2006 Bmw 650i Base Convertible 2-door 4.8l on 2040-cars

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Audi tops BMW and Mercedes in luxury sales

April was a good month for Audi, as the four-ring automaker beat out both Mercedes-Benz and BMW in sales. Bloomberg reports that it was America's appetite for CUVs like the Q5 and ancient Q7 that helped Audi move nearly 153,000 units around the globe. It's not all good news, though. Audi's worldwide sales only jumped by 2.5 percent, compared to BMW and Mercedes, whose sales increased 5.6 and 11 percent, respectively. On top of that, BMW is still the best-selling brand (of the three, anyway) so far in 2015, outselling Audi by roughly 9,000 units and Mercedes by about 23,000 vehicles. Considering the faster growth of its rivals, it's unclear if Audi will be able to hang onto the monthly sales crown beyond April, or if BMW will continue its reign as the world's biggest luxury automaker.

BMW i wants to build the ultimate self-driving machine

Just a few years into its short life, BMW's i sub-brand is changing its mission from the pursuit of the electric cars to building the ultimate self-driving machine. That's according to Klaus Froehlich, shown above, a BMW board member and the head of research and design. "[BMW i] is now in ramp-up stage," Froehlich told Reuters. "We call it Project i Next." Project i Next won't abandon the electric car model – but instead, its next EV will feature the next-generation of self-driving technology. This is not the first time we've heard of BMW's autonomous aspirations, but it's the first time we've heard of a new name or designation for the brand. According to Reuters, BMW won't sell its next i-badged EV until 2021 – whether that's the oft-rumored i5 or another vehicle all together remains to be seen. Whatever BMW calls it, driverless tech will be a priority. Froelich added that such a vehicle could allow the company to fire up its own ride-hailing service to challenge Uber and Lyft, and their automotive allies, Toyota and General Motors. BMW is still working on its partnership strategy in that realm, Froelich told Reuters, but the company isn't sitting still – it made a small investment in ride-sharing app Scoop late last month. A raft of electric car competitors – Tesla, obviously, but also Porsche and Audi – and the struggling i3 are forcing BMW i's hand. It only sold 11,000 i3s here in the US last year, and with just 2,272 sold over five months, it's on pace to do less than half that volume in 2016. A Chinese electric startup has also plundered the brand's leadership ranks, Reuters said. Bloomberg claims this startup is Future Mobility Co., which is backed by Foxconn (among others). Just five months into 2016, i has lost the head of its powertrain group, Dirk Abendroth, its VP of product management, Henrik Wenders, and the head of the i8 program, Carsten Breitfeld. Considering these woes, changing gears might be i's best option for long-term viability. Related Video: News Source: ReutersImage Credit: John Locher / AP Green BMW Technology Emerging Technologies Autonomous Vehicles Electric bmw i driverless car klaus froehlich

Massive Airbag Recall Affects Seven Automakers

The recall of faulty airbag inflators supplied by Takata has exploded today to grow to seven automakers. In most cases, only models in certain high-humidity regions were affected because the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found in its investigation that moisture played a role in determining whether there would be a problem. However, some companies opted for national campaigns. The exact number of affected models for these campaigns isn't yet known at this time. BMW is recalling an undisclosed number of 325i, 325Xi, 330i and 330Xi models from the 2001 through 2005 model years and the 2001-2006 model year versions of the 325Ci and 330Ci for the driver side and passenger side inflators. Only vehicles currently registered in Florida, Puerto Rico, Hawaii and the US Virgin Islands are covered under this recall. Neither Chrysler's filing with NHTSA nor its press release list the specific models affected, but a company spokesperson told Autoblog that at this time it only covers the driver and passenger side inflators for the 2006 Dodge Charger in Florida, Puerto Rico, Hawaii and the US Virgin Islands In most cases, only models in certain high-humidity regions were affected because the NHTSA found that moisture played a roll in determining if there would be a problem. Ford is recalling an estimated 58,669 cars that include the 2005-2006 model years of the Ford GT for the driver and passenger inflators, the 2007-2007 model years of the Mustang for the driver side and 2004 Ranger for the passenger side. It covers vehicles originally sold or currently registered in, wait for it... Florida, Puerto Rico, Hawaii and the US Virgin Islands. Honda is issuing three separate recalls regarding the problem. First, the company is recalling the 2002-2003 model years Civic, CR-V and Odyssey and the 2003 model year of the Accord, Element, Pilot and Acura MDX to replace the passenger's side inflator. This covers all models nationwide. Second, Honda is repairing the passenger's side airbag inflator in the 2003-2005 Accord, Civic, CR-V, Element, Pilot, the 2003-2004 model year versions of the Odyssey, the 2003-2005 model year Acura MDX and 2005 Acura RL. However, only for vehicles located in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. Owners will be notified in July. Finally, Honda is separately replacing some models' driver's side inflators.