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Tier 1 suppliers call GM the worst OEM to work with

Among automakers with a big US presence, General Motors is the worst to work for, according to a new survey from Tier 1 automotive suppliers, conducted by Planning Perspectives, Inc.
The Detroit-based manufacturer, which has been under fire following the ignition switch recall and its accompanying scandal, finished behind six other automakers with big US manufacturing operations. Suppliers had issues with trust and communications, as well as intellectual property protection. GM was also the least likely to allow suppliers to raise their prices in the face of unexpected increases in material cost, all of which contributed to 55 percent of suppliers saying their relationship with GM was "poor to very poor."
GM's cross-town competitors didn't fare much better. Chrysler finished in fifth place, ahead of GM and behind Dearborn-based Ford, which was passed for third place this year by Nissan. Toyota took the top marks, while Honda captured second place.

Watch this BMW take flight at Viru Rally

An E36 BMW 3 Series might be a good choice for a lot of purposes - a long road trip, a track day, rallycross, impressing your friends... but a full-on rally? It's rear-drive when the best rally machines are front- or all-wheel drive. But that didn't stop Pritt Koik and Alari-Uku Heldna from entering their stripped-out E36 in the Viru Rally in Estonia... or from getting some big air time when they did.
Fortunately the jump was not just caught on video... it was caught on video from three angles: two from the side of the rally stage and one from inside the cockpit. Check out all three below to see how this particular BMW got back into the aircraft business.

Updated BMW X6 spied running the 'Ring in Germany

Following the debut of the X5 earlier this year, it shouldn't come as a shock that BMW is testing an updated X6 in its homeland. The Munich-based manufacturer trekked to the Nürburgring to test the lifted, four-door coupe it calls a Sports Activity Vehicle, while also giving us our first peak as to what the future holds for one of the weirder models in the brand's stable.
Mainly, we can safely expect the next X6 to get the same range of refinements made to its platform-mate, the X5, which debuted earlier this year. If we're lucky, that could mean an X6 sDrive35i, complete with rear-wheel drive with which to fling the big SAV about. Adding a rear-drive option could also broaden its admittedly limited appeal by lowering the cost of entry, which could serve the pricier X6 well. As a point of reference, the X5 sDrive35i is priced at $2,300 below an xDrive all-wheel-drive-equipped model.
The X6's top-flight xDrive50i model should get the same 45-horsepower bump as the X5 xDrive50i, thanks to refinements to its twin-turbocharged, 4.4-liter V8, while the 3.0-liter, turbocharged six-pot should remain unchanged. We wouldn't hold our breath for an X6 diesel to arrive, although weirder stuff has happened. Like the X5, though, this should be a pretty slim refit that improves an already competent package to go along with an expected increase in price.