Sections: E90 3 Series, Official News Dec 9th, 2010 3 Comments 
The BMW 3 Series has been named to the Car and Driver 10Best Cars list for 2011, marking the 20th consecutive 10Best win for the 3 Series, “a feat unmatched by any other vehicle on the market,” according to the magazine’s editors.
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Sections: E24 6 Series, E28 5 Series, E30 3 Series, E34 5 Series, E36 3 Series, E39 5 Series, E46 3 Series, E60 5 Series, E63/E64 6 Series, E90 3 Series, Opinion Nov 22nd, 2010 22 Comments 
The naturally aspirated gasoline engine is dead. As dead as 15″ wheels and roll-up windows. A generation from now no one under 25 years old will even know the experience of winding up a BMW inline six without a turbo sucking exhaust gasses out of it.
The need for efficiency and ever increasing performance have dictated a sea-change that will alter what we’ve known BMW’s to be forever. Consider the following the fact: the E9X M3 will be the last naturally aspirated M product. Or (even more shocking) that the current 128i, 328i and X3 28i are the last naturally aspirated BMW products to be sold in the US. Once those three models are gone it’s all turbos for as far as the eye can see.
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Sections: BimmerCast, E60 5 Series, E71 X6, E84 X1, E90 3 Series, F07 PAS, F11 5 Series Wagon Nov 17th, 2010 6 Comments 
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Note: It’s a short(ish) show this week due to a special BimmerCast later today involving a world premier. Stay tuned.
This week we start off talking about the X1 and BMW’s plans for its smallest crossover in the largest market. And yes, we dish a few things that you won’t read anywhere else. Then turning out attention to the X6, 5er GT we ask the question, why? And more importantly why an X6 and no 130i hatchback.
And then we get to the most important questions, what happened to the wagons?!
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Sections: E90 3 Series, Video Nov 15th, 2010 2 Comments Vimeo user (and new 335is owner) Janitha had a simple goal; capture the best of the 1000 mile trip across Europe during his factory delivery. The results are nothing short of breath-taking.
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Sections: Ask BF, E90 3 Series, F01 7 Series, F07 PAS, F10 5 Series, Safety Nov 15th, 2010 5 Comments 
Now that snow, ice and other winter messes are showing up all over the world we have received many question about the functions of Dynamic Stability Control (DSC). The following information is a brief synopsis of each of its functions and the basics behind it all. We hope that this information is useful and provides you with some answers to your questions. The information here is for the newer generation of cars equipped with DSC.
DSC is ON by default, there is no need to press any buttons on start up. DSC uses a series of sensors to detect wheel spin, yaw rate of the car and other properties. Using sensors and other electronics it can apply the brakes as needed, cut engine power and with Active Steering it can make small steering corrections to better keep the car under control. In layman terms, all the nannies are on by default and help to keep the car from spinning out. When DSC is intervening a caution light will flash in the instrument cluster.
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Sections: E81/82/E87 1 Series, E84 X1, E90 3 Series, F25 X3, Technology Sep 20th, 2010 3 Comments 
BMW is clearly looking to move to the next step of in-car electronics. With the new X3 (which the F20 1 Series and F30 3 Series will be loosely based on) BMW is introducing two Apple related accessories and one iPhone app that signal a seismic shift in the way they integrate electronics into new cars. Most media outlets are focusing on the iPad holder as the key piece. However, much more interesting to us is the iPhone integration both physically and in terms of software.
For years, long development cycles for cars have meant that technology was often much slower to find it’s way on a dashboard than in your living room. The simple fact that car companies spend years working on a car’s electronics before if even reaches the marketplace has historically put the industry behind when it comes to integrating modern technology. But that is slowly changing. And now MINI (with MINI Connected) and BMW (with BMW Link) have thrown down the gauntlet and said that the future lies on devices that are as important outside the car as they are inside.
But why is BMW Link not just cool but brilliant? Because the features live on the device side (your iPhone) in the form of an App. Updates can be made at any time and pushed to the user over the air. That moves new entertainment features from the product side to the software side and that means it’s cheaper and easier for everyone.
For instance lets say BMW has a killer new feature that it wants to release on the 2012 3 Series. In the past that would mean that 2011 owners would be out of luck. Now it means they simply need to update their iPhone app.
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Sections: E90 3 Series Sep 14th, 2010 14 Comments 
Since the moment we learned of the N55 replacing the N54 we’ve asked ourselves one simple question, are we getting a more efficient yet less powerful engine? Automobile magazine has wondered the same thing and (thanks to dyno testing the N54 over the years) has some solid data to help figure it out all. So lets start the fight. Here’s an excerpt from the Automobile piece:
The 2007 BMW 335i’s N54 twin-turbo six is rated by its manufacturer at 300 hp and 300 lb-ft of torque. And when we put the first 335i coupe on the rollers, it laid down a very impressive 275 hp and 300 lb-ft of torque. In awful conditions, too: 92 degrees of humid, Fahrenheit heat.
Remember — the power measured at the 335i’s rear wheels should be lower than the engine’s rated power. Some of the engine’s output is lost to friction in the transmission, driveshaft, differential, axles, wheel bearings, and tires. The dynamometer we used to measure the 335i’s output is a DynoJet model, and DynoJets tend to read higher than other dynos, but the output was a good bit higher than we expected.
The gist? The N54 is an incredibly consistent and underrated engine in all of its various forms. The 335is version is equally consistent and underrated but about 20hp more powerful. (The full numbers after the break)
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Sections: E70 X5, E71 X6, E81/82/E87 1 Series, E89 Z4 Roadster, E90 3 Series, F01 7 Series, F07 PAS, F10 5 Series Sep 8th, 2010 2 Comments
BMW NA has officially released it’s 2011 model year changes and we’ve got all the details for you. So if you’re considering a 2011 model year BMW of any kind this is essential reading…
BMW’s new inline-6 gasoline engine.
Beginning with model year 2011 production, several BMW models (135i, 335i, 535i, 535i Gran Turismo, X5 xDrive35i, and X6 xDrive35i) will switch to the new, single twin-scroll turbocharged inline-6 “N55” engine. The newest BMW inline-6 engine is the first BMW inline-6 to combine turbocharging, High Precision direct fuel injection, and Valvetronic variable intake technology. It features a single, mid-sized turbocharger with a “twin-scroll” housing to boost performance and minimize the response lag. Together, this combination produces the same at 300hp and 300 lb-ft of the previous N54, but the fuel efficiency improves and the emissions are reduced.
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