Here are some of the highlights of his journey, plus photos and video footage of this stunning 1M!

Derek’s thoughts about the 1M

“This car does what you want it to do. For around town (wonderful), BLVD cruising (wonderful), highway cruising and sitting at a light looking great…Wonderful. This thing carries great amounts of speed so effortlessly, it’s just nutty. More power will make it accelerate more quickly; and wait until you feel this thing stick. It sticks. And this is the part I want explore.

The 1M belies its true weight and size. It feels like a GTI in size, but gosh it’s not a GTI. R32ish maybe, but its lighter feeling and more fun. The seats fit me well! Especially with the leg supports extended and the bolsters in the sides of the upper part correctly adjusted.

The 1M has a very firm suspension. I found it similar to a E46 with a Very Good Coilover, only quieter. The fast ratio steering, the firmness of the suspension and grip of the tires makes for a go-kart type drive. It doesn’t have the big heavy serious feel like a 996 or even a Boxster (although I’ve owned a Boxster and they are pretty amazing, too, just slow). The big difference between this and an E46 on Coilovers is this one soaks up the bumps so effortlessly and although you can feel the big wheels and tires out there at the corners, the chassis and shocks are keeping them under control. You can tell they’re working to keep them under control, but they’re doing it happily. The gauges are SO easy to read, but you BMW customers are used to stunning gauges. The factory wheels, cleaned and polished are stunning against the black car.”

Here are some photos and videos of Derek’s M1 delivery…

If you ever wondered whether Euro Delivery was worth the effort...you have to try it. The people at BMW have been simply amazing organizing this delivery and have even invited me to the M-Studio to meet with the Engineers who designed the 1M! What an amazing experience....

“The Black M3 Competition Coupe behind the 1M was a great comparison. This was the first time I'd seen a BMW 1M, and had ordered it "fingers crossed" that I'd like it. I saw the orange at Detroit and Toronto, and liked it, but didn't know if I could love it year in and year out. After seeing these two cars together I was very happy with the colour...and the car too! The athletic look of the 1M is stunning.”

"Inside the BMW Museum, and from inside the BMW Welt. This sign on the floor of the Welt was not really obvious; I walked over it several times without noticing...until I was up three floors!”

“Heading to the BMW M-Studio! BMW Canada and Budd's BMW worked with BMW M-Studio to arrange a meeting with the engineering staff who created the 1M. What a treat!”

"As a parting gift, the whole Engineering staff for the 1M signed a Dealer Poster for the 1M as a gift to take home."

Derek’s Video Footage

Exhaust at Start up and some Throttle Blips

BMW 1M Coupe Exhaust Sound 1st Gear to 2nd Gear from Outside the Car

Budds’ BMW would like to thank Derek for coming in to see us and sharing his new pride and joy with the Budds’ family. Want to read the full story? See the forum here.

I’m sitting in the Sheraton Westpark Hotel near the BMW Welt where I’m heading in about 8 hours to pick up my 1M. As you might imagine…I’m damned excited!

Over the next couple days I’ll post all the stuff I can related to the car and the ED. If you ever wondered whether Euro Delivery was worth the effort…you have to try it. The people at BMW have been simply amazing organizing this delivery and have even invited me to the M-Studio to meet with the Engineers who designed the 1M! I’m headed there right after the pickup! What an amazing experience….
I’ll post again tomorrow after the delivery and the M-Studio tour!

Forgive the time it took to get this up, its been a long day and the hotel I had booked my self before I left….had their internet fail. We’re all good now.

Today was an awesome day, even with no sleep! I made it to the BMW Welt about 8am, an hour ahead of my planned 9am delivery. The BMW staff greeting me at the front door, checked my luggage and delivered me to the Lounge Area to check in. Bianca led me through the documentation process and as she did dropped that my 1M was the very first production 1M they had ever delivered. I wondered if it was true, but she confirmed it without me solicting. The paperwork process was simple, clear and very well thought out. (and required remarkably few trees to die!)

When I was done getting checked in headed over to the cafe for a quick breakfast…and as I did, caught this through the glass looking down from the 3rd to the 2nd level of the Welt: Its Alive!

I must have been slobbering or something, becuase within a few moments there was about ten people looking out the window trying to see what I was looking at. As calmly as I could I walked over and had a quick snack to wait the 20 more minutes until my delivery. Soon, Sven greeted me and took me down to the see the car.

As we decended the stair case to the delivery level, Sven, wipped out his PDA and clicked a few buttons which started the car spinning on its turntable, what a way to great your new car! Here is one of the many shots I took from the stairs:

The Black M3 Competition Coupe behind the 1M was a great comparison. This was the first time I’d seen a BSM 1M, and had ordered it “fingers crossed” that I’d like it. I saw the orange at Detroit and Toronto, and liked it, but didn’t know if I could love it year in and year out. After seeing these two cars together I was very happy with the colour…and the car too! The athletic look of the 1M is stunning. Here is another shot just outside the Welt as I adjusted luggage and matts etc to go and pick my friends from the airport:

Off to the airport to grab buddies I go. The little car is TIGHT. The steering (keep in mind, this is my first BMW, but I’ve driven many) is unbelievable. This is not a car you let your head nod on while driving I75 top to bottom…you’ll be in the ditch. The steering is positive, direct and communicates everything. You can feel those big tires grabbing the pavement at slow speeds and its kart like when you’re rolling. Traffic was light, and the weather not bad so a quick squirt up to the Munich airport was done in moments, thrust above 125 Mph is just wonderful. You can drive 6th gear down below 50 Mph and all the way up without shifting, not the fastest way to do it…but you can comfortably.
I learned a few things I’ll post later, but the car is quick. It had 4km on it when I left…gotta be nice for a while!

Here’s the car at the airport:

Two friends and I headed back to BMW Welt for a “House Tour” and look thorugh the Museum. Parked outseide the Welt again, and a quick shot from the Museum back towards the Welt across the street:

I have lots of photos from inside the BMW Museum, and from inside the BMW Welt. Here is a couple I thought were cool. This sign on the floor of the Welt was not really obvious, I walked over it several times without noticing…until I was up three floors!

Here is one looking across the street from the Welt parking towards the 3-Series factory attached to the (4-Cylinder) BMW Headquarters:

I can post more of these types of images if anyone would like to see them, but I’ve had difficulty getting internet and getting things uploaded, so I will focus on the 1M for this update. Let me know if you like the other topics and I’ll expand on them another time.

After visting the Museum and taking the Welt Tour, we headed to a special place…BMW Canada and Budd’s BMW worked with BMW M-Studio to arrange a meeting with the engineering staff who created the 1M. What a treat…

We had an hour of time with the team who designed and tested all the compenents and set the lap time for Nurburgring. It was sooo cool. We pulled up front at the BMW-M Facility in Garching and Azedeh from M Customer Relations met us and guided us inside, through security and took us and the 1M right inside the M-Studio

This bunch of people were a riot…what a job they must have! The camaraderie these guys had with each other was apparent. The joking and teasing was great. But they taught us a lot…..

I was trying to remember all the questions I had to ask about the car….and the Moto GP Car of course!! I now know why those twelve people who won the trip to see the car early in the marketing didn’t have many bad things to say, and why they felt the 1M truly was an M-Car.

If you think about it, going through our questions, the following items were addressed by this bunch of engineers:

- Front Strut Bar – If you din’t see it on the marketing cars….you will…There is a massive metal ring on the top of each strut tower that has beams attached to them that run back to the firewall. Completely different than the 135i
- Extra Water Cooler: Driver side front
- Upgraded Power Steering Cooler
- Upgraded Rack Ratio

- Completely different tune, although on a very similar engine. – We were describing how we were driving the car trying to make the appointment at M and one engineer told me, “the only reason you haven’t spun it is becuase you left the traction control on….” He also dropped that this would occur because….there is more under that pedal than might be printed in a brouchure….

These two crazy guys did the transmission, engine mapping and differential.

- Lightweight Flywheel, a lot lighter, as described to us, its as light as could possibly be used in a dual mass application.
- Dry Sump Light weight transmission, totally new for this application
- New Driveshaft, lightweight to addapt to the new transmission
- M3 Differentialwith dynamics for the shorter wheelbase considered with integrated cooling fins

- Complete M3 suspension – Control Arms, Shocks, and other components. The shocks use the stock points as the M3s do, however, they are completely different for compression and rebound, similarly the bushing are the same size etc, however, are cast for the 1M application, Sway Bars and something else I’m forgetting right now….Ask away, you might jog my memory.

Brian, Director of Sales & Marketing BMW M with my friend Steve.

- Brakes….I lost nights of sleep wondering why they used the brakes they chose…here’s why: When they tested the 6 piston upgraded brakes from the 135i they had very high temperatures, and issues with the rotors given the cars extra HP and speed. They jumped from these to the E92 M3 Brakes to see if it would improve things, and it did…but for good measure they tried the M3 GTS brakes (Floating Caliper) and some aftermarket as well, but found the GTS brakes to be too loud, too expensive and no better performance (in this application) then the regular E92 M3 brakes. All they had to do was recalibrate the Vehicle Dynamics, ABS etc, and change the rear pads to a different compound to compensate for the shorter wheelbase, lower weight and the way the car reacted on a couple of the messier corners at Nurburgring. The E92 M3 brakes offer the ability to use rotors that have the swept area mounted to the hat via vertical posts. These verticle posts allowed the rotor to expand and contract considerably, consistently, repeatedly without having rotors issues. These rotors were designed to be used with the E92 Calipers…and those Calipers were designed to be used with the M3 Competition wheels…therefore…

Speaking of M3 GTSs

- M3 Wheels -I started asking about this by saying…I tend not to sell cars…I buy them and sorta keep them eternally. When I get the car home from Germany I will mothball the original wheels for another day and replace them with daily runners: Money no object, what should I buy and what size should they be (This is where I started hinting at the Moto GP Car)? The answer was don’t change anything too much. Funny enough they asked if remembered the Gold wheels from the test mule? I did. The recommedation was to find a wheel that was STIFF enough for the challenge, size was not the first consideration. They chose the BBS becuase they were strong and would distort very little under the load a 1M could deliver. The M3 Competion wheels were the strongest wheel they could fit over the brakes comfortably and were designed for end user use. After exhaustive tire testing, the tires they choose also fit the M3 Competion Wheels perfectly, viola. The one caveat was that if wheels that retained the stiffness of the originals or better, and were lighter, they would make a great addition.

- Tires - Nobody was naming names. But we were given a bunch of model numbers and sizes that were tested and the PS2s were found to be simply the best. They also said in regards to changing the wheels and tires that the car had the biggest tires it could use, biggers ones would bring little beneft in its current config. I asked about the Moto GP car with the 255/285 Combo and found out these fine people built that car too…and the bigger versions provided little to no gain. The biggest differnce was that the front wheels on the Moto GP car was pushed out 5mm to clear the KWs. The rest was more for looks and to be different.

