Could the Christmas party be starting early inside BMW? There’s a decent chance of that being the case or it could actually have been planned out.

I’m not talking about the party but the official release of the brand new BMW M6 Gran Coupe only hours after a couple of shots of the car appeared online.

Alongside the new batch of photos, the Bavarian company released the technical specs on what this sexy four door has to offer.

Under its bonnet lives the S63Tu 4.4 liter twin-turbo V8 powerplant that was already used in the M5 sedan and M6 coupe/convertible.

It develops the same 560 horsepower and 501 lb-ft of torque it does in the other M division products but there’s a bit of a surprise behind it.

Due to some work done to do the clever work done between transmission and launch control system, the acceleration time is the same as the M6 Coupe.

It takes the BMW M6 Gran Coupe 4.1 seconds to get from 0-60 mph and the top speed is at an electronically set 155 mph. Getting yourself the optional M Driver’s Package will lift that up to 189 mph.

Fuel consumption is rated at 9.9 lt/100km, 23.8 mpg US or 28.5 mpg UK on the EU cycle and the emissions of CO2 are said to be 232 g/km.

As usual with every M division made over BMW model, a newly shaped aerodynamic body kit is fitted. The cooling and venting of the powerplant and brakes were also improved.

Pricing for the BMW M6 Gran Coupe will come in just under the 170.000 USD mark in Germany. The rest of the world will have to wait for custom pricing.

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Marcus M.

http://www.bmwcoop.com

The post Official images – BMW M6 Gran Coupe appeared first on BMWCoop | BMW Blog, BMW News, BMW Reviews.

With the introduction of the F20-like 1 Series three door, BMW have been much more liberal with the details on the hotter M135i version.

Things seem to be pretty straight forward. Ever since the concept tag expired and the first details showed up, surprises disappeared.

What has also disappeared is a major concern that had been brewing around the powerplant of the M135i, specifically its cylinder arrangement solution.

Enthusiasts will be happy to know we’re dealing with a 3.0 liter straight six engine, and this time it’s official. The TwinPower Turbo technology makes an appearance to so enthusiasts will likely not be completely pleased.

The performance levels may turn them around. The new BMW M135i develops 320 horsepower and 332 lb-ft of torque. The latter is available all the way between 1.300 and 4.500 rpm.

http://youtu.be/b79-QJfcOUg

That means you’ll be able to hit the electronically limited top speed of 155 mph quite easily. You can however pick a way of getting there.

In six speed manual shape, you’re looking at 5.1 seconds but if you prefer to rest your left foot, the automatic gets you there in 4.9 seconds.

It’s probably worth while to mention the fact that BMW almost always underrated their engines and 0 to 62 times so the M135i is probably even faster than that.

There’s no denying it, the F20 BMW M135i may not be a proper M car or a successor to the 1M Coupe, but it’s one hell of a car.

It will certainly keep compact enthusiasts happy until BMW make another 1M (if they ever get round to doing that).

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Marcus M.

http://www.bmwcoop.com

The post F20 BMW M135i details officially available appeared first on BMWCoop | BMW Blog, BMW News, BMW Reviews.

The earlier leak of the BMW i8 Spyder Concept has produced results. The Bavarians have scrambled together to announce it properly.

It must have been a weekend of hell for the guys in the marketing and PR departments that got the short straws and had to make the press release.

I wouldn’t normally worry about them but I do considering how the BMW i8 Spyder Concept seems to have appeared out of nowhere with an April 1st release date.

Let’s hope it’s not an elaborate April’s Fools and that BMW really plan to unveil the i8 Spyder Concept at the upcoming Beijing Motor Show.

Apart from loosing the roof and getting some slightly more rakish doors, the i8 Spyder Concept is pretty similar to the i8 Coupe.

Some extra tweaks are added to the interior but even that has a BMW familiarity to it and when it comes to the underpinnings, there really are no surprises.

