BMW teams up with eBay

Designed to maximize convenience, the new service is called BMW Direct and will be offered in the United Kingdom. At launch, the program has 400 parts available and all have free shipping and a two year warranty.

According to Carl Sanderson, General Manager of Aftersales Development at BMW UK, "We recognize that there are customers who wish to buy BMW products but do not necessarily want to travel to a BMW dealer to make a purchase. As such we see eBay as the perfect solution for them. By embracing this modern retailing approach, we believe we can engage with and satisfy a number of additional customers through what is a new retail channel for BMW.

BMW 1 Series M

According to the magazine, the smaller, lighter BMW 1 Series M Coupe is actually faster than the current model BMW M3 around the track. Sport Auto clocked a lap time of 1:14.1 minutes in the 1 M around Hockenheim, and a time of 1:14.2 in an M3 coupe fitted with the DCT transmission on the same day.
The 1 M’s 3.0-litre, 250kW turbocharged straight-six engine, it seems, is a great match for the larger 4.0-litre, 309kW V8 used in the M3. Both cars also sprint from 0-100km/h in 4.9 seconds and go on to an electronically limited top speed of 250km/h (test results do vary).
Despite recent criticisms that the new 1 M Coupe is too ‘tail happy’, Sport Auto says this is a good thing as it returns back to the BMW M car heritage. The reviewers said,
“It’s good to know that not all cars are tuned in to understeer for safety reasons.”
Some of the speculated reasons for the quicker lap time of the 1 M include it being lighter in weight (1495kg versus 1680kg [DCT]) and because it offers more torque than the bigger M3 (the 1 M offers a maximum figure of 500Nm compared with the M3′s 400Nm).

BMW Z4 GT3

Never one to rest on its laurels, BMW took the car from the winners circle in Dubai and put it right back on a test track. After a good beating throughout March, BMW made aerodynamic and electronic tweaks to get the racer into absolute state-of-the-art shape for customer entries in 2011 GT3 competition.The BMW Z4 GT3 resembles its production cousin in name and basic shape only. Most of its body panels have been significantly altered to keep the car slipping through the air and bolted to the road.
Under the hood, the production Z's six-cylinder heart has been ripped out and replaced with the same 4.4-liter V8 that sees duty in the M3. The V8 feeds power to the ground through a six-speed paddle-shifted sequential manual.

BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe concept

We've heard a few times that BMW is working on a 3 Series Gran Turismo, but a rumor floated at Germany's Auto Motor und Sport claims the GT may instead be an all-new 4 Series. If true, BMW Blog says that a 4 Series could be offered as a four-door coupe that would help BMW compete with offerings like the A5 Sportback. The move would also enable BMW to offer a more stylish vehicle that slots well below the 6 Series in price while still demanding a premium over the 3 Series. And keep in mind that BMW has already green-lit the 6 Series Gran Coupe, which will feature two-door styling and four physical doors when it arrives in 2012.

Given that Audi has feverishly expanded its lineup the past few years, we wouldn't blame BMW for countering with a 4 Series, but this is the first we've heard of it, so we'll keep this one squarely in the rumormill category for now.

2011 Red Bull RB7

Red Bull is once again looking strong as it heads into Formula One's opening round in Australia. Red Bull ace and last year's champ Sebastien Vettel took pole position for Sunday's race by nearly a second in Saturday qualifying. Mark Webber, Vettel's teammate and Australia's hometown hero, wound up third behind Lewis Hamilton.

Red Bull claims that neither of its drivers used their KERS (Kinetic Energy Regeneration System) during qualifying, which is usually good for .3 seconds a lap. That means, in theory anyway, Vettel has a potential 1.5 second advantage over the competition when the green flag waves tomorrow.

McLaren's Lewis Hamilton is sandwiched between the two Red Bulls in second, while teammate and 2009 champ Jenson Button sits fourth behind Webber. Fernando Alonso is fifth in the first of the Ferraris ahead of Vitaly Petrov for Renault. Mercedes' Nico Rosberg is seventh, ahead of the second Ferrari of Felipe Massa. Kamui Kobayashi sits ninth for Sauber and Sebastien Buemi rounds out the top 10 for Toro Rosso.

Rotary Super Cars

Based on the photo above, you might think that you're looking at some version of the Ferrari 599. You'd be wrong, though, as this is actually a specially-built rotary supercar from an independent German manufacturer known as – you ready for this? – Rotary Super Cars.

Underneath what appears to be replicated fiberglass and carbon fiber Fiorano bodywork sits a four-rotor Wankel engine developed by RSC with parts sourced from that other House of Rotor, Mazda. The supercar is projected to offer four levels of trim including S, RS, RSR and N-Spec, featuring single or twin turbochargers with output ranging from 500 metric horsepower all the way up to 1,200. An in-house eight-speed sequential transmission is also part of the package, along with active aerodynamics and suspension, electronic differential and a carbon-aluminum driveshaft, making its resemblance to its Maranello counterpart (rotary engine notwithstanding) more than passing.
Inside, the RSC Raptor GT is also said to feature a pair of seven-inch digital displays coupled with a five-inch tachometer, gear indicator and shift lights, the entire package supposedly weighing in at a claimed 2,425 pounds. RSC also plans an all-wheel drive, mid-engine project with similar specs, which seems like a lot to bite off while they still appear to be chewing on this one. But in the meantime you can check out the trio of renderings in the gallery below and the press release after the jump.

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