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BMW maintenance plan no longer transferrable to 2nd owner

One of the best innovations in car buying in recent years is the rise of no-cost scheduled maintenance programs. Many people feel really anxious about taking their car in for service, and these deals help mitigate that somewhat. Obviously, it's not free for automakers to implement the offers, and now BMW is altering the way its four-year, 50,000-mile Maintenance Program works for some owners. "To keep such an offer sustainable we had to make a change," said Kenn Sparks, Manager of Business Communications at BMW North America, to Autoblog via email.
The original person to buy or lease the model isn't going to see any difference, but the program is no longer transferable to a second owner, unless that person is in the owners household. Those people include includes parents, siblings, grandparents and grandchildren, in addition to someone like a spouse or children. The original owner just has to advise BMW of new user. "The program change will affect 2nd owners and for them BMW is introducing an optional full-maintenance product that covers the vehicle up to 100,000 miles," said Sparks. Scroll down to read the entire announcement.

BMW says no more manuals, M cars capped at 600 hp

BMW appears to be approaching a big change in the way that it handles performance. First, the clutch pedal may be a goner from future M models, based on recent statements from the division's boss, Frank van Meel. We also might not be seeing any significant increases in horsepower from some of these vehicles anytime soon. "From a technical standpoint, the future doesn't look bright for manual gearboxes. The DCT and auto 'boxes are faster and they have better fuel consumption," van Meel said to Autocar. Although, he left the door open slightly to keeping them at least in the near future. "It's difficult to say we'll stick to the manual, but we still have a big fan community for manuals and we are not going to take away something the customer wants to have." Van Meel also suggested that the company is capping the output of M models at 600 horsepower. "We're at the limit. If you go on adding more horsepower and torque, it'd probably be over the limits," he said to Autocar. That ceiling does leave some room to grow for future versions of the M3 and M4, which currently offer 425 hp. However, it means that the M5 and M6 with 560 hp are basically at the cap. The limited BMW M5 30th Anniversary Edition already packs 600 hp. Rumors have suggested that the already spied, next-generation M5 might stick with around 600 hp. It seems unlikely for BMW to completely give up competing against the Autobahn-burning sedans from Mercedes-Benz and Audi. Performance could still see a boost thanks to a reportedly lighter platform and optional all-wheel drive. Related Video: News Source: AutocarImage Credit: Copyright 2015 AOL BMW Technology Performance bmw m dual clutch transmission automatic transmission

Google reveals Alphabet, but BMW already owns that trademark

Google co-founder Larry Page unveiled a surprise restructuring yesterday with the announcement of Alphabet, a new company that owns Google and all of its semi-related products. Google's stock soared five percent directly after the announcement, the world was busy dissecting the meaning of alpha and bet, and things looked rosy for the new company. However, there could be one problem: BMW owns the trademark and .com domain for "Alphabet." And it doesn't want to sell, a spokesperson tells the New York Times. BMW's Alphabet provides service packages to corporations with vehicle fleets. In terms of trademark infringement, it's no problem for two companies to have the same name, as long as there's no possibility of confusion for customers. In this case, there is at least one clear connection between the two organizations: BMW is a car manufacturer and Alphabet owns Google, which has a line of self-driving cars. BMW is looking into the possibility of trademark infringement, NYT reports. As for the Alphabet domain, Google's new company has secured abc.xyz, so BMW can continue using alphabet.com without worry – except for the apparent traffic overload that hit the site after Page's announcement. Google's Alphabet has a different domain issue to tackle: China has blocked its new site, despite expansive local coverage of the restructuring, Fast Company reports. This article by Jessica Conditt originally ran on Engadget, the definitive guide to this connected life. News Source: The New York TimesImage Credit: Associated Press Government/Legal BMW Technology trademark alphabet