Petrol heads, on the other hand, may find another BMW far more interesting. The all-new M5 may have been surfing the web since June, but the 64th IAA in Frankfurt marks its first public debut.
Read more »
The new M5 won’t be going on sale Stateside before 2012, but BMW has released a new promotional video that takes us for a ride around the Laguna track.
Read more »
The cars they chose for the test include the AE Performance Nissan 370Z used in the movie Fast Five; Autotopias’ Ford Cargo Van; DC Motors Mercedes Benz CLK63 AMG Black Series; Gintani BMW X5M; Heintz Ford Mustang GT 5.0; MFEST E60 BMW M5; OE Tuning Mercedes Benz C63 AMG; Airtiger Express Nissan GTR R35; Tesla Motors Roadster Sport and finally, the Team Wu Dodge Charger Police Car.
The supercharged Dodge Charger Police Car set the baseline time of 5:46:47 minutes, which the rest of the cars had to beat. The getaway drivers had to complete two-laps around the two-and-a-half mile-long track while carrying out various tasks such as picking up an accomplice and shooting out surveillance cameras. Scroll down to watch the video and see how the cars performed.
We drooled all over the E28 535i, but now we're in pain. Behold this pristine example of a 1988 E28 BMW M5, up for sale by Autohaus for US $18,987 - that would be €13.338 at today's exchange rates.
In Europe, the E28 BMW M5 was launched in 1985 and was equipped with a 3.5-liter 24-valve 6-cylinder engine with six separate throttle butterflies,delivering 286 hp and 251 lb-ft (340Nm) of torque. However, this here example is a U.S.-spec model, meaning it comes with the less powerful S38B35 straight-six due to stricter emission regulations. It was rated at 256HP and 243 lb-ft (330 Nm).
Still, it was a bit quicker and cost less than the M6 of the era (which used the same engine) accelerating from standstill to 60 mph (96 km/h) in 6.7 seconds. It also had slightly different headlights, bumpers and tires than the Euro model.
Only one exterior color was available (black), while the standard equipment list included amenities such as a full leather interior, power-adjusted seats, cruise control, ABS, 16-inch wheels with 225/50 Pirelli tires and an AM/FM cassette stereo.
According to the BMW M registry, only 1,340 units made it to American shores with an MSRP price of US $47,500 in 1988.
The car being sold here is said to have been driven a mere 51,400 miles. Aside from the tan leather heated seats, it has air conditioning, power moon roof/windows and brand new Bridgestone Potenza tires. Also, the factory sound system has been replaced by a Sony unit, with 10 disk CD changer.
By Csaba Daradics
Link: Autohaus , Via: Autotrader
_______________________________GALLERY_______________________________
At the 26th Annual Brazilian Motor Show in Sao Paulo, the local motoring press were abuzz over Rossin-Bertin's Vorax. Carscoop reported on the carbon fibre bodied, BMW M5 engined supercar in an article last week.
We have videos aplenty, including a first taste of the Vorax's sonorous V10 soundtrack and a look behind the design process that features an interview with designer Fharys Rossin himself (albeit in Portuguese).
On display at the show was a white coupe and red convertible, though there was no word on whether one of them was the barnstorming 750 hp (559 kw) supercharged variant or whether this would be visually different to the "standard" 570 hp (425 kw) model.
The brainchild of a 37-year-old ex-GM designer, the R$700,000 (US$409,836) Vorax is set to go into production in either late 2011 or early 2012. Carscoop has its fingers crossed that this Brazillian heavyweight champion is more God than dog.
By Tristan Hankins
Source: Youtube
_______________________________VIDEOS_______________________________
Remember Murray Fowler and his BMW 2800 CS? Then you probably wondered who the next impromptu actor in BMW's "Unscripted" series would be. Well, your wait is over: it's none other than female racer and television personality Sabine Schmitz, also known as the "Queen of the Nürburgring" or the "fastest taxi driver in the world".
She earned these nicknames for lapping the German race track more than 20,000 times (according to her own estimates), mostly behind the wheel of the famous BMW M5 Ring Taxi. Other highlights of her carrier include two wins (in 1996 and 1997) and a third place finish (2008) at the 24 Hours Nürburgring.
Sabine got involved in the world of racing as a young child, when many famous drivers and motorsport personalities stayed at the Schmitz family hotel in Nürburg. As a result, all three Schmitz sisters started racing, but only Sabine had real success.
Charismatic and very natural on camera, Sabine pursued a television career as well, co-hosting a number of German motoring shows. Perhaps her most memorable moments in television are linked to several appearances on BBC’s Top Gear.
By Csaba Daradics
_______________________________VIDEO_______________________________
Behold Brazil's newest supercar, the Rossin-Bertin Vorax that will make its debut at the Sao Paulo Auto Show later this month. Looking a tad like the result of an unfortunate accident between a Nissan Juke and a Mazda RX-8, the Vorax features a carbon fibre body and aluminium chassis. According to its makers, it will weigh in at just 1,300 kg (2,866 lbs) and be powered by the same (albeit tuned) 5.0-liter V10 from the BMW M5.
In virtual testing, the "entry-level" 570 hp (425 kw) Vorax was good for a 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) time of 3.8 seconds and a top speed of 330 km/h (205 mph). Meanwhile, the 750 hp (559 kw) supercharged variant was good for 3.6 seconds and 372 km/h (231 mph), respectively.
The two men behind the Vorax are CEO and designer Fharys Rossin and (presumably lead investor) Natalino Bertin Jr. The former is a 37-year-old ex-GM designer and the latter is the 29-year-old, car-mad heir to the Bertin Group of slaughterhouses. Mr. Rossin wanted to build a supercar that could compete with the likes of Ferrari, Lamborghini and Porsche; a heady goal.
Production of the Vorax coupe will begin at a proposed plant in Blumenau, Brazil in late 2011 or early 2012. A convertible is set to follow twelve months later. Rossin-Bertin expect to sell between 500 and 1,000 Voraxes for around R$700,000 (US$409,836) each.
By Tristan Hankins
Via: A Tribuna
_______________________________GALLERY_______________________________
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
