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Researchers halfway to cutting carbon fiber costs by 90%

Carbon fiber has been utilized for decades to build racecars, as a means to cut weight while maintaining strength. But until recently, the space-age material has been largely absent from the street on anything but supercars because of the expense to use it. Recently, BMW signaled a major shift in that trend when it starting using carbon fiber reinforced plastic panels on the i3 and i8. This relatively small scale start might be just the beginning; the German company believes that a breakthrough to inexpensively manufacture the lightweight stuff is just on the horizon.
MAI Carbon Cluster Management GmbH counts BMW, Audi, Airbus, the German government and many other organizations as supporters, and it's researching how to make carbon fiber cheaper to produce, according to Automotive News Europe. The company thinks it can reduce costs by 90 percent in the near future. "We've certainly reached a halfway point on our cost-cutting target for suitable carbon-fiber parts," said project head Klaus Drechsler to Automotive News Europe.
Unfortunately, it isn't entirely clear just what MAI Carbon is doing to make such a huge leap possible. However, a recent post on the company's website talks about a new form a carbon fiber using a thermoplastic matrix that could be cured in less than three minutes. That's compared to about 90 minutes in the traditional process with an autoclave.

BMW dishes on 'lightweight' 2014 M4

BMW's M cars are not what we'd call featherweights. Sure, the big, bruising twin-turbocharged V8s deliver a lot of power, but the fact of the matter is that more weight often equates to less fun.
Which is why we're so excited over a recent sit-down the blokes at Top Gear had with BMW's product manager for small and medium cars, Matt Collins. The chat led to talk of the M3 Coupe replacing M4. Collins confirmed that, yes, the new M4 would be turbocharged. The new engine will also be a six-cylinder, which should make purists happy.
"What we'd like is more focus on lightweight engineering." -Matt Collins

BMW M2 is proof good things come in small M-badged packages

BMW released the new M2 several months ago. But it wasn't until today that we got to see the new sport coupe in the metal here on the floor of the Detroit Auto Show. The spiritual successor to the legendary BMW 2002 Turbo from the 1970s, the new M2 packs a potent inline-six up front driving the rear wheels. That 3.0-liter turbo six is good for 365 horsepower and 343 pound-feet of torque, paired to either a six-speed manual or available seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. In a package weighing just 3,500 pounds (a little less with the stick, a more with the DCT), that's enough to send the M2 from a standstill to 60 miles per hour in as little as 4.2 seconds (4.4 with the manual) and on to an electronically limited top speed of 155 miles per hour. That's enough to make us forget all about the M235i that packs 45 fewer horsepower and the previous 1 Series M Coupe with 30 less – and makes us second-guess the prospect of the costlier M4 and its 60-horse advantage. Throw in other goodies like 19-inch Michelin Pilot Super Sport rubber, an active differential, and a seriously aggressive-looking body kit, and the new M2 suddenly looks like a world-beater that we can hardly wait to drive. BMW at the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) 2016 in Detroit. BMW is set to enter its anniversary year of 2016 on a powerful note. With the centenary of its founding just around the corner, the company is using the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS), taking place in Detroit from 11 – 24 January, to host the world premieres of the new BMW M2 and BMW X4 M40i performance models. Joining the two new cars at the stand will be the trailblazing BMW i models and innovative services covering every aspect of electric mobility. BMW ConnectedDrive, meanwhile, is showcasing its latest range of applications and systems, such as Remote Control Parking. The BMW Group's successful involvement in North America dates back more than 40 years. Bayerische Motorenwerke has been represented in the USA by its subsidiary BMW of North America since 1975, and the company went on to build its own production facility in Spartanburg, South Carolina in 1992.