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BMW calling in 76k vehicles over airbag issues

Vehicles these days are typically fitted with a mat in the front passenger seat that determines whether that airbag needs to be activated in the event of a collision and how it should deploy. But that system doesn't always work, as Mercedes recently found in its SL-Class roadster and as Suzuki did before it with the Grand Vitara and SX4 crossovers. Now a crop of BMW vehicles have befallen the same issue, prompting the Bavarian automaker to cooperate with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to issue a recall for the vehicles in question.
The problem affects precisely 76,565 vehicles, including certain the 3 Series (sedan and wagon), 5 Series, 7 Series and X5 crossover families spanning the 2006 and 2007 model years and fitted with a certain type of seat. However, since the parts to repair the problematic components are not currently available, as you can see from the recall notice below, it won't be until March 2014 when local dealers will be able to resolve the issue.

2011 BMW 1 Series M Coupe now more expensive than when new

At the end of the day, your friendly Autoblog editors are car guys, just like you. So, while we might have more of an opportunity to test some of the most interesting vehicles on the new car scene than does your average gear head, we can still be found whiling away those long afternoon hours looking at used cars and thinking about what could be.
Just the other day, we had a vivid reminder about one of our dream cars from the very recent past, the 2011 BMW 1 Series M Coupe. If you didn't catch it, Michael Harley had a great time testing and reviewing the new Dinan S3-R version of the car, which throws an impressively engineered turbo and suspension tune on a BMW that was damn near perfect out of the box.
In the Comments section of that review, a few savvy Autoblog readers pointed out that our estimated price for a used donor car, set at $50,000, was low. Odd, we thought, as the car retailed for less than $50k ($46,135) when it was new in 2011. So we started checking around.

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.