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BMW M4 spied in coupe and convertible form

From the sound of it, we'll have to wait until the Detroit Auto Show to see the production version of the BMW M4, but spy shots show the new hi-po BMW testing recently in both coupe and convertible form. Showing a lot more skin than recent spy shots, these M4 prototypes look very similar to the M4 Concept we saw at Pebble Beach.
Carryovers from the concept car include the funky mirrors, bulging hood and the slotted front fascia vents, but the rear fascia seems to be missing the added flair of the concept and, as expected, the carbon fiber front splitter and exhaust tips are also missing from these M4s. Like the current M3 Convertible, the drop-top version of the M4 will utilize a retractable hard top.

Behind the scenes of BMW's 'Drift Mob,' Part 1

Generally speaking, marketing and journalism don't mix, but every now and then, what goes into the marketing of a car - the 2015 BMW M235i, in this case - is worth documenting. In that spirit, we took BMW up on its offer to bring us behind the scenes of its upcoming "drift mob" video, starring five red M235i coupes frolicking around a traffic circle in a major world city (BMW has asked us to be coy about which one so as not to blow its cover before the shoot).
The five drivers can all be considered legends of modern-day drifting and stunt driving: Rhys Millen, Samuel Hübinette, Dai Yoshihara, Rich Rutherford and Conrad Grunewald.
As the only US media outlet in attendance, Autoblog plans to follow up with a full story on the experience once BMW polishes and releases the video in a month or so. In the meantime, check out our photos of this epic practice session we captured on our first day hanging with the crew, and be sure to watch this space for more behind-the-scenes action.

BMW selects two artists to create M6 GT3 art cars

Whether it's Alexander Calder's 3.0 CSL or Jeff Koons' M3 GT2, BMW has had a role in some of the most beautiful art cars to ever see a racetrack since 1975. For the 40th anniversary of the series, the company will celebrate in the best way possible – making even more of them. Chinese artist Cao Fei and John Baldessari from the US will create two more artistic racers around the new M6 GT3, and after hitting the track, they'll go on display in museums in 2017. An international jury of museum directors and curators selected Cao and Baldessari to create the 18th and 19th art cars, respectively. Born in 1978, Cao is the youngest artist to create one with BMW. She seems to hint at the inspiration for her example in the company's announcement by saying: "Acceleration, a concept that reminds me of my desire for speed as a runner during the Young Pioneers days, is deeply connected to the entangled contemporary relationships between velocity, energy, and the country." Born in 1931, Baldessari will be the oldest person to produce a BMW art car. "This will definitely be my fastest artwork yet," he said in the release. BMW doesn't know yet exactly where either art car would race. "There is a possibility of one or both the [sic] compete in one of the major IMSA WeatherTech series races. However, this has not been decided yet," company spokesperson Thomas Plucinsky told Autoblog. "We expect to see the cars on track in 2017." Both artists have designs in the works but nothing to release yet. However, the gallery above shows some of the earlier creations. The M6 GT3 is BMW's latest racing weapon for customer teams, and it uses a modified 4.4-liter turbocharged V8 with up to 585 horsepower and a six-speed sequential gearbox. It will compete in places like the GTD class of the 2016 IMSA WeatherTech SportCar Championship in the US. Cao Fei and John Baldessari to create the next BMW Art Cars Racing tradition to be continued with the BMW M6 GT3 Munich/New York. Following commissions by Jenny Holzer (1999), Olafur Eliasson (2007) and Jeff Koons (2010), the BMW Art Car series will now be continued. On the occasion of the series' 40th anniversary, a jury of distinguished museum directors and curators chose two internationally renowned artists to design one car each. Chinese artist Cao Fei (*1978) and American artist John Baldessari (*1931) will be the youngest and the oldest artist represented in the collection respectively.