- Bodywork – Everybody knows this part…its wide. People were just short of causing multi car accidents trying to give us “thumbs up signs” in traffic. People from all walks of life notice it and respond.
- Interior – M-Button – Keep forgetting to try this, anther post. You all know the rest here too. stitching, Alcantara, Pedals, M insignia on the leather seats, Gauges, Shift Knob (not lit), Steering wheel. I picked up the rubber floor mats and the touch up paint at the BMW Welt before I left, couldn’t resist…40 Euro, done. You ask why I would buy the touch up paint…well I’ll tell you tomorrow….

Basically, there has been so many parts of this thing that have been massaged, that it’s hard not to consider it a real M car. I’ll take flak for this statement I’m sure, but you can’t buy all the stuff and the engineering expertise to make it work so flawlessly for anywhere near what BMW has charged as a premium. I’d pay it again.

Here’s where I’m working from now to get this done:

We’re siting outside a locked building with an unlocked wifi network. Two feet in any direction and we have no more connection….

As a parting gift, the whole Engineering staff for the 1M signed a Dealer Poster for the 1M as a gift to take home. Thank you very much everybody, what fun we’ve had on this trip so far!

Freezing our tails off. Signing on again tomorrow with much more, and more about driving the car. ‘Nite

I’ve uploaded this one video before we have to leave for a dinner meeting. I will get back on tonight and get all the others up I planned to have up and answer questions.

Here is the Exhaust at Start up and some Throttle Blips:

Exhaust

Okay, here we go.

Here is a couple more videos, one (with the car warm, becuase one of the posts nailed it, when it warms up it does get more subdued) driving out of the business we asked for help to fix a paint related issue, and one heading back out into the countryside where we are staying.

The first one, driving out of the SONAX Training Center in Neuburg, is another cold start and roll out of the bay we were using. This and the exhaust sound video were recorded without the M-Button engaged, the response does change with it engaged. Considerably under load and the traction control off….which you’ll here in the third video as long as we get it uploaded before we lose battery power. First Video:

Driving away slowly

This one is a country road outside neuburg, heading towards Ingolstadt (Home of the Audi Factory, beautiful rolling Bavarian countryside) and is 2nd gear pull and upshift to 3rd, just trying to give a street level example of the exhaust:

Drive by

This is a video from inside the car, windows down (great at the beginning, not so at the end) from nearly dead stop to 180kmh in third gear with the M-Button on, Trac Control Off:

Soft launch

I saw someone post some things related to the Strut Tower Bar, here is the images of the one on the 1M:

I mentioned early in the blog how the swept area of the Brake Rotors were mounted on verticle posts, here is an image so you know what I meant:

We visited SONAX for business related meetings, however, it could not have more timely. Would you believe that twelve hours after picking up the car…a bird crapped on the hood six inches behind the Passenger Headlight after 1am sometime…and it burned through the wax, clearcoat and into the paint before we could get it off at about 10am? I was incredibly lucky to have their trainer and a chemist offer to look at it under a jewelers loop and determine the best plan to minimze the damage, and then walked away as they SANDED it OFF….Yeah…I’m still shaking. When they were done they repaired the paint, Nano Coated the entire car, including the wheels and gave us a goody bag to use into the future. (Thank you Thomas & Erik, below)

Okay, now is as good a time as any to address the gripes. I just dropped 70 big ones, (thats what this thing costs in Canada with our wonderful Tax included), so you have to understand….I’m invested. Not even looking at the negatives yet (~60 hrs in)! But there are some and here they are quickly:

- (This is all me) I should have ordered the NAV….The dash is so simple without it, you’d swear you were driving an Vitz/Echo, excpet the gauges are where they’re supposed to be. The use of Alcantara on the dash is awesome, but boy it would have been a lot better if the whole thing was done, or at least a good bit more of it. Or leave the Alcantara off that little strip, and make it Carbon like the accessory piece. (I know, this makes it a 1M…)
- Along these same lines, the interior is sparse. It does seem pretty bare bones for such a car. Have you driven a Chevy Cruze? See what that buyer gets for Fifteen grand???
- The seats are acceptable for such a car, but they could be more…something…more aggressive, Alcantara, something. I can’t put my finger on it. They just seem too nomal for such a car.
- There is no “Holy S__t” handles in the back. The driver has one…but not the rear passangers. They need it!
- There is no spare. (I’ve never owned a BMW, and never peeked in the trunk a 135i…so maybe you all knew this already) There isn’t much back there, I didn’t see a jack or tools to get the wheels off…Yet. Maybe they’re tucked in some creative place I haven’t found.
- The front of the car is too high. There are fixes for this, I’ll let you know how I fix it one day soon. The rear is not that bad actually, but could be tad lower.
- Shifter could be a little shorter throw. I understand it may already be an improvement over the 135i, however, I could stand it to be shorter yet.
- Doesn’t say anything on the brake calipers. As vain as this is, it would be cool.

This is what I can recolect for now. I’ll add or expand on this stuff another time.

Here is something that I’ve been dying to post, but I didn’t really get a chance to carry ALL the speed in my last trip down the Highway!

For all the people in Ontario…I discovered that the world DOES NOT OPEN UP AND SWALLOW YOU WHOLE AT 150 km/h!! Not at 200, not at 250…and for some reason, not at an INDICATED (?) 270 either…

Sorry for the blurriness…it was not as smooth a part of the road when we were getting up to this speed. Contrary to what the picture might make you think, the car was rock steady. My picture taker guy was freaking out as we’d been at ~275 and he was a little excited. Everywhere I’ve read says there is an electronic limiter on this thing, but unless the speedo is way off…we were going faster than that…

I’ve had some time behind the wheel now and I’m gettng a better feel for the little beast. Here is a bunch of observations: (I have intentionally not read what all the other mags and places have recently published, hopefully I’m not off 180 deg).

- This car does what you want it to do. I’ll have a better feel for it at the track on Saturday, but for around town (wonderful), BLVD cruising (wonderful), highway cruising and with a bit of anger (wonderful) and sitting at a light looking great…Wonderful. There will be people who wish for it to have more power (picture me waving my hand), however, I now know that I’ve got some learing to do with the cojones it has before I add. This thing carries great amounts of speed so effortlessly, its just nutty. More power will make it accelerate more quickly, we all love that, but wait until you feel this thing stick. It sticks. And this is the part I want explore.

- I might be getting old. I love the exhaust at the end of a long day. I’d love it to be louder, until about mid afternoon, then I’d like this one back again, and back again for night time.

- I love small cars, crazy about them. The 1M belies its true weight and size. It feels like a GTI in size, but gosh it’s not a GTI. R32ish maybe, but its lighter feeling and more fun.

- I mentioned above I wasn’t excited about the seats, but they do fit me well! Especially with the leg supports extended and the bolsters in the sides of the upper part correctly adjusted.

- I’ve driven the 135i a few times, and the lighter flywheel and more agressive tuning make this a lot nicer to shift and drive. Having said that, I’ve never pushed a 135i really hard, so I might not be the best to compare the two at their limits.

- The 1M has a very firm suspension. I found it similar to a E46 with a Very Good Coilover, only quieter. The fast ratio steering, the firmness of the suspension and grip of the tires makes for a go-kart type drive. It doesn’t have the big heavy serious feel like a 996 or even a Boxster (although I’ve owned a Boxster and they are pretty amazing, too, just slow). The big difference between this and an E46 on Coilovers is this one soaks up the bumps so effortlessly and altough you can feel the big wheels and tires out there at the corners, the chassis and shocks are keeping them under control. You can tell they’re working to keep them under control, but they’re doing it happily.

- Steering wheel on the 1M is thicker than I’m used to, but its very similar to a Sparco Faster (bit bigger), or a Ring (bit smaller). At first it wasn’t for me, but at 250+ its my new best friend!

- The gauges are SO easy to read, but you BMW customers are used to stunnig gauges.

- The factory wheels, cleaned and polished are stunning against the Black car. If I had chosen the VO or AP, I’d have had new wheels waiting for me back home. But I wanted to see what they looked like against the Black, and they’re stunning. This makes the choices a bit more challenging

Somebody asked for a shot of the shock part numbers, here is the rear, I couldn’t get the front today, but will tomorrow.

I noticed a couple posts about the car’s use and asking about the engineers recommendation for oil changes etc. They were very clear, get some milage on it, 1000 km-2000km first, then change the oil (likely break in oil) before beating on it or taking to Nurburgring. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m trying to be gentle on it, even though we’re using 9/10 of it.

It happens that I’m in the pool of people who do believe that you should use as it will be used, but all my experience has been Porsche, VW and Toyota. I babied the Posche, it didn’t help me. The VW and Toyota were red lined every gear, every day, for 200k km each and each are still in the stable, using not one drop of oil.

In all but the one launch though third gear did the peddle touch the floor. Every other point in video or photos was acheived without full throttle. (I guess there were a couple moments on the high speed run too, when we were eating up straights a bit too quickly, but they were moments, 2-3 seconds).

Someone in one their posts said it best, what would you do? I live in Ontario. We have a government that believes that nobody has a need to go above 150 km/h (or 30 over for the US guys, 93 mph). At 150 km/h you loose your license, are fined $10,000, they impound your car and off you go to jail for a bit…..Before this, they just fine the crap out of you and your insurance skyrockets.

I’ll do my best not to hurt anything, and I’m not doing these things specifically for this post.

While I’m here, I’m going to enjoy. I can drive it slow for years to come back at home.

My Trip to Nurburgring

Hahaha! I see someone from Germany beat me posting my photos! Many are almost identical to the ones I was about to post, some better! I won’t post duplicates, here is some notes from yesterday and the Nurburging info is below it.

Yesterday:

***Everybody, thanks so much for the encouragment and tips! I went back and fixed up a few of of the issues, all should be good now. The bad internet connections and lack of forum experience has made this all the maore a challenge. Any insight is welcome.****

Yesterday wasn’t a busy day for the 1M and I other than we drove our first long trip together.

Firstly, I’ve owned many different cars, all over the spectrum, many of them highly modified, the 1M makes 5 in the stable at the moment. I’m a driver, too, having driven well over 1M kms in 25 years of driving. I’ve have owned some that attracted some attention…but nothing like the 1M.

I’ll start with what happened when I arrived at the Ring. My schedule has been crazy and I forgot to book the hotel here, so off we went “hoping” that we’d find a place we could sleep at midnight in the country (oops). When we arrived we drove past the Jaguar, Aston, Cadillac/Chevy Racing Centers, under the track and see the “Ringhaus Hotel” very near the track entrance. All the windows are darkened and there is a faded sign taped to the window that says call +49 2691 935390 to check in. I call the number and across the courtyard I see a curtain pulled away from a window and in sleepy English with a heavy accent the man says (before Allo, or any other greeting), “Is that the 1M? I’ll be right there….”

