2001 Bmw Z3 Roadster Convertible 2-door Pristine Low Miles Only 17k Miles. on 2040-cars

Auto blog

The 2014 Alpina B4 Bi-Turbo Cabrio powers up luxury and speed

The BMW specialists at Alpina know how to exploit a niche when they see one. With the BMW M4 still not technically official, it saw the need for a higher performance four-seat convertible than the 435i 'vert. Enter the new B4 Bi-Turbo Cabrio that is debuting at the Geneva Motor Show.
The European-exclusive model takes BMW's 3.0-liter, twin-turbocharged inline-6 and massages it up to 410 horsepower and 442 pound-feet of torque, which is less power but more twist than the M4 would give buyers. Alpina's tend to be built more as quick, luxurious grand tourers, and the B4 Bi-Turbo gets is no different with an adaptive sport suspension and an eight-speed automatic. Plus it wears the classic pinstripes and 21-spoke wheels that are the brand's design hallmarks.
While the added weight for the convertible means that the Cabrio takes 4.5 seconds to reach 62 miles per hour, about a half-second slower than the coupe, at the moment it is the only way to get this kind of performance in a BMW convertible. Orders for the convertible open in March in Europe and prices in Germany start at 74,800 euros ($102,878 at today's conversion rates).

BMW expects China to pass US as its top market in 2013

When you combine two billion citizens, 100 cities with more than a million inhabitants and an economy that's as unrestrained as Jim Cramer on an Adderall binge, China's explosive auto industry growth shouldn't be a huge surprise. Audi already lists the communist country as its largest market, while Mercedes-Benz is expecting it to be there in the next few years. Now, according to a report from Automotive News, BMW is expecting the People's Republic to overtake the United States in sales by the end of 2013.
We already discovered the extent that BMW is going to in establishing a dedicated Chinese stronghold, when we explored BMW's Shanghai-based DesignWorks studio ahead of April's Shanghai Motor Show. And while we argued that DesignWorks Shanghai hasn't really borne fruit, it isn't due to a lack of sales.
BMW China has seen a 16-percent jump in year-over-year sales, lead by a 28-percent gain in 5 Series sales. Part of BMW's growth strategy comes from an ever-expanding dealership network. Remember those 100 cities we mentioned with over one million people? According to Karsten Engel, CEO of BMW's Chinese operations, those 100-million-plus city dwellers don't have access to a premium dealership.

BMW i8 fully revealed ahead of Frankfurt debut

It may be early in the morning here in the US, but in Germany, the first day of the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show is in full swing. BMW took advantage of the early start and showed off its long-awaited i8 plug-in hybrid sportscar, a two-plus-two, swan-wing-doored coupe, to the Frankfurt crowd.
We drove a BMW i8 prototype back in August, so many of the things we're reading today are clarifications on our initial suspicions or speculations. Underhood sits a 1.5-liter, turbocharged, three-cylinder engine. On its own, it churns out a respectable 231 horsepower and 236 pound-feet of torque, which is then channeled to the rear wheels by way of a six-speed automatic transmission. An electric motor, meanwhile, sends 131 hp and 184 lb-ft of torque through a two-speed automatic to the front wheels.
With all-wheel drive at its disposal, the total system power sits at 362 hp and 320 lb-ft of torque, and allows the i8 to scamper to 62 miles per hour in just 4.4 seconds. That excellent performance is offset by an estimated fuel economy figure of 94 miles per gallon, though, making this a fast and efficient vehicle. Charging is impressively fast on the i8, with a full charge coming from a 110-volt outlet in under four hours. A BMW Charging Station will trim the charge time down to 1.5 hours.