2009 Bmw 1 Series on 2040-cars

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2021 Subaru Crosstrek driven, and EV performance kings | Autoblog Podcast #647

In this week's Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Consumer Editor Jeremy Korzeniewski. They kick things off by talking about Jeremy's recent drive in the new 2021 Subaru Crosstrek. They compare the BMW X1, BMW X2 and Mini Countryman before providing another take on the Cadillac CT5. Recent Lucid Air and Tesla Model S news has them wondering if electric cars are the new performance kings and end with a quick discussion on California's intent to zero emissions by 2035. Autoblog Podcast #647 Get The Podcast iTunes – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown Cars we're driving: 2021 Subaru Crosstrek BMW X1 vs, BMW X2 vs. Mini Countryman Another take on the Cadillac CT5 Lucid Air prototype runs quarter mile in 9.245 seconds Tesla Model S Plaid prototype laps Laguna Seca in 1:30.3 More thoughts on California's 2035 gas-powered car ban Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on iTunes Related Video:

BMW i8: Jaw-dropping style and green performance, but why?

Why is there a BMW i8? Given the relative simplicity, affordability, practicality and energy efficiency of BMW's i3 sedan – available as a $42,000 all-electric or $46,000 extended-range EV – why design, engineer and build the much more complex and expensive ($137,450) but much less practical, exotic plug-in hybrid i8 2+2 sports car? Are i8 sales really worth BMW's huge investment of engineering effort and dollars? In 2015, BMW sold 2,265 i8s in the US, or about 189 a month. That compares to 11,024 (919 a month) for BMW's own i3, an estimated 27,840 (2,320 a month) for Tesla's battery-only EV Model S sedan and 1,024 (85 a month) for Cadillac's handsome, more practical and less expensive (but ridiculously overpriced and dismal-selling) ELR extended-range-EV luxury coupe. Are such sales really worth BMW's huge investment of engineering effort and dollars? The i8's lightweight Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic (CFRP) "Life Module" passenger cell rides on an aluminum "Drive Module" chassis that houses its complex propulsion system – a 228-horsepower, 1.5-liter turbocharged gas 3-cylinder (half of BMW's 3.0-liter twin-turbo straight six) driving its rear wheels through a six-speed automatic and a 129-hp electric motor twisting its front wheels through a "two-stage" automatic – and a 5-kWh lithium-ion battery. Its drag coefficient (Cd) is an aero-slick 0.26, and BMW says it can run on battery energy alone for up to 22 miles. Its total system output is a healthy 337 horses, and its EPA economy is 76 miles per gallon equivalent in gas-electric mode, but just 28 mpg when it's gas-only. A Driver Experience Control and an eDrive button offer EV and Comfort modes, plus Eco Pro (12 percent more range) and Eco Pro+ (12 more). So what is this gorgeous plug-in hybrid sports car like to drive and live with? I missed its press launch so have been hoping for some quality time with one ever since. Production has been limited, and US press cars are few, but BMW said I would eventually get my chance. It finally happened. If the unlovely i3 is a green technology revelation, this supermodel-sexy i8 is a green styling and performance revolution. If the i3 is the practical soccer mom of battery BMWs, the i8 might be the ultimate Teutonic trophy wife. But really, why do it? For starters, just look at it. Some might see a new, high-tech take on the Giugiaro-designed BMW M1 mid-engine sports car. Just 453 of those were built from 1979 to 1981.

Will global automakers drop local JV partners if China's government says they can?

Chinese economic policies could be in for a big change, as President Xi Jinping pushes the communist country to open its domestic markets even further. That could mean big things for the auto industry, especially when it comes to the country's far-reaching joint-venture system.
According to Chinese law, foreign automakers may only maintain a fifty-fifty partnership with their domestic counterparts. But with Jinping's push for openness leading to potential free-trade deals, that policy could be relaxed (or eradicated all together) in short order. What's an automaker to do?
Well, in BMW's case, stay the course. Automotive News Europe reports that, despite the grumblings about the JV policy changes, the German manufacturer has resigned its agreement with Brilliance through 2028. This is made doubly remarkable by the fact that BMW signed the extension over three years before it was set to expire.