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Recharge Wrap-up: drifting Nissan Leaf video, BMW i sponsors Formula E Berlin ePrix

Watch a Nissan Leaf drift. The folks at Autocar got their hands on Nissan's otherwise tame electric vehicle with a set of plastic rear tires, and got it sideways at the British Drift Championship. If that sounds ridiculous, well, it is, but it's also enormously entertaining. If it sounds particularly tricky to pull off in the front-drive EV, yeah, it's that, too. Check it out the drifting Leaf in the video above, and read more commentary at Hybrid Cars. BMW's i division is the title sponsor of the 2016 Formula E Berlin ePrix. The German automaker, which has already put the i8 and i3 to work as safety and medical cars for the electric racing series, is "delighted to be prominently represented with BMW i at the race weekend in the German capital," according to Joerg Reimann, BMW's Vice President of Brand Experience. The 2016 FIA Formula E BMW i Berlin ePrix - as it is now officially titled - takes place on May 21. Read more from Formula E. A Hawaiian biodiesel plant is the first in the US to be certified as sustainable. Pacific Biodiesel's Big Island Biodiesel plant gets its certification from the Sustainable Biodiesel Alliance, covering both the plant's production and distribution of the alternative fuel. The facility uses waste oil, including used cooking oil, to produce its fuel. The certification system is designed to help worthy biofuel producers show that their processes and products are more than just greenwashing. Read more at Utility Dive, or from The New York Times. India's KPIT Technologies has earned the Promising Innovation in Transport Award at the 2016 Summit of the International Transport Forum in Leipzig, Germany. KPIT earned the special recognition for its system to convert diesel buses to all-electric power. The company's retrofits can be applied to a wide variety of bus platforms. Read more at Green Car Congress.

BMW celebrates 30 years of M5 with 600-hp super sedan

It's been 30 years since BMW rolled out the first M5, and while displacement and cylinder count may have fluctuated over those past three decades, output has only increased. The first-generation E28 M5 packed a 3.5-liter inline-six with 252 horsepower and 243 lb-ft of torque. The second-gen E34 model that followed added an extra 100 cc (and later 200 more) to produce 310 hp and 266 lb-ft. The E39 followed with a 4.9-liter V8 churning out 394 hp and 369 lb-ft, replaced by the award-winning 5.0-liter V10 in the E60 with its 500 hp and 380 lb-ft before BMW rolled out the latest model with a 4.4-liter V8, its twin turbos making up for the two dropped cylinders and 600 cc of displacement to produce 560 hp and 502 lb-ft of torque. But even that's being left in the dust by the new special edition you see here.
The 30th Anniversary Edition BMW M5 packs that same 4.4-liter twin-turbo V8, but cranks the output up to a nice, round 600 horsepower and a solid 516 lb-ft of torque to go with it. That makes it more powerful, not only than any M5 that's come before it, but also any of its rivals. The Jaguar XFR-S and Audi RS6 Avant (the latter only available as a wagon and not in North America) both lag behind this ultimate of Ultimate Driving Machines; only the Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG trumps it on torque (but not on power), with 531 lb-ft in stock form and 590 in the S-Model.
As a result, the 0-60 time drops from a quoted 4.2 seconds in the stock M5 to a scant 3.7 in the 30th Anniversary edition (just one tick behind that twistier E63 S). The special M5 also comes with the Competition Package as standard, as well as a dedicated control module for the Active M Differential, a special Frozen Dark Silver matte finish, 20-inch alloys and black chrome badges. Special badges abound inside as well, where you'll also find black leather and Alcantara upholstery and aluminum trim. There'll even be a dedicated one-day course offered to owners at The Thermal Club in Palm Springs, CA, to further sweeten the deal.

Recharge Wrap-up: Grimsel electric car breaks acceleration world record, electric Ford Raptor ATV debuts

An all-electric version of the Ford F-150 SVT Raptor is now available... as an ATV. Made by Caddyshack Golf Cars, it features officially licensed Ford badging borrowed from the super-macho pickup. It has a lifted chassis with leaf springs in the front and rear, hydraulic shocks and off-road tires. Powered by a 48-volt motor, it can do 0-25 mph in 2.9 seconds. Range is an estimated 30 miles - plenty to get you through 18 of the most rugged holes of golf you've ever played. Caddyshack also offers other miniature electric Fords, including a Shelby GT500, Shelby Cobra and 50th Anniversary Mustang. Read more at Green Car Reports. Lexus takes a crack at the BMW i3 in a new video from Funny or Die. In the decidedly anti-EV film, a group of guys drives to Las Vegas for a "dad-chelor party" in a Lexus CT 200h and a BMW i3. The Lexus hybrid makes it to Sin City without any problems, while the BMW's occupants need to make several lengthy stops to charge along the way, missing much of the fun. The video lampoons the inherent range limitations of the EV (the BMW group ends up driving slowly through the desert with no AC or radio to save energy), all in a well produced, if somewhat misguided, short comedy film. Perhaps they should have considered the i3 with a range extender? See the video below, or read more at Green Car Reports. Students from ETH Zurich and Lucerne University have set a new EV acceleration world record. Their "Grimsel" racing car was able to zoom from 0-100 kph (0-62.137 mph) in just 1.785 seconds in less than 30 meters (98.425 feet), crushing the previous record of 2.134 seconds. Even more impressive is that the Grimsel was built by the students themselves, as part of the Formula Student team at the Academic Motorsports Club Zurich. The car weighs just 370 pounds and provides 200 horsepower and 1,202 pound feet of torque from the four hub motors. The Grimsel uses traction control to manage torque for maximum acceleration. See the record acceleration run in the videos below or read more at Gizmag, at Electric Autosport or in the press release from ETH Zurich below. 'grimsel' breaks world record The 'grimsel' electric racing car today broke the previous world record for acceleration in electric cars. The vehicle accelerated from 0 to 100 km/h in 1.785 seconds in under 30 metres. The new record was set by students from ETH Zurich and Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, who also designed and built the vehicle.