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The first all-electric Mini you can buy arrives in March 2020
It took years to become more than a concept, but the first all-electric Mini you can keep is official. The Mini Electric (also known as the Mini Cooper SE) is now slated to start deliveries in March 2020, and will hew closer to the conventional two-door Mini in design than the 2017 vision. You won't get massive wheels ('just' 17 inches at most), elaborate headlights or fanciful bodywork. The focus is on what's under the surface -- BMW aims to preserve the Mini's characteristic pep in a more environmentally-conscious format.
Mercedes and BMW cars will drive themselves on the autobahn by 2024
BMW and Mercedes started working together on autonomous cars earlier this year, and now they have optimistic plans to deliver them. The automakers announced that they're developing Level 4 self-driving cars that can handle freeway driving chores without human intervention, though a driver will still need to be at the wheel. Such vehicles will include driver assist and automated parking systems and go on sale to the public by 2024.
BMW's future cruise control will read traffic lights
Adaptive cruise control systems work well on highways. Once you get into town, though, they're less helpful -- and a lot of that has to do with traffic lights. Current systems don't recognize them, resulting in drivers running a red, putting themselves and everyone else on the road in danger. Also, the authorities frown on that sort of behavior.
BMW will have 25 electrified cars on the road by 2023
At a tech-focused event in Munich, Germany this week, BMW officials have repeated the mantra that they deliver what they promise. Turns out, they also deliver quicker than they originally promised.
BMW Vision M Next: An autonomous car for people who love driving
There's a fear from some that when cars drive themselves, that'll be the end of the joy of driving. Why even get behind the wheel if your vehicle can get you to your destination while you sit back and relax? BMW -- which boasts the tag line "the ultimate driving machine" -- has a concept that'll appease the future-looking owner that doesn't want to deal with the horrors of gridlock but needs to feel like they're in control while carving up mountain passes.
BMW hints at the future of electric motorcycles with the Vision DC Roadster
BMW Motorrad has an electric scooter. The capable and fun C Evolution. An outstanding vehicle I had the pleasure of riding around on in LA. But as far as full-sized bikes go, Zero Motorcycles still rules that market while we wait for Harley-Davidson to start selling its own EV. But the German motorcycle maker has been taking its time going full size. Hopefully, the Vision DC Roadster concept is a sign of things to come.
BMW teases M concept car blending technology and performance
Can you make out what you're looking at in the obscure teaser above? Neither can we -- but it does represent the future of BMW's performance cars. The automaker has posted a teaser for a Vision M Next concept that, as the name implies, would explore the possibilities for M-series cars. The imagery doesn't hint at much more than some angular lines and a gray-and-red color scheme. There's thankfully more to it than that, though -- BMW made clear that technology would play a central role in this design.
BMW and Jaguar Land Rover team up on electric vehicles
Jaguar Land Rover and BMW are partnering to build a new generation of motors for the pair's electric vehicles. Both companies will jointly develop the technology, and work to use their combined size to make component purchases cheaper. But each business will build their own engines at their own plants, in the UK and Germany.
A BMW outage made Apple CarPlay unusable
BMW owners in both the US and UK have been locked out of Apple's CarPlay interface on their vehicles due to system-wide outages of ConnectedDrive. 9to5Mac reported that complaints from drivers on both sides of the pond began racking up on social media earlier this week. The German car company's subscription-based connectivity service lets drivers to connect to Apple's CarPlay, which manages everything from navigation to phone calls. With ConnectedDrive being down, cars are unable to confirm that drivers have paid for the CarPlay options in their vehicle.
The BMW M850i elevates the road trip with high tech
Road trips are wonderful. But while cruising along in a beat-up Civic or Bug made for great stories in your 20s, as you get older you want a little more comfort. You also want some power and the latest tech. And you know what, let's throw in the wind rustling through your hair. Turns out you get picky as you age. Don't fret, older human, BMW's got your back.