Jorg was the man who greated us at the Ringhaus (http://www.ringhaus.com). This is the original hotel and garage built in 1924, before the Ring opened in 1927. The Auto Union Team stayed and prepared their cars here, and so have many others ever since. Its literally right at the entrance to the Track and was just fully refurbished. Here’s Jorg and the crew out front, and an original image from back in the day:

A couple friends (in preveios photos, and above) joined me early this week for appointments during the week, and another flew in today to spend the weekend at the track with us. As we drove up from Neuburg, right beside Ingolstadt (where Audi is, see photo)

we stopped for gas and a drinks along the highway. We never made it out of the car before people were standing at all four corners of it, checking out the brakes, looking underneath, and wierdly, they didn’t say anything. I nodded at them as I got out and pushed past so I could walk around to the pump, still nothing. I filled up and went inside to pay, upon returning found all the people that were there moments ago were gone…and replaced by all new poeple. They didn’t respond either.

My friend Steve was amused by the can of 10% alcohol Beer for sale at the highway gas station where we stopped, right there beside the Premixed Jack & Coke, and the mickeys of Jager and Jim Beam. For sale on the highway.

Cruising north on the A3 heading towards the track, we were almost run off the road several times be passers by who were caught off gaurd by what they saw and forgot they were doing 180 km/h. The best though was two women in a highly modded E46 M3 who blew by us as we cruised at 180. They made it about 2 car lengths past us, slammed on brakes, hesitated, and then moved out the fast lane to go across our bow, down one side, across the back and up the driver side again. Big smiles, thumbs up and they were off again. A couple others did this too, interestingly, all were driving other BMWs.

We used an entire tank of Fuel on the trip, arriving with the light having been on for sometime, and 8 km (5 miles) range left on the gauge….We averaged 11.9L/100km or 20 mpg (US) at a range of speeds, mostly around 150 km/h. I think back home, I’ll easily get this under the 10L/100km mark or better.

Today:

We had a blast at the track today and we met some awesome people (It was great to meet you Mark!). We had some helping hands with intstruction, learning track ettiquite, finding a great place to eat, etc. Ron and John at RSR Nurburg, beside the Ringhaus Hotel, offer track rentals, car sales and instruction (http://www.rsrnurburg.com/. The four of us hired them for instruction and two more cars (both Clio). Ron was a great help, and clearly had an impact on my days success. He showed me a bit of the line, but more importantly, gave me some insight to what the other drives would do, what to focus on (steering and brakes for me) and got me through a nervous first lap.

The second and third laps were more about learing the track, and discovereing that I was barely using the car. On the forth, a great guy driving an awesome vintage Escort (who had passed me a lap earlier) offered to spend another lap with me. He had been racing on the ring for 20 years and clearly knew it well. If only I had his name…I’d tell you, but I don’t…He helped me to identify a couple parts of the track where I could carry more speed and how to improve my line. This was helpful after having a couple laps under my belt.

The fifth lap was great! I had the little car honking! I wasn’t brave enough to deactivate the traction system, but it was activating a good portion of the track and cars passing me earlier were disapearing behind me now. Earlier I posted I wanted to explore the stick the 1M has, well I did it. It sticks. after examining the tires, it would appear there is lots more stick available to me, I was barely using them….As you can see, they weren’t rolling at all, they were barely getting warm…and yet I was carrying good speed. THe car, as delivered from BMW, was sooo nice to drive fast on the track.

I’m sure you all want to know something about track times or have an indication of how it compares, I don’t have it. I’m a competitive guy…a lap timer would have ensured something bad would happen! I was very happy with my own progress, and the car made me look like a star. All these cool on track photos are courtesy of http://www.ring-bilder.de owned by Jorg, the guy working at the Ringhaus Hotel.

I wasn’t really looking for a sharp lap time, as mentioned before. It’s still on the original oil. We hit the track at 810 km and there wasn’t a chance to get the fluids changed, so I was “kinda” gentle. It has been a goal to make the trip over here and run on this track, and I encourage all of you to this once. The experience has been incredible. Just to hang out at the entrance to the track or the diner across the parking lot is a lifetime experience if you’re a car nut. Rarely have I ever seen the likes of what entered that track today!

The people at the track were more than excited about the 1M, too:

…and they were very hospitable. We had a great time talking with so many different people from so many different places. We talked with people from Idaho, Minnesota, Ukraine, Ireland, Germany, England, France and others. The man who owned the gas station near the entrance, took us into see his private stash of Nurburgring memorabilia…and Steve managed to wrestle an orginal Nurburgring poster with a 1973 Alfa GTV Race Car on it. He wouldn’t part with the Porsche or BMW stuff…

The car as a track car is just insane. I had a couple little niggly gripes from earlier in the week…I don’t care anymore. They’re all insignificant (except one…the seats). I don’t even remember what I wrote anymore (but the seats were still fresh in my behind). What an awesome day. I cannot wait to get this thing home and drive it again. I can’t believe I’m heading home the day after tomorrow…and I DROVE THE GREEN HELL in my NEW BABY!

I let several people sit in it and every single one of them, inlcuding John at RSR, the gentleman with the Escort, the owner of the Ringhaus and many many more said, something like, “I think this will be my next car…”. I didn’t have the heart to tell them the situation.

Nordschleife

My Drop off in Frankfurt

Well, I did it….I handed my new baby off to the logistics company for here trip back to Canada… We were just getting acquainted, too!

Packing up to leave Nurburg left me with one deep regret. Not planning two days at the track. I woke up thinking, “I could really knock some serious time off, now!”. My brain had assembled large chunks of the track for me while I slept and I wasn’t as nervous about being out on a track I didn’t know, in a country far, far from home with no home town resources at hand. Boy it was tempting not to head over to the start/finish and dump everything out in the lot for one or two more laps!!

I mentioned that I had great difficulty getting some of the videos uploaded from the German countryside, but they went up quick here in Canada. 4 min instead of 80-90 min, much better!

Here are a couple from earlier in the trip that I couldn’t get up due to upload issues:

1st up is the video I took as I sat watching the car rotate on the table on the delivery level of the BMW Welt. I think poor Sven thought I was nuts, but he was good about it…

Delivery at the Welt

2nd up is video I took while we wrapped up at the M-Studio after meeting Brian, the Director of Sales and Marketing for M and the staff of engineers who worked on the car, including the develpement and track testing. I made a comment during the video that the engineers didn’t want to go on video, but in case they’re watching….I never really asked them. I made the note becuase of how quickly they all said good buy when I pulled out the video camera.

Visit with M Studio Engineers

3rd up is the 2nd half of the Wrap up at M-Studio

Visit with M Studio Engineers 2

4th up is a second clip of the exhaust note:

Exhaust sound at startup!

5th up is a quick video, another one through 3 gears, attempting to cature the sound of the car from the inside:

Engine sound inside the car

6th up is a video I took as a “Walk Around” of the car as I was handing it over to the logistics company yesterday before my flight home. I was a little rushed so it wasn’t a good as it could have been, but I saw a request for a walk around and I wanted to attempt it before the car went away for 4 weeks on it’s way here!

Walk around

I wanted to try and inculde enough detail in the notes that if someone wanted to try and duplicate at least a portion of the trip, they could.

Here are some really useful things I learned while I was away:

In regards to driving in Germany:
- Don’t pass on the right. Its financially ruining, something like $10k Euro fine
- Get the heck out of people way, and if that means there are four lanes and you’re not in the 4th one closest to the right and someone is gaining on you…you move to the fourth one, even if that car has two more to the right of you to use. Most likely they aren’t becuase there is someone gaining on them in those two lanes.
- People really do make use of the no speed limit opportunity. Watch you mirrors. Doing 125 mph does not keep you from being passed, we were passed at that speed several times, every couple of minutes actually.
- Yes that is a VW delivery truck passing you.
- People expect you to accelerate quickly away when joining the flow of traffic

And the most important thing we learned was that all these rules are the same ones you use on the Nurburgring, becuase it’s a public road! There are posted speed limits on the track, and they “can” be inforced, but rarely are. The smoothness with which the activities on the track flowed was becuase everyone followed these rules, which are common on the road, to a T on the track. The only other one was that to signal the car behind to pass, you use your right signal, and move right giving as much room as you can…or if it’s a twisty part, you turn the signal on to acknowledge they’re there and then get out of the way ASAP.

There is no need to where a helmet, but I can tell you, it sure made me feel a tiny tiny bit better about wailing through the trees at 230 km+ on a narrow piece of road….I would bring one, rent one or borrow one if you could.

Havng completed the whole trip, I now know that the budget for the whole thing looks much like this:

$1100.00 return Flight (from Toronto)
$110 Euro Hotels Munich (might not need either)
$55 Euro (including Breakfast) Hotels at the Track and in Frankfurt
$1.80 Euro/L ($130 per fill up) I used two full tanks, including the track time.
$40 Euro per day Food
$24 Euro per lap, or 4 laps for $89 Euro – Track Tickets
$50 Euro per lap instruction time, apparently they can only go for one lap?

Total for me ~$3100 CAD (including three days hotels and food in Munich most of you wouldn’t have to spend)

I also spent a few bucks at the Welt, but not much as the floor matts I bought there were $59 Euro for the set of four, Touch up paint kit $19 Euro and souviniers. They provided free breakfast at the Welt, and money on the BMW Visitor card ($10 Euro in the store and $10 Euro at the food counter, which my friends used since I had eaten free….)

BMW also tossed in a massive Coffee table book detailing the construction of the Welt, its wonderful. We bought a second one of those to bring home, too.

Something I forgot to mention up above…I got to keep my German License Plate off the car!! When I arrived at the drop off point in Frnakfurt, the person who processed my car’s trip home said they didn’t likely need it and that I could take it with me! Its now sitting on my desk awaiting me to assemble all the other tidits into some kind of frame.

Displaying both an awareness of tradition and talent for innovation, the MINI design team developed the vision of a car that takes up impressively little space on the road but boasts an enviably spacious interior. The MINI Rocketman Concept therefore carries over the classic virtues of the brand into a pathbreaking vehicle concept. It offers a fresh interpretation of unmistakable MINI design features, and uses cutting-edge construction and manufacturing technology to create unique solutions in body and interior design.

The innovative character of the study is defined by the systematic application of lightweight design principles and a pure-bred interior geared to maximum driving fun and unbeatable variability. A carbon spaceframe construction, whose striking surface structure is visible at the front end of the car, around its doors and in the interior, forms the basis for a weight-minimising construction. Indeed, the MINI Rocketman Concept offers the ideal platform for achieving outstanding efficiency. To this end, it is designed to allow the integration of a drive system which combines further enhanced sprinting ability with average fuel consumption of just three litres per 100 kilometres (94 mpg imp).

Wide-opening doors with double-hinge joints and integrated sills facilitate entry into the MINI Rocketman Concept. The lightweight seats are contoured in customary MINI style and can be arranged in a variety of different positions. This allows owners to choose between maximum driving fun two-up, a comfortable amount of room for three occupants, or even an exceptionally efficient division of space accommodating four seats.

