2003 Bmw M3 Premium Coupe 2-door on 2040-cars

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Alpina bringing new B4 Bi-Turbo Cabrio to Geneva

Interested in picking up a new BMW 4 Series with a turbo six? You've got options: you can get the 435i with 300 horsepower or spring for the M4 with 425 hp. But if it's the convertible model you want, we're afraid you'll be limited to the latter as the M division can't help you (at least not for the time being). But that's where Alpina comes in.
The aftermarket tuner closely associated with BMW offers the B4 Bi-Turbo (at least in Europe) with that same 3.0-liter twin-turbo inline-six massaged up to 410 horsepower that starts to pose a threat to the M4. What's more is that the Alpina's 442 pound-feet of torque eclipses the M4's 406 lb-ft, to say nothing of the 435i's 300.
Best of all, Alpina just confirmed via Facebook that it'll offer the B4 in convertible form, bringing the resulting BMW Alpina B4 Bi-Turbo Cabrio to the Geneva Motor Show. We'd expect the weight penalty to knock it slightly off the coupe's quoted 4.1-second 0-60 time, but not by much. If only BMW were to bring this one Stateside like it does with the B7 sedan.

Audi to spend $17 billion to fight BMW

It's no secret that VW Group, parent company to not only Volkswagen but also Audi, Bugatti, Bentley, Lamborghini, Porsche and Ducati brands sold in the US, is determined to become the world's largest automaker. Even more impressive is that VW is prepared to spend billions to make it happen.
With that comes word that VW Group will be spending $17 billion on its Audi brand over the next three years to push itself above rival BMW. The money will be invested in both vehicle development (including lightweight auto design and alternative powertrains) and facilities (including expansion in Hungary, China and new operations in Mexico). The luxury brand is focused on global manufacturing infrastructure.
Already Europe's best-selling luxury brand, Audi's objective is to overtake BMW by the end of the decade by selling more than two million cars per year (BMW is shooting for 1.54 million sales in 2013). If those objectives are met, VW Group should be on track to be the industry's volume leader by 2018.

BMW X4 M40i spotted testing in Germany

The stream of segment-busting BMW variants is showing no signs of letting up, and with the latest addition now upon us, questions have been circulating as to whether the Bavarian automaker would do an M version of the new X4 crossover. The jury may still be out on that proposition, but the latest intel suggests that, while a full-on X4 M may not be in the cards, a next-best-thing X4 M40i is in the works. And that appears to be what we're looking at in this fresh batch of spy shots.
Spotted for the first time undergoing testing in Germany, this X4 is tipped to be the next addition to the M Performance line that's already given us near-boiling models like the M135i and M235i on the one hand and the diesel-powered M550d, X5 M50d and X6 M50d on the other. Power in this case is tipped to come from the same 3.0-liter turbo six as the upcoming M2, producing between 360 and 380 horsepower.
Unlike the current top-of-that-specific-line X4 35i, which has two tailpipes on one side, this partially-camouflaged prototype has one pipe protruding from each corner of the rear bumper, but looks like it could easily accommodate twin pipes on both sides. Expect commensurate suspension, brake, rolling stock, aero and trim upgrades to come as part of the package, though they likely won't be quite as substantial as those applied to the X5 M and X6 M.