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2015 BMW i8 [w/video]

The most important thing to keep in mind while driving BMW's all-new i8 is that it's not a product of the company's vaunted M division.
Sleek sports-coupe design, carbon-fiber construction and blistering acceleration may cause automotive enthusiasts to drool, but the i8 has not been conceptualized, engineered or assembled to be another one of BMW's world-class track stars. Instead, the i8 has been hatched as a progressive sports car from the Bavarian outfit's new i division, which "represents visionary electric vehicles and mobility services, inspiring design and a new understanding of premium that is strongly defined by sustainability." Think of it as thrilling, but with an engaging environmental twist.
It's nearly impossible to walk up to the i8 with stopping twenty feet short and taking in its styling. There's no other production car as visually fascinating - this BMW is showroom-ready sculpture that captures all of the essence of the Vision Efficient Dynamics Concept that wowed crowds at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show. The wind sees it as a 0.26 drag coefficient, but humans will study its beautifully crafted carbon fiber and glass panels and realize they're in the presence of the future.

BMW i3 with range extender could arrive after HOV stickers run out in CA

We will weep for the BMW i3 REx owner with ticket #40,001 for California's green HOV stickers. While the standard-issue battery-electric i3 has been deemed eligible for the state's white stickers, which allow for owners to drive in HOV lanes solo, the proverbial jury of the California Air Resources Board (CARB) is still out on the BMW i3 REx, which will have a little-bitty range-extender on board, Transport Evolved says. The issue is that, while there is an unlimited number of white stickers for pure EVs such as the Nissan Leaf and Tesla Model S, the state has limited the number of green stickers, which grant solo-HOV access to plug-in hybrids and extended-range plug-ins, to 40,000. And with almost 29,000 green stickers given out as of the end of last year to cars such as the Chevrolet Volt and the Toyota Prius Plug In, they may run out within two months. The other key point is that the waiting list for the i3 with a range extender is running at about six months as of January, that could cause a bit of hand-wringing among folks looking to buy the REx. BMW said earlier this year that the extended-range version of the i3 would qualify for white stickers because the car is a so-called BEVx, meaning that its range-extender's full-tank range is less than the electric motor's single-charge range. BMW designed the i3 with a small range-extender tank of just 2.4 gallons, but the automaker estimated that California's green stickers wouldn't run out until the end of 2014.

BMW and Mini shuffle NA management, McDowell to retire

BMW and Mini recently shuffled top personnel in their design departments, and now BMW of North America will reorganize its management to improve customer relations. Peter Miles (pictured), currently the executive vice president of operations, will take a newly created position, vice president of sales channel development and customer relations, while Jim McDowell, vice president of Mini of the Americas, will retire.
Chris Koenders, president of BMW Group Netherlands, will move take Miles' spot as executive vice president of operations. David Duncan, western region vice president, will take McDowell's job as vice president of Mini of the Americas. Finishing off the management switcharoo is Peter Witt, who will move from his current position as Managing Director of BMW Sweden to take Duncan's job as western region vice president.
"We are intensifying our customer-driven focus and these changes will influence the entire organization to continue improving all phases of the customer journey from prospect to purchase and throughout the ownership cycle," says Ludwig Willisch, president and CEO of BMW NA. For more information on the management reorganization, check out the press release below.