1997 Bmw M3 Sedan on 2040-cars

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NHTSA gives okay for three automakers to skirt tire-related recalls

BMW, Honda, and Mercedes-Benz are all going to avoid small recalls, after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued petitions for "findings of inconsequential noncompliance" to the three manufacturers, according to Tire Business. Basically, the petitions allow the brands to avoid recalls for some very, very minor issues.
BMW had tire placards on 364 X6 M CUVs that stated the car could only handle four passengers, when in reality it had room for three in the back. Actual plausibility of fitting three real humans in the slope-roofed Bimmer aside, the Munich-based manufacturer argued it was inconsequential, as the placards were correct regardless of the number of passengers.
Honda's case focused on 212 2011 and 2012 Acura TSX sedans equipped with 18-inch wheels. The TPMS systems on these cars were set for 17-inch wheels, rather than the larger hoops, but even with the lower settings, the tires maintain adequate load capacity.

2014 BMW 328i xDrive Gran Turismo

"The Ultimate Driving Machine" has been BMW's tagline for nearly 40 years. Launched in the 1970s, the marketing campaign was a stroke of genius by ad firm Ammirati & Puris, as the phrase helped differentiate the imported Bavarian cars from their fellow European rivals by subtly pointing out that Mercedes-Benz and Audi were offering luxury models, while BMW was selling sporty and youthful driving dynamics. The campaign worked - some would argue that stands among the most effective ad campaigns ever - and countless Baby Boomers embraced the brand's fun-to-drive image by taking delivery of the company's new models.
BMW still boasts that its vehicles are "The Ultimate Driving Machine" four decades later, but the brand is very different today. It offered just a few model lines in the mid-1970s, and only a handful of vehicles within. In 2014, the automaker offers an exhaustive range comprised of nearly a dozen lines with almost 50 different models. To survive and thrive, BMW has decided it must massively broaden its appeal.
One of the latest arrivals to BMW's ever-growing stable is the 2014 3 Series Gran Turismo. The five-door hatchback is best thought of as a smaller version of the company's 5 Series Gran Turismo built on stretched 3 Series platform that, in the case of this test car, shares the running gear of the 328i xDrive sedan. On paper, the five-passenger vehicle checks all the proper boxes with regards to performance, utility and economy. But does this family-focused 3 Series still deliver driving dynamics that qualify it for the title of Ultimate Driving Machine?

BMW X7 rumored to get BMW's best interior, 130,000-euro price

Spanish outlet Motor.es has some info on the coming BMW X7, the sport activity vehicle that will take the Munich brand to the penultimate SUV segment. Unnamed sources said BMW has been working on both the X7 and the future Rolls-Royce all-terrain vehicle for almost two years, and that in BMW guise it will ride on the CLAR (CLuster ARchitecture) platform that will make an appearance later this year under the new 7 Series. The Rolls-Royce, on the other hand, will get its own aluminum spaceframe. The two vehicles will share components, though, which are now being tested. Running gear and engines will borrow from the X5 and X6 tool chests, with rear- and all-wheel-drive configurations mooted and engines ranging from the TwinPower 3.0-liter six-cylinder to an uprated version of the 6.0-liter V12 in the 760iL. The 4.4-liter V8 is mentioned as the middle child and perhaps the base for an X7 M, should one be made. A plug-in hybrid offering could swipe the unit from the X5 xDrive40e PHEV, good for 55MPGe in that current application. The interior, we're told, will be the nicest seen on any BMW, said to surpass that of the new 7 Series. We'll have to wait two years to find out how close all of that is to the mark, but the tidbit that might need some salt sprinkled on it right now is the predicted price: Motor.es says 130,000 euros in Europe, to start. That's not the first time a sky-high price has been predicted, but a leap that far beyond the six-figure mark would readjust all of our expectations for the vehicle when an X5 cost 53,700 euros in France and an X6 costs 70,900 euros. Other outlets predict US pricing to start from around $60,000; the X5 costs $53,900 here, the X6 is $59,600.