The capacity of the luggage compartment can be adapted to passenger requirements just as flexibly. The two-part tailgate consists of one section which is attached to the roof and opens extremely high, and a lower section which extends out of the body in the form of a drawer.

The operating logic of the MINI Rocketman Concept is also geared to the multi-layered demands of a contemporary target group, whose mobility needs are shaped by their desire for driving fun, flexible usage possibilities and extensive connectivity with their lives outside the car. The central control unit can be taken out of the car and configured on a computer before the journey begins to update navigation destinations, the music playlist or contact details for mobile communications.

Body design: hallmark MINI design language in particularly concentrated form.

The MINI Rocketman Concept body is shaped by an avant-garde interpretation of time-honoured brand features. Innovative construction techniques allow the principle used in the classic Mini – of providing the maximum amount of room on the smallest possible footprint – to be carried over to the mobility challenges of urban areas in the 21st century. The MINI Rocketman Concept measures 3.419 metres (approx. 11 ft. 3 in.) in length, adding just a few extra centimetres to the front and rear of the brand’s founding father born in 1959. The new study is 1.907 metres (approx. 6 ft. 3 in.) wide, including the exterior mirrors, and stands 1.398 metres (approx. 4 ft. 7 in) tall. Its proportions also display clear symmetries with both the classic Mini and the brand’s present-day line-up. The brand’s familiar appearance is therefore concentrated into a new set of dimensions, with the concept for a new vehicle segment remaining unmistakably recognisable as a MINI.

The interpretation of the characteristic MINI design language chosen for the study car also exudes a powerful and dynamic allure. Tightly contoured surfaces, large wheels and a basic form dictated by straight lines help give the MINI Rocketman Concept a resoundingly solid structure. In addition to its telltale proportions, a sprinkling of distinctive design features ensure that its brand affiliation is immediately clear. Large, circular headlights and a radiator grille with chrome surround dominate the front end. While the exterior contours of the headlights fit the familiar visual template, their inner structure has been further developed for the new study. The centrally positioned LED units generating full beam are bordered by an eye-catching light ring for dipped-beam mode. Direction indicators integrated into the headlight units are a feature shared with the current range of series-produced MINI models.

The dimensions of the headlights reflect those of the current MINI, which means they come across as particularly large when set against the smaller face of the study car. As stand-out features of MINI design they symbolise the core values of the brand, which remain reassuringly intact in the new vehicle concept represented by the study.

In the area surrounding the headlights and around the front apron and radiator grille, sections of the carbon spaceframe are visible alongside the painted and chromed surfaces. Its striking surface structure serves as a reminder of the study’s innovative construction blueprint.

Powerful silhouette, innovative door concept.

Large wheels and the three-level structural split of body, “wraparound” greenhouse and roof resting on top give the flanks the same appearance as the MINI models already in series production. The windows taper as they extend back towards the rear, emphasising the body’s dynamic wedge shape and offering an immediate hint of the vehicle’s sporty and agile character. The high waistline, accentuated on the MINI by a chrome frame ringing the vehicle, takes the form of a light strip on the MINI Rocketman Concept and throws the study’s powerful silhouette into even sharper focus.

The study’s 18-inch wheels likewise leave no doubt that the sure-footed road-holding and sporty handling properties of a MINI can also play a key role in a car with smaller dimensions. The weight-saving wheels specially developed for the MINI Rocketman Concept have an aerodynamically highly effective, enclosed surface structure. And the carbon wing contour of the directional wheels also helps to reduce drag. An aluminium trim strip on the wheel rim adds an attractive stylistic touch.

Among the car’s key design and functionality-related innovations are the two side doors. Their length and the specially designed arrangement of the door sills allow extremely comfortable access to all the seats in the MINI Rocketman Concept. When opened, the doors pivot outwards complete with their sills, enabling the driver and front passenger to climb in right next to their seats and get settled in comfort. Entry to the rear seats is also made much easier by the car’s unusual door concept. The carbon spaceframe construction, together with the impressively high torsional stiffness of the underbody structure, allows the arrangement of the side sills to be combined with extremely high body rigidity.

In addition, an extremely sophisticated opening mechanism ensures easy access into the car, even in tight parking spaces. The front-hinged doors have a double-hinge joint, which also allows a large opening angle when space is restricted. The innovative character of this construction element is also evident when the doors are closed, the carbon hinges standing out visibly in form and colour from the rest of the body. The MINI Rocketman Concept thus takes a stylistic cue from the classic Mini, whose exterior-mounted door hinges also went on to become an identifying characteristic.

Projector-style rear lights, transparent and illuminated glass for the roof.

The rear lights of the MINI Rocketman Concept have a trapezoidal stirrup design – into which all the light functions are integrated – and work using projector technology. The lamp assembly projects the rear and braking light and the light for the direction indicators onto the car body. The high-output LED units used for the lights ensure that even this indirect illumination concept produces the accustomed intensity of light that is necessary for safety.

The roof of the MINI Rocketman Concept also puts on an extraordinary light show. The full-surface glass roof is segmented by illuminated braces to recreate the look of Britain’s Union Jack flag. When not illuminated, the longitudinal, horizontal and diagonal braces glow a bright Porcelain White. In darkness the integrated optical fibres give the interior of the MINI Rocketman Concept a pleasantly indirect illumination and, as a result, a more effective nocturnal appearance.

The bright colour of the roof and mirror caps – likewise painted Porcelain White – create an attractive contrast to the Bermuda (a warm shade of grey) of the body. The areas of carbon visible at the front end and around the doors add further striking touches.

Split tailgate with drawer and integrated rear cargo carrier.

The MINI Rocketman Concept also uses creative design and innovative technical solutions to open up new layout options for the luggage area. This enhances the versatility of the existing space and means it can be used more efficiently. The split two-part tailgate consists of one section which is attached to the roof and opens extremely high and a lower section which extends out 350 millimetres from the body in the form of a drawer unit. The drawer represents the further development of the downward-opening tailgate seen on the classic Mini. This construction principle allows room to be made for pieces of luggage and travel items even when the car is carrying four occupants. The MINI Rocketman Concept literally grows as a vehicle when it’s time to start loading up the gear.

An intelligent folding mechanism makes it possible to lock the cargo drawer of the MINI Rocketman Concept either higher up or further in towards the passenger compartment, as the loading scenario demands. This allows loads to be transported out of sight and protected from the weather. If required, items can also be loaded through into the passenger compartment. In addition, the open-top cargo drawer can also serve as a rear luggage carrier. Here, purpose-built inserts make it easier to transport snowboards and other bulky items of sports equipment. Added to which, the glass tailgate, which extends well into the roof, helps to enhance loading flexibility. It is connected with the body via a centrally positioned hinge with integrated gas strut system, which also allows it to be opened when the rear carrier is loaded with gear.

Seat concept: the ideal position for every mobility requirement.

The arrangement of the seats and control elements in the passenger compartment of the MINI Rocketman Concept ensures maximum versatility for the widest possible range of mobility needs. The low-weight seats, which are traditional MINI in form, offer a high level of comfort and optimum lateral support even for sporty drivers. The amount of space for the driver and passengers can be varied as required. Three individual seats slide fore and aft, allowing a high level of comfort with generous head, leg and shoulder room. There is also an additional seat in the rear, whose backrest can be folded down fully to serve as a stowage surface.

Three mobility scenarios have been developed to define the real-life usage possibilities offered by the interior of the study. In a layout designed specially to enhance a sporting driving experience, the MINI Rocketman Concept offers just the right amount of space for the driver and front passenger. The front seats are pushed back as far as possible and the instrument cluster also slides fore and aft to provide the ideal position for a full-blooded driving experience.

If an additional passenger joins the two already on board, the front passenger can move his seat forward again to take a position slightly further forward than the driver. In this configuration, the front passenger’s legroom is reduced to standard MINI levels to accommodate an equally generously sized rear seat behind him. The MINI Rocketman Concept also offers a practical solution for travelling with four people. Once the driver has returned both his seat and the instrument cluster to the standard position, a second rear seat allows a fourth person to climb aboard for shorter journeys, at least.

Innovative mix of materials, hallmark MINI design.

The impressive variability of the interior is complemented by a pure-bred design which spotlights both the unmistakable style of the brand and the study car’s pioneering technology. The intention behind the selection of materials and interior trim structure was to create a feeling of contemporary functionality and lightness. To this end, the carbon structure of the body frame has been left exposed in the footwells and around the centre console.

A fresh interpretation of customary MINI design features emphasises the further development of the brand’s characteristic design language inside the study car as well. The door panels house the door pulls and the stowage compartments, which feature trim elements whose elliptical form reaches past the B-pillar into the rear compartment. The surface design therefore offers a stylistic nod to the variable division of space and shared driving experience provided by the MINI Rocketman Concept interior.

Inside the car, leather covers and high-gloss painted surfaces combine with armrests and trim strips made from a special paper that has been pressed and folded into the desired structure. The trim strips are backlit by LED-powered fibre optics. Plus, a light strip that wraps around the interior at waistline height generates a particularly harmonious ambience.

Innovative operating concept: trackball on the steering wheel, 3D-effect graphics in the Centre Speedo.

An operating concept developed for the MINI Rocketman Concept brings together principles from the MINI design handbook, innovative new functions and a pioneering operating system to serve up even greater driving fun over both short and long journeys. A cockpit instrument, positioned above the steering wheel and therefore directly in the driver’s field of view, houses the rev counter and on-board computer display. The large-format Centre Speedo with peripheral speedometer and multifunctional colour display also adheres to the system logic familiar from the current range of series-produced MINI cars as far as display arrangement is concerned. The development of the rigorously applied display/control element separation principle, meanwhile, has been taken to the next level.

In addition to multifunction buttons on the steering wheel, the current MINI also has a joystick on the centre console for operating vehicle-related, navigation, entertainment and communications functions. By contrast, the MINI Rocketman Concept concentrates all the control elements on the steering wheel. This reflects an ongoing commitment to the concept of simple and intuitive operation, and means that the driver can operate more functions than ever while keeping both hands on the steering wheel at all times.

A press of the thumb on the relevant multifunction buttons on the left-hand steering wheel spoke is all that is required to use front-line controls such as the volume for the audio system and the call pick-up function for incoming telephone calls. In addition, a trackball is integrated into the right-hand steering wheel spoke. Inspired by computer operating, this element allows the driver to control an impressively wide range of processes. For example, to navigate through the menu levels the driver turns the trackball horizontally, while vertical movements allow him to scroll up and down lists. The driver then selects the desired function with a press of the trackball. With selected functions such as in-car internet, the driver uses his thumb to move the cursor around the display in any direction.

The graphics in the colour display of the Centre Speedo are more diverse, higher quality and sharper than ever. High-resolution 3-D graphics open up new possibilities in the need-based selection of functions using the trackball and display. According on the driver’s preference and the driving situation, particularly relevant displays and alerts are moved into the foreground, while the remaining status displays remain visible on a display level further back. This makes it significantly easier to move quickly and intuitively between the navigation map display, music programme selection and telephone contacts list.

