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BMW 2 Series Active Tourer pulls its way onto the stage

We know what you might be thinking: here comes another BMW with yet another kind of roofline. Only this isn't just another BMW. It's the first front-drive BMW, and the first time we've ever seen it in person.
That model, of course, is the new 2 Series Active Tourer, debuting here in Geneva as the production version of the Concept Active Tourer and the beefier Concept Active Tourer Outdoor that followed. It shares about as much with the 2 Series Coupe as a jelly donut, but takes BMW into a new market segment - that of the high-roofed hatchback (or micro-minivan, depending on your perspective) occupied by the likes of the Mercedes-Benz B-Class and Volkswagen Golf Sportsvan.
Power comes from a choice of 1.5-liter turbo three, 2.0-liter turbo four or 2.0-liter turbodiesel - but aside from the forced-induction engines what they all the versions have in common is what makes the 2 Series Active Tourer newsworthy: they all sit up front, driving the front wheels. It's an idea BMW purists might not appreciate, but one we'd all better get used to just the same.

BMW Active Tourer to hit US showrooms in 2015

It's been over a year since BMW unveiled the Concept Active Tourer at the Paris Motor Show, and another four months since it brought the concept back in Outdoor guise (pictured above). Now word has it that the Bavarian automaker is putting it into production.
Although production specs and dimensions have yet to be revealed, the Concept Active Tourer came in a bit smaller than the existing BMW X1. The production version is expected to be based on the same platform that underpins the new Mini hatchback revealed last week in LA, meaning that it will be predominantly front-drive, but an all-wheel-drive version could follow.
There will also be a longer version with a third row of seats, forming part of a new generation of front-drive BMWs to take on the likes of the Audi A1 and Mercedes-Benz A-Class family, of which the GLA will be the Active Tourer's most direct rival. Expect the Active Tourer to arrive in 2015 with a new front-drive sedan to follow in 2017 aimed particularly at the North American and Chinese markets.

BMW reveals new X5 Security Plus in Moscow

A major player in the Russian market, BMW is heading to the Moscow Motor Show this month with a slew of local debuts... most of which we've already seen. But among all the new models making the trek from Bavaria to Moscow will be the new X5 Security Plus.
In a new-model launch that will surprise exactly no one, BMW's latest armored vehicle upgrades the X5 with enhanced protection for oligarchs against Chechen rebels, AK47-touting gangsters and missiles randomly falling on Crimean highways. Now meeting the VR6 standard of ballistic protection, the new X5 Security Plus incorporates reinforced bodywork, seats and joints, along with bulletproof glass.
Of course all that reinforcement (not to mention the jars of beluga caviar and bottles of Stoli in the glovebox) will come with a weight penalty, but the 4.4-liter twin-turbo V8 ought to do the trick, driving 450 horsepower through BMW's xDrive all-wheel-drive system to get the vehicle's occupants out of a war zone in a hurry.