Category: BMW

With all the talk about a new ‘M1’/baby M-car, call it what you will, let’s take a look back at the concept car that started it all. This is the BMW Concept 1 Series tii as revealed at the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show. Of course, this modern tii badged machine, was inspired by the iconic 2002 model, first released in 1966.

The Concept 1 Series tii features a bunch of add on bits in the form of new wheels, rear spoiler and bonnet fins. A restyled front air dam and rear valance made from carbon-fibre reinforced plastic help to reduce weight over the standard car.

The original details from the Tokyo show didn’t reveal too much in the way of engine mods, rather went on at some length with lots of fluffy text about things that don’t really matter that much. Like the black, white and blue colour shceme, for example. Hey, whaddya know that’s the same colours as the BMW logo. Who’d a thunk it.

Anyway, over two years from its debut it finally looks like something will be made of this concept car. To refresh your memory you can see a full gallery of pics after the jump along with a two part press release, which includes a PDF download (link available below).

Earlier in the week evo reported that BMW have confirmed plans to build a new M1. Well, two, actually. One will be a supercar drawing heavily on the M1 Hommage and Vision EfficientDynamics concept models. The other will be a lighter, better, faster 135i. It seems likely the M1 badge will be reserved for the supercar option. That leaves us with the Tii nomenclature from the iconic 2002 as the current tip for naming the M-prepared 135 Coupé.

According to evo‘s report the baby-M will could pack a 300kW punch. It is also expected that, true to its Tii roots, the car will be shedding some weight—as much as 70kg from its current 1485kg figure. Add a 7-speed dual clutch transmission and tricky diff and you end up with an awe inspiring proposition. Whatever is going on inside BMW’s headquarters I hope it is along the lines of, let’s get this thing to market as quick as we can!

However, today’s news from Drive.com.au may also raise a few eyebrows. Apparently BMW Australia wants a (slightly) harder, better, fatser, stronger 135i as well. And it doesn’t want to hang around for the Fatherland to produce the goods. No, the Aussies want to prepare up to 50 enhanced 135is with a mild power increase, from 225kW to 240kW.

The extra power would come courtesy of a BMW Performance kit and BMW Australia would carry out the modifications locally, rather than importing them ready to run. BMW spokesman Toni Andreevski has confirmed Australia is already in discussions with Munich, and hopes to have a decision locked away on the manual only model inside three months.

Speculation about the possibilities of a front-wheel drive BMW have been circulating for a while now. That theory is only set to grow according to a report in Autocar that quotes a BMW source as saying the company could “break with tradition”.

BMW and PSA Peugeot Citroën are in discussions about devleoping future joint ventures. Currently the two parties share the four cylinder engines found in MINIs and Peugeots. And the German-French alliance is also working on a modular front-wheel drive platform which would be shared among various MINI, Citroen and Peugeot models.

But it is the admission from a BMW insider that a future 1 Series could also use this front-wheel drive platform that will rattle a few cages, “Nothing is concrete at this stage but discussions are on-going about whether or not BMW should break with the tradition of rear and four-wheel-drive cars.

“For many in this company it is a taboo subject. But we have to be realistic with the targets we have set ourselves for fuel consumption and emissions, and they clearly favour a front-wheel-drive solution for 2018.”

On the one hand many 1 Series buyers may not know, or care, if their car is driven by the front wheels. On the other hand, though, it would mark a massive shift in philosophy for BMW who heavily marketed the 1 Series rear wheel drive benefits when it was first launched.

The prospective timeframe is still quite a long way off, and if it did come to fruition it appears there would be plenty of time for BMW to soften their stance on FWD platforms. But, what do you think, would a front wheel drive BMW appeal to you, or is the mere thought something you cannot contemplate?

[Source: Autocar via BimmerFile]

You may remember BMW trying to flog their Z3 and Z8 roadsters with the help of one Mr James Bond. Since then, though, the Munich company has been far less high profile at pushing their products through entertainment media, such as Hollywood films. Even The Italian Job, featuring MINI, the then new jewel of the BMW Group, was over six years ago.

But, this is all about to change. BMW have just entered a partnership with Propaganda GEM, a specialist media company that helps its clients push its wares while we’re supposed to be sidetracked by a movie, or something. They look after such names as Audi, Bang & Olufsen, Bvlgari, Casio, Lamborghini, Nokia and Panasonic. Although, Propaganda GEM’s 13 year relationship with Audi will be coming to an end, to make way for BMW. Presumably Lambo will be dropped, as well.

Along with the usual advertainment of specific product lines, this new deal will see BMW pushing themes. Expect lines such as “the joy of driving” or “EfficientDynamics” to be espoused by Hollywood’s A-list, among others.

Ralf Hussmann, head of sport marketing and corporate sponsorships for BMW, says “We are definitely looking forward to lift product placement to the next level. We are a car manufacturer but we have different topics to talk about.”

It would appear, then, that BMW’s old F1 budget has been siphoned away from good to be spent on evil! Well, that’s what I think anyway. How about you, would you rather BMW stayed in Formula One, or are they better ramping up this product placement gig?

[Source: Variety via autoblog]

Tomorrow will see the launch of BMW’s all new F10 5 Series. Well, kind of—the launch will be at 6am Tuesday for Australian readers.

BMW will be revealing the new 5 Series in Munich across the road from their pad at the Olympic Stadium. So, set your alarms for 8pm (Central European Time), Monday 23 November

In the meantime, you can see more teaser images at BimmerFile.com.

Fifteen horsepower in a car is hardly anything to get excited about, even if it only has 550kg to lug around. But these were the keys stats of BMW’s first car, the 3/15. If it looks familiar to our British readers, that’s because, essentially, the car was an Austin 7.

After the jump you can see a short clip from BMW’s YouTube channel, which gives a bit more history on the “Dixi”. To be fair, the clip is a bit slow moving, but I did get a bit of a kick out of the footage showing a 3/15 blasting up the Stelvio Pass. A classic driving road, to be sure, but perhaps a car with such modest performance capabilities is not the first that would come to mind if one could pick any from history to tackle the classic climbing route.