Flawless connectivity and new ways of personalising the car configuration.

The navigation, communications and entertainment systems in the MINI Rocketman Concept represent the consistent further development of the functions already available through MINI Connected in current series-produced MINI cars. Intelligent connectivity turns the car into a mobile element of the driver’s personal lifestyle. Internet-based services for communications, integrated navigation and an almost limitlessly expandable entertainment programme play a key role in maximising driving fun, comfort and safety. With the control elements developed for the MINI Rocketman Concept, personalised usage of these functions reaches a new level. The removable control unit (for comfort and connectivity functions) integrated into the Centre Speedo can be configured on a computer before the start of a journey, enabling the driver to transfer new music files, a navigation destination and contact details for mobile communications and internet usage into the vehicle with maximum convenience.

These innovative control systems allow driving fun in a MINI to become an integrated component of the driver’s personal lifestyle more than ever. Indeed, information, images, data, contacts and media can be made available in digital form for mobile usage anywhere – at home, at the workplace or while on the move. Known as the MINI Rocketman Concept, the mobile control unit stores telephone numbers and email contacts, as well as navigation data, internet addresses and full websites or messages from online social networks, music files, photos and videos. This provides a direct route into the MINI for additional sources of driving fun in the shape of new destinations, important contacts, up-to-date information, exciting sounds and powerful images. In the opposite direction, this extended connectivity can also enrich everyday life outside the car; for example, new contact details from telephone calls or online connections can also be made available outside the car via the MINI Rocketman Concept.

MINI Rocketman Concept: compact dimensions, new format, the usual driving fun.

The MINI Rocketman Concept once again brings the traditional principles of the classic Mini onto the road through the introduction of innovative ideas. The creativity of the MINI design team enables them to transfer fundamental MINI features and values into a groundbreaking new vehicle concept in
untarnished form. As a vision of the urban mobility of tomorrow, the MINI Rocketman Concept captures the imagination with its unflappable charisma, surprising variability, and lifestyle-oriented functionality, and provides the ideal platform for agile and efficient driving characteristics.

While the study showcases a new format, MINI still remains true to its bloodline. More than 50 years ago the brand’s first car triggered a revolution in the small car segment. The classic Mini met the needs of urban mobility more comprehensively than any other vehicle before it, while at the same time offering the driving fun and individual style that sealed its legendary status. Today MINI continues to fulfil – in its own unique way – the desires of demanding target groups with a sense for the creative use of space, inspiring handling and premium quality. The MINI Rocketman Concept offers a glimpse of how these features may look in the future. Using innovative technology and creative solutions, the study reflects the brand’s unsurpassed expertise in the development of vehicle concepts producing maximum interior versatility within minimal exterior dimensions – and all while delivering unbeatable driving fun.

This model beats the record set by G-Power’s M5 Hurricane RS, which was powered by a 750 hp twin-supercharged V10 engine that enabled it to reach a top speed of 367.4 km/h (228 mph). The G-Power Hurricane RR’s power is boosted by about 6.67%, raising the output to 800hp (588 kW).

The model delivers 800 Nm (590 lb-ft) of torque, enabling the vehicle to accelerate to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 4.35 seconds, and to 200 km/h (124 mph) in 9.5 seconds.

In only 25.8 seconds, the car can reach 300 km/h (186 mph) before proceeding to its record-breaking top speed. The engine was equipped with larger superchargers to achieve 25% more space for the air volume.

G-Power’s engineers decided to use 19-inch wheels for the speed run instead of the 20-inch wheels that were originally installed on the €252,100 car. In addition, the wheels were covered in Michelin Pilot Sport Tires.

So which carmaker is the world’s cleanest? Not sure? Well, an independent survey released last week has found that BMW has most improved its average fuel efficiency and CO2 emission rate. Indeed, it’s done so to an extent which will embarrass other carmakers.

The study, began from 1990-2005 by Environmental Defense, a US-based non-profit environmental advocacy group, which shows BMW has improved fuel economy by 14 per cent and carbon emissions by 12.3 per cent.

The next best reduction was Toyota’s 3 per cent. The C02 performance of every other leading carmaker deteriorated.

BMW has made much of the fact that the report covers a period when its US sales increased fourfold.

The Americans, of course, buy more big X5 SUVs than the rest of the world combined. The report, Automakers’ Corporate Carbon Burdens, studied the impact of 12 major carmakers’ product strategies on fuel efficiency and overall automotive carbon emissions.

BMW improved fuel economy on several key models, including the 3 Series, 5 Series, 7Series, Z4 M Coupe, M5 Sedan and X5 SUV. Of course, the group’s Mini Cooper accounted for almost half of BMW’s overall fuel economy improvements.

BMW Australia spokesman Toni Andreevski says the group has made further substantial improvements to fuel consumption and emissions since the end of the survey period.

“Already in 2007, one-third of new BMWs sold in Europe have a CO2 rating of no more than 140g per kilometre,” he says. “Basically it is a great result that shows that we can continue to optimise current engines. It also shows petrol and diesel engines that outperform existing hybrid technology at comparable costs.”

With its latest diesel and lean-burn direct-injection petrol engines, (the latter is no good for Australia because of the high sulphur content of our petrol) BMW has taken its own hybrid direction. This week at the Frankfurt motor show, it showcased its new dual-mode hybrid that returns a claimed 20 per cent economy improvement on the highway and in town.

BMW’s other more vaunted green gambit is the Hydrogen 7, the first hydrogen-powered luxury sedan. Driven in Germany last year by carsguide, the Hydrogen 7 emits primarily vapour when running on a non-petrol engine.

Toyota rated second best, reducing CO2 3 per cent overall, a result in part due to its introduction of the Prius hybrid, but mainly to improvements made to the best-selling Corolla.

The report also rated the overall ‘carbon burden’ that carmakers placed on the environment, derived from factors including vehicle emissions and the number sold. GM came out on top, with a 6.5per cent reduction in overall carbon burden, though its carbon emissions rose by 3 per cent. Toyota, while low in CO2, grew its carbon burden by 125 per cent because of an increase in overall sales.

Snapshot: Carbon savings

BMW: reduced 12.3 per cent
Toyota: reduced 3 per cent
Volkswagen: up 1.3 per cent
Subaru: up 1.6 per cent
General Motors: up 3per cent
Mitsubishi: up 4 per cent
Honda: up 4.4 per cent
Ford: up 4.7 per cent
DaimlerChrysler: up 4.8 per cent
Nissan: up 9.2 per cent
Hyundai: up 17 per cent
Kia: up 30 per cent

Written By:Paul Pottinger
Published on:www.carsguide.com.au
Source: US Environmental Defense group

The two-mode hybrid system, co-developed with General Motors and DaimlerChrysler, uses twin electric motors which can either be used to boost acceleration, charge the batteries or as a generator to mutually power each other. The two-mode active transmission is based on an ECVT electrical continuously variable transmission. The two operating modes, one of which has been optimised for low, the other for high speeds, are supplemented by fixed transmission ratios.

Fitting in with BMW’s new EfficientDynamics focus, the modular hybrid system can be easily adapted to other models and should make its way across more cars in coming years. The X6 Active Hybrid is visually differentiated from the regular X6 thanks to unique badging, light blue paint scheme and distinct 21in wheels.

Click to Enlarge

Official Press Release:
• World debut of BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid – combining significant enhancement of efficiency with Sheer Driving Pleasure so typical of BMW.

• The close and direct link of concepts combining the new Sports Activity Coupe with innovative BMW ActiveHybrid technology ensures an authentic match of design and technology in every respect. The potential of BMW’s ActiveHybrid system develops its optimum effect in the unique concept of the Sports Activity Coupe. This holistic, all-round approach sets the stage for an all-new driving experience.

• The BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid, the BMW in the world of hybrid cars.

• BMW ActiveHybrid is far superior to conventional hybrid vehicles in terms of driving dynamics. Its fuel consumption and emission ratings are up to 20 per cent better than on a comparable car with conventional drivetrain technology.

• The combination with innovative hybrid technology offers the most sporting and dynamic rendition of a BMW X Car. Design language typical of BMW takes up the superior driving dynamics of the Sports Activity Coupe and visualises this superiority through authentic design and a unique look. Indeed, the extravagant design of the body combines the sporting elegance of a BMW Coupe with the striking DNA of BMW X and provides a clear reference to the innovative drive concept.

Technology:

• The driving experience in BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid corresponds to the character of a typical BMW based on supreme dynamism and performance on the road. The car responds directly, spontaneously and with outstanding precision to the driver’s commands, offering the driver perfect feedback at all times through touch effects and acoustic signals, like on a car with a conventional combustion engine.

• BMW ActiveHybrid is a particular highlight of BMW EfficientDynamics, BMW’s trendsetting development strategy for today’s world. Introducing this technology, BMW is taking the next step in the ongoing reduction of fuel consumption and emissions. BMW ActiveHybrid is based on a modular concept following the strategy of “Best of Hybrid” to integrate the most appropriate, optimum components in each case in different concepts.

• Interacting with the two-mode active transmission, the concept, through electrical support, offers two operating modes, one for setting off and driving at low speeds, one for higher speeds. This ensures optimum use of the torque generated as a function of driving conditions.

• The innovative two-mode active transmission allows variable power transmission via the power split incorporating planetary gearsets. In addition, the active transmission incorporates an electric drive system and enables the vehicle to drive at fixed transmission ratios within one system. This combines the driving dynamics and efficiency of the combustion engine and the electric drive system in an innovative, intelligent manner.

Exterior design:

• The powerful presence of the car’s body forms an ideal match with the flat, sleek flow of the greenhouse roofline. Indeed, this flowing roofline is a characteristic feature of the car’s coupe silhouette, just like the short front overhang, the long wheelbase and the long rear overhang.

• In its design, BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid boasts all the DNA and genes so characteristic of the BMW X philosophy. The visual balance of the front and rear wheels to be admired clearly from the side makes a clear reference to BMW xDrive, BMW’s intelligent all-wheel-drive technology.

• The second element dominating the design of the body is the clear orientation to the wheels, the muscular wheel arches and the large wheels clearly bearing testimony to the stable position and roadholding of the car.

• The dynamically rising contour line at the side and the growing distance between the shoulder and the sill-line as the vehicle moves back create a dynamic wedge shape.

• The striking front view with a clear focus on the vehicle’s width again provides the typical look of a BMW X car further emphasised by the extra-large BMW kidney grille also serving as the air intake with its robust slats.

• The engine compartment lid comes with clearly shaped contours sub-divided by sharp lines and tapering towards the BMW kidney grille, as well as a powerful curvature at the top with that striking BMW powerdome.

• Through their unique shape and design, the D-pillars provide a clear expression of power and stability. The innovative design of the rear lights, in turn, emphasises the sheer width of the car, while horizontal lines highlight the wide track.

