With a base price of $61,845, the ActiveHybrid 5 will cost 17.8 percent more than the $52,500 535i when it arrives at U.S. dealers in late March. For comparison’s sake, the ActiveHybrid 750i costs 15.1 percent more than the 750i and the recently discontinued ActiveHybrid X6 ran a whopping 26.8 percent more than the X6 xDrive50i.

Source: AutoBlog

Source: Automobile Magazine

The new M models come in the form of the M550d xDrive sedan, M550d xDrive touring, X5 M50d and X6 M50d. Each makes use of a 3.0-liter inline-six common-rail diesel with the aforementioned trio of turbos specifically developed for the M Performance range. Output is rated at 376 horsepower at 4,000 rpm and 545 pound-feet of torque available from 2,000 to 3,000 revs. If you’re keeping track at home, that’s a bump of 80 hp and 103 lb-ft over the 535d and 74 hp and 103 lb-ft more than the 3.0-liter mill fitted to the diesel X5 and X6.

Each model comes equipped with an eight-speed automatic gearbox and standard xDrive AWD, allowing the M550d sedan to hit 60 mph in 4.6 seconds – just four tenths of a second off the all-new M5′s 0-60 run. You read that right. The M550d Touring hits 60 in 4.9 seconds, with the X5 M50d and X6 M50d passing the mark in 5.4 and 5.3 seconds, respectively. All models are limited to 155 mph and fuel consumption ranges between 6.4 liters/100km and 7.7 liters/100km.

Source: BMW

Russian fails completely when they hands an expensive and powerful car, especially if is a BMW! Will be better if Russian don’t see any car again. A superb M5 with nearly 600 horses were specially commissioned to be white mat covered with this odious green (chromium chloride) and the black wheels. Now, do not accuse them, they try

But just two months ago, the head of product development at BMW’s M division said he wanted a car to fight the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG, a pure M-car developed totally in-house (as was the case with the AMG). But an interview given by M’s North American product manager Matthew Russell points to the door having closed on that when he said, “We’ve discussed these possibilities. But ultimately, we didn’t feel the need to make a very exclusive high-end supercar and we still don’t.” So there.

Perhaps more importantly, in reference to the M3 and M5, Russell believes that M already makes supercars, albeit of a certain type: “we like to build two cars in one: this is what M does. Nobody offers that perfect combination of a driver’s car and an executive car that you can use everyday. So technically, we already build supercars.” As fellow Autoblog contributor Matt Davis noted, however, we’re of the mind that while those are super cars, they’re not supercars.

Source: eGM Car Tech via Bimmer Boost

A unique tuning for Nissan Maxima. The owner use the doors from a Lamborghini, front face from a BMW 7-series, some parts from a BMW M3 and the back from a Toyota Supra.

We originally thought that BMW would debut the 2013 6 Series Gran Coupe at next month’s Detroit Auto Show, but since the all-new 2012 3 Series is expected to make its public debut at Cobo Hall, we think BMW may hold off on the official Gran Coupe introduction until the Geneva Motor Show in March. We’ll likely know official pricing details around that time, too. For now, soak it up in our high-res gallery and follow the jump to read the full details in BMW’s press blast.

Source: BMW

Not only has the 3 Series sedan been substantially redesigned, it also packs a higher level of equipment. That includes cabin gadgets like a 6.5-inch dashboard display screen for the iDrive system, as well as Bluetooth, USB and iPod connectivity, but also the latest enviro-tech like regenerative braking and stop/start engine management.

Source: BMW

The Audi A4, Mercedes-Benz C-Class, Lexus IS, Infiniti G, Acura TL and upcoming Cadillac ATS will not be denied, and the 3 Series doesn’t enjoy the commanding lead it once did. On the other hand, over 12.5 million total sales for The Almighty Three since 1975 is nothing to be sniffed at.

When talking about the sort of high performance testing that we crave, initial drives like this can only go so far in satisfying. That’s because we only got the chance to drive two meat-of-the-sales-figures trims at this Barcelona, Spain launch: the new 320d Efficient Dynamics turbo diesel and the 328i with new TwinPower Turbo in-line four-cylinder.

We chose to focus hard on the 328i since it’s confirmed that we’ll get this 241-horsepower model along with the 302-hp 335i this February. The only other model slated for the U.S. is the 335-hp ActiveHybrid 3, arriving sometime during summer 2012. As to the future of turbo diesel power in the States, BMW North America has said it is quite keen to bring over both the 320d and a future 330/335d, though no firm decisions have been made.