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Finalists for 2014 Green Car of the Year announced

The list of finalists for the 2014 Green Car of the Year has been announced, and in a genuinely bizarre twist, there's only one hybrid and no electric vehicles among the five contestants, despite the arrival of cars like the BMW i3 and Tesla Model S. Taking the place of the EVs are a pair of diesels, repping a technology that last won a Green Car of the Year award in 2009, when the Audi A3 TDI took the title. No diesel was in the running for last year's award.
Naturally, both of the diesel finalists are fielded by the Germans - with BMW's 328d and Audi's A6 TDI getting the nod. In the case of the 3 Series, BMW installed a 2.0-liter, turbodiesel, capable of delivering 180 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque, while returning 45 miles per gallon on the highway. Audi and its larger, 3.0-liter, V6 turbodiesel produce quite a bit more grunt, with 240 hp and 428 lb-ft of grunt, but net a very impressive 38 mpg on the highway in the A6.
Finalists for this year's awards include two diesels, three gas-powered cars and a plug-in hybrid.

BMW performance engineering boss wants an M7

Audi has the S8, Mercedes has the S63 AMG and Jaguar has the XJR, but BMW has always held that an M7 wasn't justified, leaving its associated Alpina line to tackle that market with the B7 (pictured). The chief engineer at the M division, however, feels otherwise.
Speaking to Autocar, the BMW M development chief Albert Biermann indicated that he would like to see the M division do a performance version of the 7 Series to compete with the above-mentioned models, but that there are no current plans in place to do so. Neither did he specify what kind of engine it would have, or if it would be badged, for that matter, as an M7 or an M Performance model.
The latter is the approach which the M division is reportedly taking with performance versions of BMW crossovers beyond the X5 M and X6 M, such as the X3 and upcoming X4. The division is also said to be developing a performance-tuned xDrive system to compete with AMG's new all-wheel-drive models, as well as a potential M3 GT to join the new M3 sedan and M4 coupe with a slantback bodystyle.

2016 BMW 7 Series spied for the first time ever

Ladies and gentlemen, Bimmerphiles and automotive voyeurs of all stripes: here is your next-generation BMW 7 Series. Captured in photographs for the first time ever while doing a spot of cold-weather testing in Sweden, this newly slim 7er will most likely debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 2015 and launch in the 2016 model year.
Sources indicate that BMW is targeting a much lighter curb weight for the 7 Series, and will use learnings gained with the i3 and i8 development to add carbon fiber-reinforced plastics in the construction. In return we'd expect the new model - which uses the internal model designation "G11" - to offer improvements in handling, acceleration and fuel economy. As with the current 7 Series lineup, expect the engine range to include turbocharged inline-six engines, one or more V8s and a V12 option.
It's fair to say that, with the car's debut still years down the road, that BMW will work to launch with an impressive suite of in-car technology, too. A completely new version of iDrive shouldn't be ruled out. These shots mark the beginning of a long journey to 2015, and we expect to have loads more information to share in the coming months and years, so stay tuned.