The 2008 BMW M5 won't make it to the states.

We received some sad news today from BMW North America. Aparently there are "no plans whatsoever to bring the limited production M5 wagon to the US Market." Before you chalk it up to German pretnentiousness, and get over it, you have to hear the specs on this car. For starters, it comes with a souped up version of the 10-cyl (from the two year old M5 sedan) cranking out 500 hp. They have it matched up to BMW's trick 7-speed sequential transmission. 0-60 time is a more than exciting 4.8 seconds. They're even offering a very unique computer system that allows you to switch between a more efficient engine setting of 400 hp or an option to let it go flat out at the 500hp max. Then you add an electronic controlled rear differential, and you have one potent wagon. A wagon, that if it was imported to the US, would be a prime candidate to take on the Audi S6 Avant and Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG wagon.
[Source: Autoweek]

Chrysler tries to get into the Guinness Book of World Records

It may be in bad taste to bring up a future autoshow while the NAIAS is still in full swing, but we couldn't pass on this one. At this year's Chicago Auto Show, the marketing gurus at Chrysler came up with the idea to try to get into the Guinness Book of World Records by playing the world's largest game of Simon Says. All this hoopla in an effort to promote the new 2007 Sebring. The current record is 1,169 participants who played the game in Glasgow, Scotland, on April 22, 2006. Well, on Feb. 9, in front of everyone attending the Chicago Auto Show, Chrysler will try to beat it by inviting over 1,200 people to jump up and down, touch their noses, and who knows what else. There are even plans to include the actual Sebring in the game. How? We have no idea. The winner gets a 24-month lease on a new Sebring.
With the exception of the new Sebring's MyGig technology and heated/cooled cup holders, there's not a lot going on for the design. All in all this all seems like a bad marketing stunt to hauk a mediocre car.

[Source: Chrysler Press Release]

5 Series gets a facelift and more for 2008

This year we saw that BMW 5 Series received a few changes, styling wise and under the hood. The Interior got a decent working over as well. As far as the exterior goes, they started off with clear glass coverings for headlights, tail lights, and turn signal indicators. Thankfully they didn't change much with the tell tale double kidney BMW grill, but the surrounding parts are now flush with the front air damn, giving it an even more agessive stance. Body wise, the changes were relatively small, but add to it's style. A lot of extra contours seem to have been added and a few more straight lines to the rear. It all is in line with the previous model's mix of soft curves and straight lines, but just give it a nice contemporary update.
Interior wise, there's a few changes in the small things like the shifter knonb (which is now electric powered which is pretty cool), two tone door pannels, and additional storage space. Overall though, there's nothing drastic, and thankfully, nothing offensive.
Now for the fun stuff: drivetain changes. There's a lot of options and as far as engines and transmissions go, so we're not going to get involved with all the scenerios, but here are the biggest highlights. First off, the new six-cylinder engines are looking pretty cool. They are twin turbocharged, intercooled, and has a new percision direct fuel injection with piezo injectors. It's also a completly alluminum crankcase to reduce wight and aid in cooling. The twin turbo charger itself is quite an advancement. Because it's synced up with the direct fuel injection, turbo lag is supposedly non-existent which is believeable since the turbos start to produce boost at a mere 1,400 RPM.
Trans wise, the big news is you can upgrade free of charge from a 6-speed standard to a 6-speed auto. We're big fans of sticks here, but it's still nice to know you have the option, and that electric gear selector is pretty trick.
All in all, BMW did a great job. It very difficult to improve on almost a perfect car, but in our opinion, they've succeeded.



[Source BMW - North America & MWERKS.com]

New Variable Turbo Diesel enigne revealed at NAIAS

Although this isn't the most breakthrough news of the day comming out of the NAIAS, it's still pretty interesting in a gearhead sort of way. Today at the BMW booth, a new variable turbo diesel engine was unveiled. If you're mechanically inclined and know your turbos from your muffler bearings, you'll notice that there are not one, but two turbos mounted on this powerplant. You'll also notice that they are of differing sizes, one small, one big. Using the same concept behind modern twin-scroll turbos, this one utalizes the smaller turbo to give boost at lower RPMs and then switches over the the larger one as the reves get higher. As far as boost goes, this engine puts out a lot of it: 40 psi max. Pretty substantial for a diesel. On the business end of all this is a catalyst and a particulate scrubber to keep emissions at a minium. With 40 psi of boost, and none of the nasty diesel soot, this is the type of powerplant that makes us all worry less as the auto industry slowly moves away from old fashioned petrol.

