Only 59k Mi, Navi, Xenon, Parktronic, Rear Shades, Well Maintained, 310-925-7461 on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Police arrest 'Fastest Lap Around Manhattan' driver [w/video]

Don't speed. Don't drive recklessly. Don't try to break the unofficial record for a lap of Manhattan. And if you go against this reasonable advice, do not, under any circumstances, record it and post the video on YouTube. If you do, you'll end up like Christopher Adam Tang - under arrest and facing a bevy of charges relating to the video.
Tang posted the video, which showed him lapping Manhattan in 24 minutes last Wednesday, and it quickly went viral. Now Tang, who went by the online moniker AfroDuck, is in cuffs. According to a local CBS affiliate, he was picked up at his home on Wednesday evening by police, who also seized the car used in the video, a 2006 BMW Z4.
What isn't clear is how Tang was caught. His video seems carefully done in that there are no outwardly visible signs that point to him, while the video itself is clearly sped up. While the NYPD hasn't come out and said that Tang was caught due to its extensive surveillance systems around the city, police commissioner Ray Kelly did point out that the new systems "will assist in this type of investigation." Let that serve as a warning to anyone that tries to break the 24-minute barrier. Scroll down to watch the full video.

BMW X4 opens up alongside its boxier brother

It doesn't seem so long ago that BMW (not to mention Audi, Volvo and a handful of other European automakers) weren't in the crossover market. But it's been over a decade since BMW began producing the first-gen X5, and in the fourteen years since, the Bavarian automaker has steadily expanded its portfolio to include the X1, X3 and X6.
The next to join the family will be the X4, which is essentially to the X3 what the X6 is to the X5. That is to say, basically the same vehicle, only with an (arguably) more stylish but less utile roofline. Previewed in concept form at the Shanghai Auto Show half a year ago, the X4 has been snapped by our plucky paparazzi in the past, but this is the first time we've seen inside.
Not only that, but the prototype in question was spotted next to the current X3 on which it is based, which gives us ample opportunity to see the differences between them. Of course, that still primarily comes down to the slantback profile, because otherwise, the two are essentially the same inside and out. Or at least they will be: many of the differences between the two are expected to port over to the X3 when it's refreshed next year, including some subtle interior upgrades - just not the roofline.

2016 X6 M brings the power at LA show

BMW tore the cover off the second generation 2016 X6 M Wednesday at the Los Angeles Auto Show.
BMW tuned the 4.4-liter twin-turbo V8 to push out 567 horsepower, up from the last model's 555 hp. Torque also leaps to 553 pound feet, compared with the previous output of 500 lb-ft. The V8 is paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission, which swaps in for the old six-speed. This potent powertrain allows the crossover to hit 60 miles per hour in about four seconds.
The X6, which features slightly more dramatic styling and an angled rear roofline, debuted alongside the more conventionally styled 2016 BMW X5 M at the LA show.