BLUETEC Diesels To Be In All Mercedes SUVs By 2008
September 26th, 2006
Mercedes-Benz announced today that 2008 models of the M-, R- and GL-Class will be offered with BLUETEC diesel engines that meet the Environmental Protection Agency’s tough BIN5 emissions standards in all 50 states.
Not long ago the 2007 Mercedes-Benz E320 BLUTEC failed to meet emissions standards in California and four other states. These 2008 models will use more advanced urea-injection technology to ensure that they earn the right to be sold nationwide.
While Mercedes didn’t mention which BLUTEC engine(s) will be available when these 2008 models go on sale, the likely candidate is the same 3.0-liter V6 turbodiesel used in the E320 BLUETEC that’s been tweaked to pass muster in California and other states with stricter standards.
Last BMW X5 Rolls Of The Line, Making Way For The Next Generation
September 24th, 2006
The last of the first-generation X5 Sports Activity Vehicle was produced Friday at BMW Manufacturing Co. in Upstate South Carolina, making way for the production of the next generation X5.
The Toledo Blue 3.0is X5 sports a Truffle Brown leather interior with a Dark Grain Poplar wood trim. Due to its significance to BMW, the factory will keep the vehicle and display it in the Zentrum museum as part of the BMW Mobile Tradition Collection.
BMW Z2
August 31st, 2006
Press reports from Germany suggest BMW is readying an affordable roadster below the Z4 to challenge the Mazda MX-5 for supremacy in the entry-level sports car market.
The new two-seater is said to be the centerpiece of a plan devised by the German carmaker’s outgoing chairman, Helmut Panke, to extend what insiders describe as the Z-car lineup. Just as the German carmaker’s X-car lineup was expanded to include the X3 and X5, BMW also sees demand for a Z2 to complement the existing Z4. The Z4 moved upmarket to challenge the Porsche Boxster when it replaced the Z3 back in 2002.
