BMW Builds One-Millionth 1-Series After Five Years

Five years after the introduction of the 1-Series in 2004, and BMW has announced that it has reached an important milestone in the model's history with the production of the one-millionth 1-Series. The commemorative model, a three-door 118d, was delivered to its owner on Monday, 12 April, on the occasion of the Leipzig Motor Show. Still in its first generation, the 1-Series is currently available as a three- and five-door hatchback, a two-door Coup? and a soft-top Convertible with a range of four-pot diesels, and 4-cylinder and 6-cylinder gasoline engines. The power range extends from 115HP in the entry-level 116d (diesel) all the way to 306HP in the two flagship models, the 135i Coup?

VIDEO: All-Electric MINI 'E' Laps the Nurburgring Circuit in Under 10 Minutes

A lightly modified race-spec version of the all-electric MINI 'E' completed a lap of the legendary 20.8 km-long "Green Hell" in a time of 09:51.45 minutes recording a top speed of 187 km/h or 116mph, the BMW Group announced today. At the wheel of the electric racer for the hot lap was former DTM racing driver Thomas J?ger from Munich. It goes without saying that the folks from the BMW Group didn't bring the MINI E to the notorious N?rburgring-Nordschleife circuit to break any records but to show that their all-electric test vehicle can manage a respectable lap time on the 'Ring. "The aim of this unique undertaking was to provide an impressive showcase of the great potential of the MINI E and its environment-friendly drive concept, " said BMW Group's Peter Krams, who led the project.

AMI Motor Show Live: 2011 Facelifted Audi TT

Audi released its facelifted Audi TT in Leipzig recently. For those who need it spelled out, the 2011 model year TT gets a 211-horse 2.0 TFSI 4-banger as en entry-level engine, and the following styling updates: LED daytime running lights, fresh front- and rear-end treatments, new shades of blue/gray/red, and an extra 2 cm in length on the outside. Inside, customers can opt for "aluminum-look" trim and a few new colors of leather. The TTS and TTRS power trains remain the same. For the full shebang, check out our previous post here. Otherwise, go a little lower... little lower... little lower ... and check out the live pics from the show. By Phil Alex Photos: UP Copyright © Carscoop.

VIDEO: 2012 Porsche Boxster Spied During Winter Testing

Porsche engineers were caught on film recently testing the next generation of the Boxster roadster that is due to be revealed at a major international motor show sometime next year. Just like the upcoming successor to today's 911 (see the spy shots here ), the Boxster prototype looks no different from the current model, but that shouldn't come to as a surprise to Porschephiles that are used to the company's evolutionary approach to design. The new Boxster will share many parts with the next 911 while the German engineers will most likely try to further reduce the car's weight to improve handling as well as to boost fuel efficiency. The engine line-up and transmissions including a six-speed manual and seven-speed dual clutch PDK will be carried over with minor changes from the current model.

2020 Lamborghini Minotauro Design Concept: Yes, Please

Andrei Avarvarii, a student getting his Master's degree at Milan's Scuola Politecnica di Design, designed this tasty electric Lamborghini concept. With assistance from Lamborghini Design head Filippo Perini, he used a "soft design language" in penning the Minotauro. The concept would use four electric motors and split the power 30%/70% front to rear. A Li-Tec flat-cell battery out back and a KERS system in the front would be providing the power. The press release goes on to explain the bonus of no big, bad V12 out back: "The absence of a big V12 engine in the rear creates enough room for a third passenger in a central position." That's right, seating for three. While the driver's door would be normal, the passenger side's would be bigger to provide access to the back seat.

Subaru Impreza WRX STI Spec C Homologated for FIA Group N

Subaru may have pulled the plug on its World Rally Championship team run by Prodrive at the end of 2008, but the Japanese carmaker is trying to keep a connection with the sport. Today, the automaker announced that its Japanese market Impreza WRX STI spec C successfully completed the vehicle homologation process and received the official Group N Homologation certificate from FIA. As a Group N vehicle and in contrast to the Group A all-out competition production-derived cars, the Impreza WRX STI spec C features limited modifications compared to the standard specification model that include enhanced engine and chassis performance as well as a lighter body. The WRX STI spec C Group N will have its racing debut at the Rallye Deutschland of Production World Rally Championship that takes place in Germany on August 22.

Ford Confirms 3.5-liter V6 EcoBoost Turbo for F-150, 2.0-liter Turbo for Explorer and Edge

Over the past few months we've heard several rumors regarding the models that will get FoMoCo's EcoBoost turbocharged engines. Now, the Detroit automaker has officially confirmed that the 2011 F-150 pickup truck will be offered with its 3.5-liter turbocharged V6 upgraded for rear-wheel-drive applications, while a new 2.0-liter inline-four turbo will find its way under the hood of the next next-generation Ford Explorer SUV and Edge CUV. The 2.0-liter EcoBoost unit will be launched along with a smaller displacement 1.6-liter EcoBoost unit, which will be used initially on the European C-Max people mover, by the end of the year. Ford said that over the next few years, it plans to equip as much as 80 percent of the firm's global nameplates and 90 percent of North American nameplates with EcoBoost.

Survey Shows the Average Car Insurance Costs in the 50 States

The folks over from Kicking Tires have posted an interesting survey said to be commissioned by an insurance-related website called "Insure" that shows the average cost of rates in the 50 states from the country's top six insurers. According to the website, data was collected from drivers of 2, 400 vehicles and sourced from 10 ZIP codes per state. Of course, different states have different standards and policies, meaning that some of the information positively and negatively skewed (hey, nothing's perfect). Interesting fact of the day: "One of the reasons Louisiana's rates are higher on average is because only cases with claims exceeding $50, 000 receive a jury trial. This means more cases are settled out of court, which leads to higher accident settlements and higher insurance costs.

Vin Diesel's 1973 Camaro F-Bomb from Fast Furious 4 up for Sale

The 1973 Camaro F-Bomb replica from the fourth installment in the Fast & Furious movie franchise (or at least one of the cars that was used in the film) is up for grabs. For those with a weak memory, the military green Camaro was driven by Dom -played by Vin Diesel- through the underground tunnels. The seller of the movie car that's equipped with a 350HP V8 engine claims the Camaro F-Bomb replica has been restored "into a show piece for exhibition" and that "unlike most movie cars, this one is fully functional as a normal driver with working gauges, heater, wipers, etc." The selling price for the 1973 Camaro F-Bomb has been set at $39, 998. Full image gallery after the jump. Link: Volocars Copyright ©

Marchionne Appears to Like the Idea of a Three-Way Alliance Between Fiat, Chrysler and PSA Citroen-Peugeot

Sergio Marchionne, head of the Fiat and Chrysler groups is predicting that the next major merger in the automotive industry will involve France's largest automaker, the PSA Peugeot-Citroen Group. "The next merger will probably be French, " Marchionne told reporters in Rome today. "They [PSA] tried with Mitsubishi and they will try with someone else." If the recent Renault-Nissan / Daimler share exchange is anything to go by, it's the cool thing to do. Marchionne has agreed in the past that partnering up with Europe's second-largest manufacturer would be a "marriage made in heaven." A report on Business Week goes on to reiterate Marchionne's beliefs: to survive globally, international manufacturers need to build "at least 5 million cars".