EU believes BMW, Daimler and VW colluded over clean emissions tech
The European Commission believes BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen worked together to delay clean emissions technology. Last fall, the EU Commission launched a formal investigation to determine if the automakers breached EU antitrust rules by restricting competition on the development of emissions-reducing technology. Now, in a Statement of Objections, the Commission has informed BMW, Daimler and VW of its "preliminary view" that they did in fact violate antitrust rules -- meaning they also led to higher emissions and denied consumers the opportunity to buy less polluting cars.
BMW’s future EVs could outlast the competition by 200 miles
BMW has said that it wants to build all variants of its cars (hybrid, gas, electric) on the same production lines. So, a 3 Series with an internal combustion engine (ICE) will be built right beside one with a battery pack. It relies on the automaker being nimble and that means major changes to how BMW's EVs are built.
BMW's latest plug-in hybrid is the all-new X3 xDrive30e
BMW has unveiled its latest plug-in hybrid electric (PHEV) vehicles at the Geneva Motor Show, including the first ever PHEV version of its small crossover, the X3 xDrive30e. That model will go about 31 miles on electrons alone, enough to go around town without burning any gas. If you want to do the latter, and go quickly while doing it, the four-cylinder gas engine produces 244 horsepower, with another 40 on top if when you marry the gas and electric motors.
After Math: Mobile World Mayhem
Mobile World Congress is kicking off this weekend in Barcelona, Spain and Engadget's crack team of reporters will be coming to you live from the show floor! But the trade show isn't the only thing making mobile news this week: Chevy's finally adding a "Find my Car" feature to its app, Intel's pumping the brakes on rumors of its 5G modem availability, and Facebook is (unsurprisingly) once again in trouble for scraping sensitive data from its mobile users. In less disturbing news, BMW and Daimler are looking to invest a billion dollars into a different sort of "mobile" project.
BMW and Daimler invest $1 billion in their joint mobility services
German automakers BMW and Daimler AG provided a host of details on their partnerhsip that will that will invest more than $1 billion into mobility services. The companies, which agreed to pool their services last year, plan to invest in handful of programs designed to help simplify and improve transportation in urban areas. The pair have created five joint ventures focused on everything from ride sharing to parking and expect the initiatives will produce around 1,000 new jobs.
BMW launches a performance 7 Series PHEV
BMW has launched its 2020 7 Series sedans, and controversy about the ginormous grill aside, they're some of the company's highest-tech models yet. The 745e xDrive has a plug-in hybrid 389 HP inline six-cylinder with a 12.0 kWh battery that should allow for some grocery-getting purely on electrons (BMW hasn't released range figures yet). That combo will accelerate you to 60 mph in just 4.9 seconds, but if that's not fast enough, there's also a 523 HP V8 on the 750i xDrive or a 600-horsepower twin-turbo V12 on the 760i.
BMW's iNext mixed reality concept entertains as your car drives itself
BMW's iNext concept vehicle continues to reveal new tricks after its official introduction at the LA Auto Show last November. Ahead of CES 2019 in Las Vegas on Sunday, the company showed off its latest futuristic feature, mixed reality holographic display.
US regulators approve BMW-Daimler services merger
BMW and Daimler's plan to combine their transportation services, including car sharing, ride hailing and electric vehicle charging, is a step closer to reality after US antitrust officials approved the partnership. The companies hope to close the deal by January 31st, and plan to reveal more details of their joint venture by the end of March.
Next-gen EV charger adds 62 miles of range in three minutes
Reducing charge times is a key factor for widespread EV adoption, and BMW and Mercedes just took a new step in that direction. A Porsche EV prototype charged at a record 400 kW rate, gaining 100 km of range in just three minutes, while BMW brought its research i3 vehicle from a 10 to 80 percent charge in 15 minutes. Both companies were testing out a new 450 kW charger recently inaugurated in Jettingen-Scheppach, Bavaria as part of part of their "FastCharge" consortium.
Some companies are considering ditching WiFi for private 5G
No matter how much it's changed our lives, WiFi can be endlessly annoying because of how spotty and unreliable it often is, even for those of us in small homes. It can prove a bigger headache still for companies that need reliable connections for their devices, particularly across a wide area. So, some businesses are looking towards a newer method of keeping their equipment and employees connected: 5G.