape, its holding together an old rusted PoS. But this time around, The tape seems to be holding together and hiding the details of a brand new BMW wagon. And, according to the guys over at BimmerPost, this BMW is a test mule for an upcoming 3-Series based crossover wagon known as the BMW F3. But, of course, there’s no way to be sure as BMW is mum about the car.

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