There’s a total output of 354 horsepower and 405 lb-ft of torque coming from the 1.5 liter turbocharged three cylinder petrol and the electric motor.

On their own, the petrol powerplant will be ready at any time to send 223 horsepower to the rear wheels and the electric mill churn out instant torque and 131 horsepower to the front.

Having some proper grunt in a good looking light roadster sounds like fun but the drooling moment starts when you find out that there’s a chance at 78 mpg fuel economy figures.

Allegedly you can plug it in and travel on batteries for 19 miles. That’s nice, but not as impressive as the rest of the setup.

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Marcus M.

http://www.bmwcoop.com

The post BMW i8 Spyder Concept officially announced appeared first on BMWCoop | BMW Blog, BMW News, BMW Reviews.

As the title has it, BMW have lifted the covers off what will be this year’s star player in their M division product portfolio, the F12/F13 M6.

Unlike the previous generation, this time you don’t have to wait several months before you get to drop the top off your BMW M6.

What does stick with tradition in regards to the BMW M6 is that it retains the philosophy of using M5 underpinnings and a better looking body on top.

This is why it comes as no surprise to find out that hte F12/F13 BMW M6 is powered by the same twin-turbocharged 4.4 liter V8 engine you may find in the F10 M5.

With the same engine come almost identical specs as the new M6 develops 560 horsepower and 500 pound-feet of torque with availability of the torque between 1.500 and 5.750 rpm.

Also like its four door counterpart, the newly introduced BMW M6 is in a bit of a jam with with transmission situation. Upon launch it will only be available with a seven speed dual clutch affair but a manual is under consideration.

Where the F12/F13 separates itself from the less ostentatious relative is when it comes to the details. The brakes are now carbon ceramic rotors as standard, the roof is made out of carbon fiber and there’s an overall concern over lightness.

In terms of performance here’s what we got: 0 to 62 takes 4.2 seconds (4.3 convertible)and the top speed is limited for both at 155 mph. Upon purchase of the M Driver package that goes up to 189 mph.

Fuel economy levels are rated at 23.8 mpg and 22.8 mpg on the US cycle with both models dishing out upwards of 230 grams of CO2 per kilometer.

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Marcus M.

http://www.bmwcoop.com

The post F12/F13 BMW M6 officially unveiled appeared first on BMWCoop | BMW Blog, BMW News, BMW Reviews.

The rumors and reports are true, the Bavarians at BMW have now made their deal engine deal with the Japanese at Toyota official.

A rather simple breakdown of the BMW-Toyota deal sees the two companies exchange no money, stock or anything easily measurable.

What is going to happen is actually more valuable than that as the two companies will be scratching each other’s back with fuel saving drivetrain technology.

Fuel economy seems to be the most important concern of the present, near and long term future, so capturing these markets will be key.

BMW already has the European market under dominance in this segment with their brilliant diesel engines and they will be sharing upcoming 1.6 and 2.0 liter powerplants with Toyota.

The Japanese cars we’ll get quite the boost in sales from an attractive deal but don’t think BMW was tricked into the deal by some accident.

Toyota will supply BMW with hybrid drivetrain technology, similar to the ones offered by the largely successful Prius. With the new drivetrains, BMW is bound to take on yet another chunk of the American car market.

In order to keep the respective markets from being corrupted by this deal, BMW’s new diesels will only be sold by Toyota in Europe.

No idea on what restrictions BMW will have to be subjected to but we do know that the Bavarians will also work together with the Japanese on the new generations of lithium-ion batteries.

By some accounts, Toyota may also get an idea about what it takes to introduce carbon fiber into production cars as BMW have managed.

The chit chat is fine but you shouldn’t take it all for granted, nor should you get yourself misty eyed about this collaboration.

BMW and Toyota working together is something that happens for simple business reasons and though the cars that spawn from this deal are likely to be great, they will have a vague feeling of lack of substance.

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Marcus M.

http://www.bmwcoop.com

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