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What happens when you take an engineer sliding in a BMW i8

The BMW i8 is a pretty impressive car, and a highly visible one at that. It's a great brand ambassador, but not just for BMW. It's really no surprise that Formula E chose it as the safety car from the electric racing series. And, for its duties at tracks around the word, the i8 safety car got some slick upgrades, including wireless charging capabilities courtesy of Qualcomm. It's not your regular, cut-and-dry technology presentation. In the video below, Qualcomm engineers explain a little bit about what they do to enhance electric vehicles. But it's not your regular, cut-and-dry technology presentation. The engineers are forced to answer questions about Qualcomm's technology while riding along in the BMW i8 Qualcomm Safety Car driven by none other than Formula E driver Nelson Piquet, Jr. Sure, riding shotgun for hot laps at Donnington Park in an i8 sounds like a lot of fun, but these guys have a job to do, and Mr. Piquet isn't making it easy for them. The Qualcomm guys talk about taking technology and beefing it up for automotive use, explain the benefits of wireless charging and discuss some other stuff that's hard to pay attention to while watching the i8 get totally sideways in a smoky powerslide. See for yourself in the video below. If you miss something, don't worry; Qualcomm provides more explanation about its automotive technologies at its website, including safety, communication and, of course, inductive charging.

AC Schnitzer's hotrod BMW 318ti remembered by MotorWeek

There are plenty of compact luxury cars available in the US today, including the Audi A3, BMW 2 Series, and Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class. In the '90s, the BMW 318ti tried to offer a similar mix of luxury at a reasonable price, but it never quite found much success in America. The 318ti looked like an E36-generation 3 Series in front but featured a stumpy liftback at the rear. The only engine available in the US was a four-cylinder. If you had the money, though, the aftermarket was ready to give you more power and more aggressive looks. AC Schnitzer dropped a bored and stroked 3.0-liter inline-six under the hood to create a pocket-sized hot rod, and MotorWeek took it for a drive. The model in this video was the promo car for AC Schnitzer's US importer, and it had every upgrade possible to show off what the German tuner's produced. Under the hood, the company installed an upgraded engine with 241 horsepower and 228 pound-feet of torque. For comparison, a US-spec M3 of the era had 240 horsepower and either 225 or 236 lb-ft, depending on the model year. AC Schnitzer also sharpened the 318ti with a suspension overhaul and short shifter. According to MotorWeek's tests, the mods got the hatchback to 60 miles per hour in 6 seconds and gave 318ti laudable handling. So much performance wasn't cheap, though. The upgrades on the promo car cost more than twice as much as the 318ti's base price. Watch this Retro Review to find out the massive amount you needed to pay to get M3 performance in a tiny package. Related Video:

BMW wants world drifting record back in US

BMW just can't stand the thought of the world record for the longest drift winding up in the hands of someone else. The German automaker is set to take a crack at setting a new record by blowing the old one straight out of the water. A driver in China holds the current title after kicking a car sideways for a full 3.6 miles. Now, on May 11, BMW Performance Driving Instructor Johan Schwartz will attempt to pitch a BMW M5 sideways for some 40 miles as part of a stunt to raise funds for the BMW Pro-Am Charity.
We've had the distinct pleasure of riding with the instructors at the BMW facility in South Carolina, and we can tell you that if anyone can keep an M5 at full tilt for 40 miles, it's these guys. BMW has released a teaser video to drum up attention for the stunt. You can catch it below.