bmw

What makes a good car?

I should write more here about cars. I certainly talk about cars more than enough with friends and coworkers. I've written for the BMW Car Club of America's Roundel Magazine, but somehow my dream job in automotive journalism never materialized...

Good cars are safe, fast, affordable to purchase, economical to operate, reliable, capacious, comfortable, and attractive.

No, of course you can't get all of those characteristics in one car; each conflicts with one or more of the others. Safe and fast, for example... obviously incompatible, right? Well, no. Not at all. The only thing that makes a … Read more

iPhone is picky when it comes to Bluetooth device pairing

I've come to the conclusion that the iPhone is a very picky Bluetooth dater. It doesn't like its own kind. It doesn't like MacBooks. And it gives mixed signals toward my car. Maybe it's just not into it. I'm not sure; time will tell.

I came to these conclusions playing matchmaker while testing out the iPhone's Bluetooth capabilities with various Bluetooth-enabled devices. First my car, then my friend Max's iPhone and my friend Max's new MacBook.

Date No. 1: My Bimmer

I admit I'm a yuppie type who just has to … Read more

Slide show roundup: iPhone, Sanyo SCP-3200, General Electric G1, and BMW 335i Convertible

It's already been a week since we eagerly anticipated the clock striking 6 p.m. for the sale of the very hyped iPhone. The speculation of what will happen is over, and by now most people are well over the hype. Some may be envious of others' iPhones, and some may be trying to sell an iPhone for a profit.

In case you haven't seen the iPhone or are interested in learning more about it, we've got a slew of galleries, as well as some pictures of the Sanyo SCP-3200, the General Electric G1 camera, and the … Read more

BMWs support iPhone audio out of the box

Apple may be rumored to be working with Mercedes on an in-car interface, but it is Benz's arch-rival BMW that has been one of the first automakers to declare its cars' compatibility with the all-conquering iPhone. According to this page on Bimmer's Web site dedicated to welcoming the gadget, these 2007 model-year BMWs will come with the option of an interface to allow them to use the iPod function of the iPhone:

3 and 5 series models with a production date of March '07 or later X5 models with a production date of April '07 or later 6 … Read more

Finally, comfort for those who fly private

Boeing has commissioned DesignworksUSA, a subsidiary of BMW, to design the interiors for its wide-bodied fleet of corporate jets.

DesignworksUSA has released drawings (below) of what a Boeing Business Jet 787, also known as the Dreamliner, could look like for its owner, or group of owners.

Is this a hint that we may be going back to the Pan Am glory days of old?

Only for the lucky few.

The Boeing Business Jet 787 holds even fewer people than its 747-8 VIP.

The intimate design reflects the changing needs of frequent corporate fliers who use their jets as a second … Read more

Cars to drive and cars to torture

Last week, the editors of CNET Car Tech attended a mini car show where we not only got to look at the cars, we got to drive them. Beyond a sedate on-road loop, we also took some of the cars over serious off-road terrain and raced others around the track at Laguna Seca. On the first day of the Western Automotive Journalists Media Days, we drove a Subaru Forester and a Mercedes-Benz ML320 CDI along a light off-road course, then a Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon over a very technical course.

Kevin Massy reports on the second day's racing at Laguna Seca in this blog, … Read more

Living Laguna Seca

It's difficult to describe the smell of boiling brake fluid and barbecued brake discs. Or the sound of a BMW M6 being flogged to within an inch of its life, squealing for mercy as it hangs on to traction by the skin of its Z-rated rubber. We just got back from a day of track testing at California's Laguna Seca raceway, courtesy of the Western Automotive Journalist association, and can report it was by far the most enjoyable day's work we've done for a long time.

Among the cars up for grabs were many of the … Read more

Paris to Dakar winners on display

The grueling Paris-to-Dakar rally finished last month, and a few proud automakers showed off their winning cars. Mitsubishi has the honor of many consecutive first place wins with its Pajero SUV. One of the Team Repsol Pajeros, which took first place, is on display in Mitsubishi's booth at the 2007 Geneva Auto Show. Another successful entrant, which placed in the top 10, was the X-Raid diesel-powered BMW X3. Volkswagen, which put out a lot of press during the rally about its top 10 placing Touareg entrants, neglected to bring any of its cars to Geneva.

BMW M3 as concept

Sure, it's just a concept. Nothing to get excited about. Concepts hardly ever make it intact to production, anyway. But it's the new M3, and we're just going to go ahead and get our hopes up anyway. BMW unveiled the new M3 at the 2007 Geneva auto show, and this picture hardly does it justice. It's a sleek, beautiful-looking car and we want it now. In the press materials, BMW nonchalantly says that it will use a high-performance V-8, typical of what you would expect in an M3. We actually expect quite a bit.

The car … Read more

Good vibrations for new BMW drivers

Drivers of the new BMW 5 series will have the option of an extra tech safety device to ensure that they make it to the boardroom meeting in one piece. The 2008 5 series, which will make its official debut at this week's Geneva auto show, will come with the intelligent Lane Departure Warning system (LDW), which will warn drivers if they are about to cross over a lane-dividing line without using their turn signal.

Rather than sounding a chime or flashing a light on the dashboard (a la the system in the 2007 Infiniti M35 Sport), the BMW … Read more