Dec 6th, 2012
A few months back we announced a series of limited edition MINIs created with our help by MINI of Chicago. Yet the first of those special editions, a White Silver JCW, should have been in a owner’s hands by now. What gives? As bad luck would have it, our MF Spec, 2013 JCW was included in a production delay that pushed all new JCWs back to November start dates. On the bright side, the delay has given us some time to gear up for the car’s debut, and MINI of Chicago has responded by including a MF-exclusive bonus of $1,000 in free JCW accessories to the buyer.
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Jul 31st, 2012
We’ve received a couple of noteworthy questions in the MotoringFile inbox of late, and we’d like to share the answers with the whole community. First comes this question from Dusty regarding diesel availability for the Paceman in the US:
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Jun 13th, 2012
Official Release: Unbeaten titleholders and triumphant newcomers have secured the BMW Group’s renewed pre-eminence at the 2012 International Engine of the Year Awards. Powerplants guaranteeing efficient power delivery in current BMW and MINI models topped no fewer than four out of eight displacement categories. The quartet of trophy-winners comprised two four-cylinder engines, a straight-six and an eight-cylinder. Scooping up best-in-class wins were the 1.6-litre turbo unit of the MINI John Cooper S, the four-cylinder engine with BMW TwinPower Turbo technology that drives the new BMW 328i, among others, the straight-six with M TwinPower Turbo of the BMW 1 Series M Coupe, and the V8 under the bonnet of the BMW M3. This year’s winners were selected by an international panel of judges made up of 76 motoring journalists from 36 countries. The Engine of the Year Awards were presented against the backdrop of the Engine Expo trade fair in Stuttgart. continued →
May 8th, 2012
As with the MINI USA sales numbers, fewer business days in April led to flat year-over-year sales in the wide world, yet overall sales for the year are up nearly 9% over 2011. Here’s the official breakdown:
[Official Release] With 23,789 vehicles delivered in April, worldwide sales for MINI remained at last year’s level (prev. yr. 23,839/ -0.2%). In the month under review, MINI achieved strong growth in several European countries such as France (1,569/ +22.2%) and Italy (1,652/ +13.9%), however there was lower demand in southern European countries such as Spain and Portugal. The brand also experienced dynamic growth in Asia, such as in Japan (1,353/ +32.4%), China (1,905/ +36.1%) and Korea (450/ +50.0%). The new MINI Roadster has had an excellent start with nearly 2000 units (1,976) already delivered to customers since its launch at the end of February. Year-to-date, MINI sales are up +8.6% with 92,000 units compared to 84,699 in the first four months of 2011.
[Source: BMW Group]
Apr 17th, 2012
[Official Release] The MINI Inspired by Goodwood is the most ambitious and luxurious special edition model the brand has ever launched. To celebrate delivery of the first customer cars, a single example is going on display in prime position at Harrods, the world’s most aspirational shopping destination.
The MINI which takes inspiration from the design team at Rolls Royce Motor Cars, forms part of a specially created window display. It is also visible from inside the iconic Knightsbridge store, allowing shoppers, pedestrians and drivers on the busy Brompton Road to see it. continued →
Mar 13th, 2012
News from Motoringfile, including an interview with Rob Pasaro, Head of the BMW App Center Mountainview. And as Todd prepares for his actual birthday celebration, he continues his quest to remind you of famous people who were born this month.
Moving on to Ask Chad, one of the questions was about Cooper exhuast systems. The ones we mentioned in this episode are the Megan Racing, Magnaflow and the Borla. Since we are talking Cooper, we also have a bead on a JCW Sound Kit for the R50 if you are interested. You can hear Todd’s original review here.
Woofcast 417:
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Download| 1:19:10 | 39mb | WRR @ iTunes | Show Notes
Mar 13th, 2012
Official Release: The BMW Group is confident about the current financial year after a record year in 2011. “We are targeting new highs in sales volume and pre-tax earnings for 2012”, stated Norbert Reithofer, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG at the Annual Accounts Press Conference in Munich on Tuesday. The Automotive segment remains on course to achieve an EBIT margin of between eight and ten percent, in line with our long-term profitability targets. Provided that the global economic climate does not take a turn for the worse, the BMW Group forecasts an EBIT margin in 2012 for the Automotive segment at the upper end of this corridor. continued →
