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Mini fini: The Mini Clubman passes into British motoring history

Au revoir, Clubman. The veddy British Mini model that found a loyal following in the UK and elsewhere for more than a half-century has folded its spilt rear “barn doors” for the final time. The ultimate Clubman — assuming there wonÂ’t be another sequel, and Mini says there won't — rolled off the production line Monday at Mini Plant Oxford in England. The Mini “estate” version bows out after 17 years of build at Oxford and more than a half-million units churned out for deliveries to more than 50 countries. The heritage of the Clubman — and of most Minis — is worth recalling because the brand has spawned such affection among its fans. One has to deep-dive back to the early Sixties, when MiniÂ’s owner, British Motor Corporation (BMC), introduced two estate versions of the original Mini: the Austin Seven Countryman and Morris Mini Traveller. In 1967, the characteristics of existing Mini wagons were combined to form the first Clubman. lt was axed in 1982 — after it was once renamed as the 1000HL — and the Clubman wouldn't return until 2007, with the brand then under the auspices of BMW. Modern vehicle safety standards presented a challenge for those rear doors. “We needed to ensure that both doors would always open fully without obscuring the rear lights, which was a legal requirement,” said Guy Elliott, who was part of the development team for the doors at the time. The reborn Clubman was updated in 2015 for a second generation. It adopted Mini's signature circular daytime running lights, a feature still seen today, and ditched the unusual rear doors for a more conventional setup. Last year Mini launched the “Final Edition” of the car, with a special grille and alloys and limited it to a run of 1,969 units, paying homage to the launch year of the original. The BMW Group says it expects to invest about $750 million in the next few years in realigning the Oxford plant to accommodate assembly space for the upcoming electric Aceman crossover and new Cooper variations later this year.

BMW Pininfarina Gran Lusso Coupe and Concept 90 pics from Villa d'Este

Royalty and the ultra-wealthy rubbed damp shoulders at this past weekend's Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este on the shores of Italy's Lake Como, but even the rain couldn't extinguish the excitement generated by the millions of dollars of cars and bikes on display. Nowhere was this more true than with BMW, which marked the occasion with the reveal of two stunning concepts with six wheels between them - the shark-nosed Pininfarina Gran Lusso Coupe and the retrosexual Concept 90 motorcycle.
Conceived with Italian design house Pininfarina, the Gran Lusso Coupe is a power broker on 21-inch wheels. While we're not completely sold on every element of its design, this twelve-cylinder two-door concept moves us more than the current 6 Series, and not just because it has four more cylinders underhood and 48,000-year-old kauri wood paneling inside. BMW is sadly mum on production hopes, but we're not entirely optimistic - the company has graced us with a number of attractive concepts at Villa d'Este before, only to pack them away again without ever affording them a production future.
If one of these concepts has a better shot at finding its way into dealers, we have to believe it's the Concept 90 under the BMW Motorrad umbrella. Designed to celebrate the 40th anniversary of BMW's R 90 S, we think this Roland Sands Design air-cooled boxer would look fantastic on today's streets, especially with the rising popularity of vintage motorcycles and cafe racers.

BMW-Toyota partnership to spawn hybrid supercar

BMW and Toyota inked a partnership some time ago to develop green technology, and while we were excited by the idea of a reborn Supra with BMW's carbon fiber reinforced plastic slashing the curb weight or an ultra-efficient, hybridized 1 Series, the joint efforts have been rather limited. That's set to change, though, according to a report from Australia.
Motoring reports that the partners have come to terms on a sports car. And not just any sports car, but a lightweight, hybridized model, with a six-figure price tag. Lending a bit of street cred to that idea is the site's claim that Toyota is currently carrying out durability testing on the BMW i8. According to the site, the new model will slot into the spot left by the Lexus LFA, although based on the language used, it's unclear if this is the Tokyo-bound vehicle we mentioned several months ago.
Details on this potential car are limited, although Motoring claims it will use a Toyota hybrid system mated up to a BMW gas engine - likely the 4.4-liter, twin-turbo V8 found in the M5 and M6. That sounds pretty amazing to us, but we'd still advise taking this with a grain of salt. What would you like to see out of a joint-venture supercar from Toyota and BMW? Let us know in Comments, and have your say on the prospects of a hybridized, twin-turbocharged V8.