• The underfloor protection panels front and rear are made of brushed aluminium, the rear underfloor panel moving out when required and covering the tailpipes on BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid while driving on electric power only.

• Door cutout trim with blue stripes and the name “BMW ActiveHybrid” clearly refer to the unique drive concept of this equally unique vehicle. The light colour of the body, in turn, forms a clear contrast to the dark window graphics, and the 21-inch wheels come in innovative, three-dimensional rim design.

Unique and Only from BMW: Hybrid Technology with Sheer Driving Pleasure. BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid.

An innovative vehicle concept and equally innovative drivetrain technology are now coming together in a unique car the world has never seen before: BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid is the world’s first Sports Activity Coupe to feature a special concept of hybrid drive likewise never seen before – and all this from Germany’s premium car manufacturer.

The result is the first BMW in the hybrid world, BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid combining Sheer Driving Pleasure with significant enhancement of all-round efficiency. Through its drive concept alone, BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid allows far greater driving dynamics than a conventional hybrid car and at the same time reduces fuel consumption by up to 20 per cent versus a comparable car running on a combustion engine alone.

The innovative drivetrain and the unique concept of the Sports Activity Coupe unparalleled the world over form an ideal match. BMW ActiveHybrid technology has indeed been developed especially for a particularly dynamic car in this segment and for extensive use far beyond city traffic. In terms of its size, character and driving dynamics, the BMW Sports Activity Coupe is simply ideal for bringing out the full potential of BMW ActiveHybrid technology, combining an elegant and dynamically flowing roofline with the features so typical of a BMW X car. In its design it clearly bears out the full DNA of BMW X, while interpreting the character of these cars in a uniquely sporting manner.

Combining the qualities of electric drive and BMW driving dynamics to provide an unprecedented driving experience.

BMW ActiveHybrid for the first time combines the combustion engine and two high-performance electric motors to allow use of the greater efficiency of hybrid technology over a much larger speed range than with a conventional hybrid vehicle. A further unique point is the driving experience provided by BMW ActiveHybrid reflecting the specific features and characteristics of electric drive together with the proven features of a combustion engine from BMW.

Responding directly and immediately to the driver’s commands when setting off, the electric drivetrain contributes its special qualities right from the start. Then, continuing the process of acceleration, BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid offers a perfect symbiosis of the drivetrain performance required and appropriate touch-based and acoustic feedback to the driver never seen before on a hybrid vehicle. The result is a driving experience at all speeds with that dynamic development of power and performance so typical of a BMW engine interacting with the particularly precise and fast-acting automatic transmission.

BMW ActiveHybrid: the next step in the BMW EfficientDynamics development strategy. Offering enhancement of both all-round economy and driving dynamics, BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid fits perfectly into the BMW EfficientDynamics development strategy. Indeed, implementing this strategy with full consistency, BMW is able to offer cars in all segments through the current model range ranking right at the top against the competition in terms of both performance and efficiency.

BMW ActiveHybrid is a firm part of the BMW EfficientDynamics development strategy. Introducing this technology, BMW is taking the next step in consistently reducing both fuel consumption and emissions. BMW ActiveHybrid is based on a modular principle following the strategy of “Best of Hybrid” to integrate the optimum components in each case in various vehicle concepts. And pursuing this strategy, BMW, with its first full-hybrid car, is now taking the next step towards lasting and sustainable mobility based on Sheer Driving Pleasure.

BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid is the result of the consistent development of attractive vehicle concepts and drivetrain technologies. Inventing the Sports Activity Vehicle (SAV), BMW has already revolutionised the market by creating a complete, brand-new segment where previously there was only the sports utility vehicle (SUV). And given their supreme agility and driving dynamics, both the BMW X5 and the BMW X3 have now gained a dominating position in this segment.

Now the concept of a Sports Activity Coupe shows how the range of BMW X models so successful the world over might be enlarged by another exclusive variant, while at the same time presenting a further possibility of experiencing the sporting performance so typical of the brand in completely new style.

A further highlight is BMW’s outstanding competence in the area of drivetrain development, setting the basis for combining an innovative driving experience with outstanding efficiency. Once again, therefore, BMW is becoming the trendsetter in a market segment which shows particularly dynamic growth.

A hybrid car with that typical BMW character requires innovative technology.

The objective to combine that Sheer Driving Pleasure so typical of BMW with a significant reduction of fuel consumption and emissions in BMW’s first full hybrid, called for the development of innovative technology offering a synthesis of the combustion engine and the electric motor.

To make this process of development as efficient as possible, the BMW Group has joined forces with General Motors and DaimlerChrysler to form the Global Hybrid Cooperation serving to develop the next generation of hybrid drive systems. These three equal partners pool their know-how and resources in the GM, DaimlerChrysler and BMW Hybrid Development Center in Troy (Michigan, USA, concentrating in the process on a flexible system concept allowing each of the companies involved to integrate the particular concept, design and construction of their cars in the new technology, focusing on the specific features of each brand. Precisely this is why the technology of the two-mode active transmission created through this cooperation is part the BMW ActiveHybrid modular development system.

Optimised use of energy and superior power in every situation.

The innovative power transmission featured by BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid combines two compact, high-performance electric motors with a transmission using fixed transmission ratios. These drive systems are connected to one another by three planetary gearsets allowing a power split covering the drive forces of the combustion engine and the electric motors in two transmission ranges and thus ensuring a level of variability quite impossible on a conventional hybrid drivetrain thanks to the combination of the two drive sources able to provide optimum power and maximum efficiency under all driving conditions and power requirements from the driver.

The system referred to on account of its two operating modes as the two-mode active transmission also comprises a high-performance battery, power electronics with an integrated inverter module, and the cables required.

The two-mode active transmission is based on an ECVT electrical continuously variable transmission. The two operating modes, one of which has been optimised for low, the other for high speeds, are supplemented by fixed transmission ratios.

The two power-split ECVT sections allow the drivetrain to run at continuously variable speeds and ensure full, highly efficient hybrid functions throughout the complete operating range of the car, the innovative system in BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid thus serving to reduce fuel consumption by up to 20 per cent compared with a comparable BMW running on a combustion engine alone.

Given the two-mode system, the electric motors are furthermore very compact in their dimensions, facilitating integration into the overall vehicle as well as a minimum increase in weight, which is lower in the case of BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid than with conventional hybrid cars offering comparable power.

BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid can be driven on electric power only, on the combustion engine alone, or with a combination of both power units. Depending on driving conditions, the electric motors may also be used for both accelerating and regenerative application of the brakes, in which case the brake forces generated when coasting and when applying the brakes flowi to the high-volt energy storage unit to provide an increase in electric power.

This energy subsequently available for further use need not be generated by the combustion engine and is therefore available virtually free of charge.

Already using this principle in a similar manner on production cars featuring Brake Energy Regeneration, BMW is able to ensure efficient energy management and maintain the battery at a high charge level. On the road, the support provided by the electric motors in this way referred to as “boosting” serves, first, to give the car incomparable spontaneity and a direct response and, second, to significantly reduce fuel consumption.

BMW ActiveHybrid comes in where conventional hybrid drive reaches its limit.

Conventional hybrid systems allow efficient motoring only in relatively small or medium-sized vehicles at relatively low speeds. This is because most of the power coming from the combustion engine has to be conveyed most of the time via the electrical path of the transmission and because of the use of a high level of electric power. A car with enhanced dynamics, performance and running speeds would therefore require a larger combustion engine calling for less efficient, larger and heavier electric motors.

In the power split drive mode, also referred to as the output branched concept, one of the two electric motors acts as a generator, converting some of the engine’s power into electrical current subsequently fed to the battery or the second electric motor. The second electric motor then converts such power coming from the first electric motor or from the battery back into mechanical power for the output drive shaft on the transmission.

Two-mode technology varies the balance of electrical and mechanical energy on the respective paths for optimum efficiency. A further point is that a conventional hybrid drive system does not come with fixed mechanical transmission ratios, which would serve to optimise fuel consumption. Instead, conventional hybrid drivetrains use a continuously variable transmission, with the disadvantage that the actual requirement for performance and load feedback from the car are separated from one another, thus failing to provide a dynamic driving impression. The two-mode active transmission, by contrast, overcomes and eliminates the disadvantages of a conventional hybrid drivetrain. It reduces the share of power flowing through the electrical branch of the transmission throughout a broad range of transmission ratios. Through its power split in two transmission ranges, the two-mode active transmission therefore provides the energy of both electric motors in an ideal form tailored to current driving conditions.

BMW ActiveHybrid: the result of years of research.

The principle of the two-mode active transmission in BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid forms a significant milestone in BMW’s ActiveHybrid strategy, fulfilling the demands made by a broad range of customers looking for a dynamic, economical and responsible form of motoring.

To reach this goal BMW pursues a clear-cut “Best of Hybrid” strategy enabling use of the optimum components under a modular principle within a wide range of different vehicle concepts planned for the future. Parallel to the Global Hybrid Cooperation, the BMW Group has therefore entered into yet another joint venture with DaimlerChrysler, developing components for hybrid drive in the luxury performance saloon.

BMW started to develop hybrid drive many years ago, long before the foundation of the Global Hybrid Cooperation. Indeed, BMW tested the electric drivetrain as early as in the late 1980s, for example in the BMW E1. And the BMW Group has been conducting research on hybrid technology and its various options for more than 15 years, making this technology and the results already obtained a firm part of the BMW X5 EfficientDynamics development strategy.

In the meantime the BMW Group has presented several hybrid vehicle concepts, starting with a hybrid car in 1995 based on the BMW 518i. In particular, the outstanding potential of this drive technology has been proven in the BMW X5 EfficientDynamics presented in 2003 and the BMW Concept X3 EfficientDynamics shown to the world in 2005.

Introducing BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid, BMW is proudly presenting the highest degree of maturity in hybrid technology seen so far. Indeed, this technology offers everything it takes to combine extremely efficient motoring with that Sheer Driving Pleasure so typical of BMW.

A clear sign of the special status of the BMW ActiveHybrid concept is the presentation of this technology in combination with a brand new type of vehicle: BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid is the unusually attractive vision of a truly innovative vehicle virtually predestined for such cutting-edge drivetrain technology.

A thrilling team: BMW ActiveHybrid and the world’s first Sports Activity Coupe.

BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid establishes a new benchmark right from the start through the innovative combination of design and concept features. Four doors and the smooth, dynamic coupe roofline interact with a high window line and extra-muscular wheel arches ensuring permanent presence and a perfect balance of the front and rear axle as a clear reference to all-wheel drive.

At the front BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid is dominated by design elements symbolising the vehicle’s dynamic orientation to the road, while from the side the vehicle’s proportions are particularly elegant and well-balanced. The short front body overhang emphasises the dynamic character of the car, the long overhang at the rear highlights the stretched and sleek appearance of the vehicle.

Moved far to the back and with the roofline dropping down visibly and continuously from the B-pillar, the greenhouse, together with the high window line, ensures flat and low-slung window graphics.

