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2009
Porsche Panamera - Car News
We have
the clearest pictures yet of Porsche’s
svelte super-sedan.
BY STEVE SILER, PHOTOGRAPHY BY
BRENDA PRIDDY & COMPANY
September 2006
 After
sorting through many spy shots
of Porsche’s highly anticipated
Panamera four-door coupe—many
of which involved BMW M5–bodied
mules that prove worthless in
terms of styling conjectures—we
have finally found some that tell
us something about the vehicle’s
looks, which, let’s face
it, are just as important as performance
these days.
Clearly,
the body is right in line with
renderings Porsche provided to
the press when it announced plans
for the Panamera last year. The
headlights and front air intakes
mimic the legendary Carrera GT,
which the Panamera replaces in
the production line at Porsche’s
Leipzig facility (which also pumps
out that other front-engined Porsche,
the Cayenne). The long, flat body
has truly exotic proportions,
not unlike those of the upcoming
Aston Martin Rapide. Underneath
the tape around the window of
the prototype’s rear door,
we can see what appears to be
a successful interpretation of
Porsche’s trademark C-pillar
shape.
In
back, we see a shapely tush with
flared fenders and a tapering
backlight that pay reverent homage
to the mighty Carrera. Modern
touches include round taillights
within clear housings and a pop-up
spoiler underneath that web of
netting. The tail is finished
off with an air diffuser and quad
exhaust pipes, which we hope indicate
the presence of the Cayenne Turbo’s
450-hp 4.5-liter V-8 under the
hood.
That
said, there is much speculation
but little actually known about
the Panamera’s powertrains,
but likely is that it will feature
all-wheel drive, a 6-speed automatic
transmission and a choice of ridiculously
powerful V-8s. Pricing is expected
to be well north of $100K, but
just how far is also unknown.
Expect the Panamera to be launched
sometime in 2008.
2008
BMW 3-Series Convertible and Facelifted
3-Series Sedan - Car News
BMW
street-tests its first-ever hardtop
convertible and gives the sedan
an early facelift.
BY STEVE SILER, PHOTOGRAPHY BY
HANS G. LEHMANN/HIDDEN IMAGE
September 2006
 BMW's
deified 3-Series is always something
we watch like, well, spy photographers.
So any time changes are spotted
especially when two different
variants are involved we bring
you the news post haste.
The
convertible you see here offers
few surprises from a styling standpoint,
unless you are one of the three
people on earth that didn’t
know BMW has caved to the hardtop
convertible trend. Certainly,
the additional weight and compromised
center of gravity of that three-section
top will undoubtedly compromise
performance. However, particularly
in the case of the 300-hp, twin-turbocharged
335i version (a 328i convertible
will be available as well), the
performance compromise shouldn’t
be significant. With such a wide,
long roof sandwiching into the
trunk on pretty days, the decklid
is wide, with cutlines that dip
way down the vehicle’s side.
Good thing we’ve acclimated
to droopy, choppy rear ends of
other Bimmer models.
The
sedan freshening is sort of a
surprise, however timely, considering
the recently redesigned Infiniti
G35 sedan and soon-to-be-released
W204 Mercedes-Benz C-Class are
poised to be more formidable competitors
than ever. The new sedan will
feature deeply sculpted front
and rear bumpers and slightly
modified headlamp units with clear
turn signal lenses. The Z4-like
gouge in the driver door appears
to be accidental. Hopefully.
2010
BMW Z2 - Car News
 New
BMW roadster to compete in less
pricey MX-5 Miata segment. Z2
should sell for less than $30,000
when it appears, most likely in
2010. BY JUERGEN ZOELLTER , October
2006
According
to sources inside BMW, the German
automaker plans to launch a roadster
priced well below the current
Z4, which starts at $36,295. Although
the price has not been set, the
new two-seat droptop, dubbed the
Z2, is expected to occupy the
sub-$30,000 roadster segment that
is currently dominated by the
Pontiac Solstice and Mazda MX-5.
The successor to today's Z4 will
remain near $40,000 and will continue
to compete against the Audi TT,
Porsche Boxster, Nissan 350Z,
and Chevrolet Corvette.
The
upcoming bargain-basement two-seater
will reportedly be based on the
chassis and components of the
current Z4, but it will measure
a mere 151 inches in length, making
it about 10 inches shorter than
today's Z4. Styling for the Z2
is in the process of being finalized,
but we expect the diminutive roadster
to have short overhangs and 19-inch
wheels. Our artist's rendering
provides an idea of what BMW might
have in store for its Solstice
and MX-5 fighter.
Unlike
today's Z4, which is powered exclusively
by six-cylinder engines, the Z2
will only get four-cylinder power.
However, those engines will range
in strength from 150 horsepower
in base versions all the way to
a turbocharged 300-hp, 2.0-liter
four-cylinder in the M-tuned version.
An expected curb weight of 2800
pounds should allow the Z2 to
make the most of that power. Transmission
choices will include a traditional
manual and ?surprise, surprise
?a double-clutch gearbox similar
to Volkswagen/Audi's DSG. BMW
plans on replacing its rough-shifting
sequential manual gearboxes with
smoother DSG-like transmissions
before the end of the decade.
To
keep costs down, a nearly identical
chassis to today's Z4 will underpin
the Z2 ?struts up front with
a multilink setup in back ?but
there will be the option of adjustable
shocks. The electric power-steering
rack from the Z4 will also live
on in the Z2, with optional variable-ratio
active steering.
Set
to go on sale in 2010, the made-in-America
BMW Z2 should add some German
flavor to a segment dominated
by the Americans and Japanese.
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