[Source: Jalopnik]

2008 CTS revealed today at the NAIAS

One of the big debuts today at the NAIAS was the 2008 Cadillac CTS. Chances are, if you have access to the Internet, you've probably already seen spy shots of this car, but it was still well received. GM is obviously taking direct aim at the European sport sedan market, and changes in the new CTS reflect that. The first big change, and the most obvious is the more athletic styling. Not drastically different, but still striking. You can easily see how this car has been used as the styling reference for the entire Cadillac line.
The CTS has grown too. It's now 2 inches wider and slightly longer too. Plus, the interior has had a thorough going through as well. New counsel, new steering wheel, and various interior trim pieces. Probably the coolest change for 'o8 though has to be the AWD option which is a first for the Caddy. Some good things have not changed though. You can still get the CTS in a 6-speed automatic, or a 6-speed manual which is always a good thing in our book as sticks become more and more rare.
It all looks good so far. Let's all wait patiently to find out when the V-Series is coming out.

[Source: clickondetroit.com]

Ford hooks up with Airstream to build crossover

Ford is yet again looking for another avenue to build a crossover, and has found a willing partner with none other than Airstream trailers. Yes, it's those love it or hate it polished aluminum trailers that have become the staple image of traveling in the 1950s. Before you ask if they're still in business, let us tell you that they are, yet their designs haven't changed much. They are still a staple of Americana which is why is makes sense for Ford to partner up with them. Details on the actual vehicle are slim, but what we did learn is it's a seven passenger vehicle based on the Ford Edge platform. Styling wise, the only thing we heard was it's going to have a lot of ques from the Ford Fairlane concept revealed in Detroit in '05.
We're not really sure how this VW Micro Bus imitation is going to work out for Ford, but it's probably a great deal for the 75-year old Airstream company who could use a shot in the arm. Interestingly though, Airstream's current line up of mini-motor homes are all based on the Dodge Sprinter platforms with Mercedes-Benz power plants. Will this ruffle some feathers over at DCX?
[Source: Brandweek]

Chevy gets's back in the electric game

Today at the NAIAS, GM unveiled the Chevy Volt. It's Chevy's latest foray in to the electric car race. Please hold all the EV1 jokes until after you read this report.
The Volt features 21 inch rims, can be recharged to full capacity in less than 4-hours by simply plugging it into household current, and it gets 150 miles to the gallon. Well, sort of. This is how GM computes the mileage. Let's use a 60 mile trip to work as the example. The primary power train consists of a lithium-ion battery powered electric engine that moves the car up to 40 miles without using a drop of gas. Then a 1.0 liter 3 cylinder turbocharged gas engine, which gets 50 mpg, carries you the remaining 20 miles, all on .4 gallons of gas which equates to 150 mpg.
Even if you don't buy the creative math GM is using to sell you on the Volt's amazing mileage, with its aggressive stance, huge wheels, and angry looking front end, it's still a hot looking car. With the new Camaro, the always beautiful Corvette, and now the Volt, it appears that GM and Chevy are waking up in the styling department.
One last cool feature about the Volt is a new manufacturing/architecture feature that GM has built into it. The Volt takes advantage of the "E-Flex" system which allows several engine configurations to be installed at the factory. The turbo 3-cyl fits in there, as well as an E85 option, a bio-diesel, and even a hydrogen powered fuel cell.
The only downside of this concept car is its lack of availability. The car exists, and could hit production on a relatively short time span, if only the automotive battery technology could keep up. The Volt requires a 400 pound lithium-ion battery, which simply isn't ready for production yet from automotive suppliers.

[Source: Automotive News]