The roofline flows down gently to the contour lip at the rear, finally merging into a slight upward swing perfecting the coupe line and at the same time optimising the car’s streamlining.

The rear look of BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid is split by horizontal lines making the car look wider and emphasising its stable grip on the road. A muscular bumper and the protective cover for the underfloor are further classic design elements characteristic of a BMW X Car. And last but not least, the proportions so typical of a coupe are borne out here in particular style typical of a BMW X Car, inter alia through the muscular and elegant shoulders.

A typical BMW also in design.

BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid is clearly recognisable as a BMW from every angle. All design features clearly bear out the language of BMW design, with the focus primarily on those sculptural lines so characteristic of all BMW X models.

The front, side and rear body sections flow smoothly and directly into one another, with additionally highlighting various design elements typical of the brand ranging from the BMW kidney grille through the dual round headlights with their cut contour and the powerful contour line at the side all the way to the horizontal lines at the rear.

Following the usual philosophy of a BMW X Car, the wheel arches show slightly square contours offering space for 21-inch light-alloy wheels in Y-spoke design created especially for BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid.

This is indeed a brand-new rendition of such three-dimensional rims with the individual spokes showing recessed surfaces not only at the top, but also further down towards the inner sections of the wheel.

The exterior mirrors on BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid are likewise brandnew in their design, a white, shimmering row of lights standing out between the lower element finished in body colour and the upper section of the mirror cap made of aluminium. Supplementing the corona rings in the headlights so typical of BMW, these additional lights also provide a daytime light function.

The unique character of BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid is also borne out by the design of the rear lights where the L-shape so typical of a BMW X Car is re-interpreted in a particularly dynamic, sweeping motion. Extending far into the side panels, the rear lights also serve to emphasise the overall width of the car in its night design.

Front and rear: clear signals for efficient motoring.

BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid proudly presents its unmistakable design also through truly authentic, unique features clearly visible at very first sight. Hence, through its look alone this concept car arouses the greatest expectations of the driving experience in such a Sports Activity Coupe. It clearly underlines the robust character and superior traction of a BMW X Car in combination with dynamic driving qualities never seen before in this segment.

The unique character of this drivetrain concept is also expressed through the design of BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid: Not only the door cutout strips with their blue, illuminated “BMW ActiveHybrid” marking and the strongly contrasting colour scheme combining the paintwork with the dark window graphics confirm the special status of this vehicle, but also other, truly unique and innovative design features at the back of the car. As soon as the electric motors take over in full and provide all the drive power required, a clear signal for optimised combustion and emission ratings is proudly displayed at the back, since the underfloor protection panel made of brushed aluminium both front and rear is a moving element on BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid: So as soon as the vehicle is running entirely on electric power, the rear protection panel may be moved up to cover the two tailpipes on the exhaust system as long as they are not required for their normal purpose.

The innovative philosophy of BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid clearly proves that large and dynamic vehicles may also be driven economically and with a clear focus on the environment, at the same time reaching new horizons in terms of driving pleasure and aesthetic design.

BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid thus offers not only a particularly high standard of efficiency, but also enhanced driving dynamics, this concept meeting the high standards of BMW EfficientDynamics in every respect. Indeed, BMW Concept X6 ActiveHybrid ensures progress on all levels – in terms of driving dynamics, in its all-round economy, and in design.

Sheer Driving Pleasure and the unique experience of particularly efficient motoring therefore come out clearly at very first sight.

OTTAWA — Could it really be so – that GM’s Hummer is more than 40 per cent greener than Toyota’s Prius? That Ford’s F-Series pickup is greener? That GM’s Silverado pickup is greener? That Dodge’s Ram pickup is greener? That Cadillac’s DTS, a full-sized luxury sedan with a V8 engine, is greener? Could it be, in fact, that seven different luxury-class automobiles are all greener – and that three of them are Cadillac models?

Well, indeed, it really could be. And, if so, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty’s new-car incentive program is a huge environmental mistake.

Oregon-based CNW Marketing Research Inc. has conducted the world’s most comprehensive analysis of the “life cycle” energy requirements of more than 100 makes and models of cars and trucks. Given the thousands of parts and processes in the manufacturing and operation of cars, it was a complex task and took the company two years to complete. Volvo once tried to do it – and gave up in frustration (though it does publish “life cycle” analysis for its own makes).

CNW identified 4,000 “data points” for each car, ranging from the energy consumed in research and development to energy consumed in junkyard disposal. It calculated the electrical energy needed to produce each pound of parts. It calculated greenhouse gas emissions. It calculated mileage, too – adjusting for the differences between rush-hour Tokyo and rural America.

The company describes this exercise as “dust to dust” analysis. CNW has now published its second annual report, a 400-page production.

To keep it relatively free of technical jargon, the company expresses energy requirement as the dollar cost of energy for every mile across a vehicle’s anticipated years of use – “U.S. dollars per lifetime mile.” Thus it reports the lifetime energy requirement of a Hummer as $1.90 a mile; the lifetime energy requirement of a Prius as $2.86 a mile.

It reports by model name and by category. For 22 models of economy cars, the average lifetime energy cost is $0.85. For six models of pickup trucks, it’s $2.58. For 14 models of smaller-sized sports utility vehicles, it’s $2.07; for nine models of larger-sized SUVs, it’s $3.98. For 10 models of gas-electric hybrids, it’s $3.65.

Compare the SUVs against the hybrids and you get a sweep in favour of conventional technology. The best-rated smaller SUVs are more than twice as eco-friendly as the hybrids: Dodge’s Durango, $1.57; Ford’s Explorer, $1.61; Chevrolet’s TrailBlazer, $1.61; Jeep’s Grand Cherokee, $1.80.

More remarkably, one of the larger SUVs, Ford’s Expedition, beats the hybrids with an eco-cost of $3.54.

CNW found wide differences, however, within classes of vehicles. For 18 models of luxury cars, the average energy cost is $4.45. Yet the best of these luxury cars are superior, in lifetime energy use, to hybrids.

The luxury cars that rival hybrids: Lincoln’s Town Car, $2.66; Acura’s RL, $2.80; Cadillac’s CTS, $3.19; BMW’s 5 Series, $3.19; Mercedes-Benz’s E-Class, $3.48; Toyota Land Cruiser 80 series, $3.49; Cadillac’s STS (Seville), $3.56; Cadillac’s DTS (DeVille), $3.65.

CNW’s assessment of the hybrids has irritated some of the car companies.

Toyota says that CNW credited Prius with only half its 200,000 lifetime miles. CNW says that Prius owners drive less than 7,500 miles a year – meaning that these cars will be scrapped long before they use their expected lifetime mileage (in 26 years). CNW says that hybrids fare poorly because of increased complexity. Honda’s conventional Accord gets rated at $2.18; its Accord Hybrid gets rated at $3.29 – an environmental cost 50 per cent higher.

Take the batteries, for example. Toyota buys 1,000 tonnes of nickel a year from Ontario (mined and smelted in Sudbury). This nickel gets shipped to Wales for refining, then to China, for further processing, and then to Toyota’s battery plant in Tokyo – a 10,000-mile trip, mostly by petrol-gulping container ships and diesel-powered locomotives.

Toyota, however, still has some of the greenest vehicles on earth. The Scion has the lowest energy cost of all at 48 cents a mile. The Corolla, at 72 cents, and the Echo (Yaris), at 77 cents, are also in the best-on-earth class. Low-energy competitors include Dodge’s Neon (64 cents) and Saturn’s Ion (67 cents). Cars with the highest energy requirement include the Rolls Royce ($10.97) and the equally elegant German-made Maybach ($15.83).

In his March budget, Mr. Flaherty made fuel efficiency – gas mileage alone – the sole basis for the environmental rating of new cars. He will reward high-mileage cars (with rebates from $1,000 to $2,000) and punish low-mileage cars (with surcharges from $1,000 to $4,000). The program could well be a phenomenal waste of energy. Junk it, Mr. Flaherty. It’s not fit for the road.

Not only is it a handy marketing device–”our cars are tailor-made,” BMW’s chief executive, Norbert Reithofer, can boast–but it’s also profitable. BMW customers, it turns out, often have second thoughts. And when they do, they invariably add ever pricier accouterments. The company says customers change their orders more than 1 million times a year. BMW doesn’t break out details of the additional revenue, but given the profit margins on many add-ons, “it’s like a big dollop of cream on the cake,” says Peter Schmidt, a British-based auto-industry consultant.

This ability to cater to fickle tastes is just one manifestation of an extraordinary flexibility that BMW has injected into a company that sold nearly 1.4 million cars last year, bringing in $65 billion in revenues. It’s a flexibility that affects almost everything the firm touches, from the layout of its assembly lines to the working hours of its administrative staff to relationships with its unions and key suppliers. BMW has mastered the manufacturing fine art called mass customization: no two cars rolling through its assembly lines on any given day are identical. Its factories can cope with a model changeover during the course of a weekend without work stoppages. Detroit would take weeks.

The flexibility also extends to the rhythm of work: BMW has struck deals with its heavily unionized workforce that enable it to run its factories more or less as demand dictates. Its newest plant in Leipzig, where the 3-series and new 1-series hatchback cars are built, runs anywhere from 60 to 140 hours per week. Instead of classic two- or three-shift rosters, the company juggles some 300 working-time permutations to determine optimal use of its teams of workers, some of whom are contract “permatemps” more common in the U.S.

The new BMW is in some ways symbolic of the resurgent German economy. For more than a decade, exorbitant labor costs, unbending union rules and an addiction to red tape–not to mention the high price of unification with East Germany–put Germany into an economic straitjacket. BMW went through its own rough patch in the 1990s after the disastrous acquisition of Britain’s Rover Group, but its fortunes have changed markedly since it ditched Rover in 2000. Production has increased steadily, and profits are buoyant. Pretax earnings last year rose 25%, to $5.5 billion, despite the soaring cost of raw materials and the strong euro. It has easily outpaced its historic rival, Mercedes (part of DaimlerChrysler), to become the leading premium-car brand. BMW is pushing a worldwide expansion. This spring it opened an assembly plant in India, and the company is building out a plant in Spartanburg, S.C., as part of its strategy to be less vulnerable to foreign-exchange fluctuations.

The German economy is similarly healthy, growing 2.8% last year, and it is once again acting as a powerful motor for the rest of Europe. Surging exports pushed the nation’s trade surplus to more than $200 billion. Germany’s economy has also undergone significant re-engineering to loosen some of its infamous rigidities. The government has cut corporate taxes and reduced the burden of some nonwage costs on business, such as pensions and health care. It has shaken up its labor market, which has led to a drop in unemployment (although the proportion of jobless, at 8.8%, is still well above the European average). The move to ever shorter working hours that culminated in the 35-hour week in the late 1980s has been reversed; millions of Germans have been working longer in the past two to three years without increased pay. The latest: 50,000 employees at Deutsche Telekom, the former state telephone monopoly, who accepted an extended workweek and a pay cut to protect their jobs.

