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BMW X3 ensnared by diesel emissions probe

Volkswagen may not be the only German automaker ensnared by this whole diesel debacle. The latest reports suggest that BMW could be guilty of the same offense. According to Bloomberg, citing a report from Germany's own Auto Bild magazine, the X3 could be over the European legal limit for emissions. The report suggests that a BMW X3 xDrive20d registered tailpipe emissions more than 11 times the limit under testing by the International Council on Clean Transportation. The council is the same that triggered the investigation into Volkswagen that led to the automaker's admission that it cheated on emissions tests for its diesel vehicles and the subsequent resignation of its chief executive. Volkswagen admitted to installing software that initiates additional emissions controlling measures when it detects that the vehicle is being tested. For its part, however, BMW denies that it has any such similar system in place, noting that many of its vehicles have passed testing by the same organization. Whatever the truth in BMW's case, it may not emerge unscathed. Bloomberg reports that the company's stock fell as much as 9.7 percent – the most it has lost in over four years – amid concerns that it could be implicated in the scandal as well. Shares in rival automaker Daimler also dropped by 5.8 percent. Volkswagen has already lost over $20 billion in market value in the midst of the scandal. The German government and European Union are considering implementing more restrictive standards and more thorough testing on diesel engines in order to prevent this sort of thing from recurring.

What happens when you take an engineer sliding in a BMW i8

The BMW i8 is a pretty impressive car, and a highly visible one at that. It's a great brand ambassador, but not just for BMW. It's really no surprise that Formula E chose it as the safety car from the electric racing series. And, for its duties at tracks around the word, the i8 safety car got some slick upgrades, including wireless charging capabilities courtesy of Qualcomm. It's not your regular, cut-and-dry technology presentation. In the video below, Qualcomm engineers explain a little bit about what they do to enhance electric vehicles. But it's not your regular, cut-and-dry technology presentation. The engineers are forced to answer questions about Qualcomm's technology while riding along in the BMW i8 Qualcomm Safety Car driven by none other than Formula E driver Nelson Piquet, Jr. Sure, riding shotgun for hot laps at Donnington Park in an i8 sounds like a lot of fun, but these guys have a job to do, and Mr. Piquet isn't making it easy for them. The Qualcomm guys talk about taking technology and beefing it up for automotive use, explain the benefits of wireless charging and discuss some other stuff that's hard to pay attention to while watching the i8 get totally sideways in a smoky powerslide. See for yourself in the video below. If you miss something, don't worry; Qualcomm provides more explanation about its automotive technologies at its website, including safety, communication and, of course, inductive charging.

The Aficionauto gets his hands on Back To The Future BMW

When thinking about the cars of Back to the Future, Doc Brown's iconic DeLorean is surely the first one that jumps to mind. However, the latest video from The Aficionauto tracks down a more obscure but still rather cool vehicle from the series. Host Christopher Rutkowski heads to Connecticut for a difficult drive in Griff's screen-used 1976 BMW 633 CSI from the second film in the trilogy. Owner Jeff Chabotte bought the car in thoroughly neglected condition and spent weeks with his father and son bringing the futuristic Bimmer back to life. The slew of scoops and nacelles behind the seats might not be aesthetically beautiful, but they're authentic to the appearance in the film. For authenticity, Chabotte even keeps the busted taillight from Griff hitting it in the movie. As Rutkowski finds during his drive, Griff's BMW poses absolutely no threat of chasing down the DeLorean to 88 miles per hour. There's actually a pretty good reason for that, though. The interesting story involves how the producers procured this gray-market 633 CSI to be in Back to the Future II. Related Video: