As one of our beloved models, the 2012 BMW 6 Series is pretty hard to fault. Still, there’s plenty of tuning companies out there that think there’s room for improvement.

When it comes to genuine tuning for a Bavarian products Alpina is definitely one of the biggest names you can call for help.

That’s why when Alpina announced the unveiling of their B6 tune for the F12 cruiser at the Tokyo Motor Show, we were bursting with joy.

BMW’s 4.4 liter twin turbo V8 engine gets a few tweaks, from what you’d usually get in the F12 6 Series, in the form of a new intercooler and a new exhaust.

The latter was developed in conjunction with specialist tuner Akrapovic, is made out of titanium and certainly doesn’t focus on being quieter.

Alpina’s tweaks to the engine ensure for a new performance output of 540 horsepower and 516 lb-ft of torque. With that in mind it’s no surprise to see that it takes 4.4 seconds to go from 0 to 62 and that the top speed figure stops just 1 mile short of the magic 200 mph.

A modest re-tweak of the suspension is included in the Alpina B6 package together with a re-calibration of the traction control and ESP software. They’re there to ensure that even though you have some extra grunt, you don’t get caught out by it.

On the visual front the F12 BMW 6 Series gets Alpina’s traditional over-sized (but light) 20 inch multi-spoke alloy wheels and a few subtle aerodynamic mods.

Inside the Alpina B6 we see more of the same. Everything gets a very subtle refresh, just enough to feel different, special, if you will.

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Marcus M.

http://www.bmwcoop.com

The post Alpina B6 flexes BMW 6 Series Muscle in Tokyo appeared first on BMWCoop | BMW Blog, BMW News, BMW Reviews.

It seems like in the process of gearing up for the Tokyo Motor Show, the Bavarians aren’t going to stop at bringing a hybrid 5 Series and they will be teaming it up with the BMW i Range.

We knew the Japanese were fans of fuel efficiency but last I heard, they still make the Nissan GT-R there so BMW wouldn’t be threading on a thin wire to bring in some really grunt like perhaps the BMW M5.

Getting back to the future of motoring in BMW’s view, the small and city like i3 will be seen in Tokyo unlike the relatively small and definitely not that city like i8.

As much as I’d love to see people crowding around the i Range’s supercar there’ll probably be quite the enthusiast group surrounding the i3.

I may be quite the distance away from my thirties and still I feel like a dinosaur to live in a world where up to 95 miles on battery power matter more than 0 to 62 in under 5 seconds.

That’s the way the cookie crumbles nowadays and it is obvious that BMW is only giving the market what it pleads for. In fact, warming up the part of my heart that’s focused on burning petrol, the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show is probably a good place to find out about the range extender feature on the BMW i3.

We’ve heard about it for a while now but we haven’t seen any proper confirmation on what sort of internal combustion engine will be assisting stricken down electric motors.

A range extender feature may not be the “cleanest” of options for making the BMW i3 a more viable option but it does seem like the only way to go as battery limitations are still not very giving.

About Post Author

Marcus M.

http://www.bmwcoop.com

The post BMW i range to be seen in Tokyo appeared first on BMWCoop | BMW Blog, BMW News, BMW Reviews.