Neither Germany nor BMW is yet in the clear. The changes brought about by corporate bosses and government policymakers have had an evident impact–BMW alone has whacked $1.2 billion from its cost structure over the past three years–but it’ll be hard to sustain that pace. Global competition shows no sign of letting up. Toyota’s Lexus is starting to make inroads into BMW’s European turf, while at home, rival Audi is turning up the heat, and Mercedes looks like a formidable competitor once again, now that DaimlerChrysler has agreed to sell off Chrysler to a U.S. private-equity firm.

Germany is still far from being a freewheeling economy. It remains suspicious of Anglo-Saxon finance, for example, and has been seeking to curb the power of hedge funds. There’s also little sign of substantive change in the historic–some say hide-bound–system of labor relations, under which unions are represented on the supervisory boards of companies. Kenneth Rogoff, a Harvard professor and former International Monetary Fund economist, sees Germany’s improved fortunes as being largely the result of the private sector finding ways to bypass continuing structural roadblocks in the economy. The recovery “has legs,” he says, because there’s still room to catch up with U.S. productivity levels. But he warns that the current economic upswing “won’t last forever without more transparent institutional reforms.”

CEO Reithofer is more upbeat. Faced with low-cost competition from Asia and Eastern Europe, he says, “many German firms did their homework, and now they are benefiting from it.” He thinks Germany could go further, for example, in reducing high nonwage labor costs. But Germany still has competitive advantages, he says, pointing to its traditional engineering prowess combined with a newer ability to cater to the needs of individual clients. The challenge, he tells TIME: “It’s all about mastering complexity.”

Drop in on BMW’s Leipzig plant, and you can see what he means. It’s the firm’s newest, having opened just two years ago, with a luminous open-plan central building that houses white-collar workers and managers. It was designed by London-based architect Zaha Hadid, and its most striking feature is a conveyor belt that meanders inside the building just below roof level, carrying a steady stream of cars from the body shop to the paint shop. You can see it from almost everywhere in the building, including the cafeteria.

Robots do most of the work in the body shop, welding, riveting and bonding hundreds of components together. Robots also apply the four layers of water-based paint to each car. But it’s on the assembly line that BMW differentiates itself from even its Japanese rivals. To be able to customize each car requires highly sophisticated logistics. Workers stationed at regular intervals on the line reach back for components in wire baskets that have been rigorously sorted into the right sequence. The complexity is visible to the naked eye: halfway along the line, just past the section where car bodies are bolted onto the drivetrain and chassis, a gray three-door 1-series sticks out amid a convoy of silver 3-series cars. In theory, the plant is set up to handle five or six different BMW models simultaneously, although for the moment it handles two.

The factory has been designed so that new production processes can be added to the assembly line at any time without disrupting the work flow. That’s a huge advantage over more traditional lines, which need to be shut down for any changeover or addition. Several key suppliers are based in the plant, rather than in a nearby supplier park. Jörg Baumheuer says that makes for easy communication when problems arise. He’s a manager at the French auto-parts firm Faurecia, which assembles cockpits and seats for BMW in Leipzig and some other plants. The advantage for Faurecia is that it doesn’t need to truck in finished parts; it simply assembles them on the spot. That cuts inventories and improves speed and reliability; the firm needs just 20 minutes’ notice to put together a customized cockpit. “It cuts out the last step of the supply chain,” Baumheuer says. Moreover, since Faurecia’s workers eat lunch at the same cafeteria as BMW’s, interchange is easy and natural.

The degree of customization that is required means BMW isn’t as ruthlessly efficient as Toyota in some respects, including the number of cars produced per worker per day. But there’s a trade-off. “BMW is not prepared to sacrifice its ability to give consumers the car they want. The alternative would be reduced costs but not the ability to charge a premium for customized cars,” says Garel Rhys, an auto-industry expert at Cardiff University. In the end, he says, BMW’s marginal revenue from customization is higher than the marginal cost advantage it gives up.

That’s not to say there’s no pressure on costs. Reithofer is a process engineer by training and set up the customized-production system. He’s insisting on efficiency gains of at least 5% annually, “an iron goal,” as he puts it. Every year BMW sits down with its suppliers to discuss specific savings targets, but it also canvasses them for creative ideas about possible cost cuts they can undertake together. Klaus Richter, a former McKinsey consultant who’s now BMW’s procurement man, says some 10,000 such suggestions have been made in the past three years, of which about a third have been put into practice. The savings, he says, amount to hundreds of millions of euros.

BMW has also driven some hard bargains with its workforce. It began to back away from rigid German working hours in the late 1980s, when it opened a new plant in Regensburg to produce the 3-series. Its goal even then was to decouple the union-regulated workweek from the amount of time its factory was in operation. Management made flexible working hours a condition of its investment in the plant. The demand infuriated the powerful German autoworkers union, IG Metall, but the syndicate had little choice. “Without these restrictions we wouldn’t have come up with these solutions. We had to be creative,” says Ernst Baumann, the board member responsible for personnel.

Winning union approval for even greater flexibility was easier in Leipzig. In part, that’s because other German automakers, particularly Volkswagen, were threatening to move some of their production outside Germany altogether because of high costs. In the end, the union agreed to extend working hours without extra pay. That has been a boon to the whole industry–and the German economy. Reithofer acknowledges that the wage restraint “has been a fundamental contribution to making Germany competitive again.”

BMW gained particular concessions from its workers because Leipzig is in formerly communist eastern Germany, where unemployment has been about double the western German level and wages have lagged. Under the negotiated agreement, BMW doesn’t pay higher rates for Saturday work in Leipzig, and employees put in on average two more hours a week than in western German BMW plants. Moreover, about half the 5,000 workers in Leipzig are not on BMW’s staff; they either work for suppliers such as Faurecia or are so-called lease workers employed by specialized agencies and used by BMW when needed. That’s a relatively new but fast-growing phenomenon: the number of lease workers nationally has more than tripled in the past decade, from 160,000 in 1996 to about 600,000 today, according to the Federal Labor Office.

Union representatives generally rate BMW a good employer, and they characterize overall relations with management as good. The feeling is mutual. “German law is better than its reputation, and so are the unions,” says Leipzig plant director Peter Claussen. Still, the use of so many lease workers in Leipzig is a sore point. Jens Köhler, the workers’ main representative in Leipzig, reckons that lease workers receive about two-thirds the monthly pay and fewer benefits than colleagues who are BMW staffers. Calculated on an annual basis, once Christmas bonuses and profit sharing are included, lease workers are paid only about half as much. “It’s not right. They’re like second-class citizens,” Köhler says. IG Metall, for one, is pushing for lease workers to be given a better deal nationally, but so far with little effect.

Putting BMW on a more efficient footing at home has enabled it to expand its product line in all directions. Over the past decade, it has evolved from a group with six model families–with the 3-, 5- and 7-series cars accounting for the vast majority of sales–to one with 11 model families grouped in three distinct brands, BMW, Mini and Rolls-Royce. Three new model families are in the works, including a luxury sports car. The Mini, a remnant of the otherwise disastrous 1994 Rover acquisition, has far exceeded all expectations, and BMW is expanding its production capacity in Britain. The company had anticipated selling about 100,000 Minis by 2005. In fact, it sold double that number, and production will hit 240,000 this year. Rolls-Royce won’t sell nearly that amount, but it makes up in price and prestige what it lacks in volume.

BMW’s critics say its product-line expansion hasn’t solved all its growth challenges or given it much protection from the increasingly competitive luxury segment. Helmut Becker, an auto consultant and formerly BMW’s chief economist, says the idea behind the failed Rover deal–to turn the firm into a two-brand company, one for the mass market and one a premium brand–was a smart one, since it would have enabled BMW to spread the huge cost of new-car development over a far bigger group. “BMW’s main weakness is that life is getting ever narrower in the premium segment, and it needs volume growth. I’m not sure where it can get it from,” Becker says. But other analysts such as Cardiff’s Rhys reckon that BMW can continue to forge ahead because of the skillful management of its brand name and underlying business. “They need to have the best cost base possible and make a product consumers want,” Rhys says, “but BMW will be fine for another decade.”

Reithofer pooh-poohs the pessimists. “Size and success have got nothing to do with one another,” he says. BMW’s rapid sales expansion in the past few years provides some economies of scale, he says. He points out that the firm is also pooling its resources with other manufacturers, developing engines for the Mini together with Peugeot and hybrid-engine components together with Mercedes. Looking around the world, he makes a sharp distinction. Toyota, the world’s biggest and most profitable car company, “is strongly process driven,” he says. BMW, by contrast, “is more product driven–and I wouldn’t want to bet on who will be more successful in 10 years.” That’s bravado, of course, but in itself such self-confidence is a sign that a new, more flexible Germany is bouncing back. HIGH PERFORMANCE With steady increases in production and profits fueling its stock surge, BMW has become the leading premium car brand.

Written By: Peter Gumbel for TIME Magazine

The original company was founded by Karl Rapp as an engine manufacturer, building V12 engines for Austro-Daimler. Later, the small firm was joined by Camillo Castiglioni, Cornelius Jagdmann and Max Friz, and Bayerische Motoren Werke was born.

Today, BMW is one of the largest luxury carmakers in the world, selling more than a million vehicles annually and producing cars in most continents around the globe.

Washington, D.C. – A report from the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) says that increasing the average fuel economy of America’s new cars to 35 mpg US (6.7 L/100 km) would save consumers US$61 billion at the gas pump. It would also increase U.S. employment by 241,000 jobs by 2020, including 23,900 in the auto industry. The study comes as the House of Representatives prepares to consider energy legislation in the coming weeks, which could include debate over a bill that would guarantee progress to 35 mpg by 2018.

“Putting technology to work means putting people to work, whether it’s in the computer industry or the auto industry,” says David Friedman, author of the study and research director of the Clean Vehicles Program at UCS. “A 35 mpg standard means billions of dollars helping to create more U.S. jobs, not lining the pockets of the oil industry and their overseas suppliers.”

According to the analysis, nearly US$24 billion of the gasoline savings would become new revenue for automakers in 2020; consumers could then choose how to spend the remaining US$37 billion saved in gasoline that year. Shifting the money from the oil industry to more productive parts of the economy would generate 82,900 new jobs in the service industry, 44,400 jobs in retail trade, 33,100 jobs in finance, insurance and real-estate industries, and 17,800 jobs in non-auto-industry manufacturing jobs. Thousands of other new jobs would be created in agriculture, transportation, construction, utilities and government. Oil and associated industries would see job forecasts drop by 21,000, although these jobs would be shifted to other sectors of the economy, yielding a net increase of 241,000 new jobs.

The report also says that putting fuel economy technology to work would cut oil consumption by 1.6 million barrels per day and reduce global warming pollution by more than 260 million metric tonnes, akin to taking nearly 40 million of today’s average cars and trucks off the road in 2020.