bmw

Pandora is leaving no car behind, but will the expansion of Spotify derail the momentum? Audi brings its RS line back to the U.S., in small form, while BMW expands use of carbon fiber. And we take a ride in an espresso cup.

• First Android Car Radio USB Connection on Way

• Spotify launch in US

• Pandora increases its auto offerings

• BMW opens online art-car gallery

• Mercedes-Benz restructuring Smart

You may have seen old vans or other beater cars festooned with plastic toys and wacky paint jobs trundling around the streets. These art cars became popular enough in the last couple of decades to spawn art-car shows. But BMW has been commissioning art cars since the mid-1970s, and now makes them available for viewing in a well-designed online exhibition.

The first BMW art car was a 3.0 CSL, used as a canvas by Alexander Calder in 1975. Since then, artists such as Andy Warhol and Jeff Koons have taken paintbrushes to BMW cars, covering models from the M1 to the Z1. … Read more

The M3 has always been a serious sports car, but in recent years it seems every BMW is getting loaded up with tech. No complaints from us--except when it comes to an M3. It should be lean, spare, and all about driving, which is exactly the kind of M3 that got dropped on our doorstep. You want nav? Unfold a map. As a result, the pure excellence of it as a driving machine shone through. Brian Cooley takes you for a drive to check the tech.

You can also read the full CNET review of the 2011 BMW M3 here. … Read more

Could you have predicted in 1965 that a $3,000 Mustang would be worth $50,000 today? Or in 1960 that a $5,000 Corvette could go for $100,000 in 50 years? There are certainly many cars from the past that are gone and forgotten, that will never attain anything like classic status. Trying to predict classic cars is harder than picking soybean futures.

Nevertheless, the editors of Car Tech decided to give it a try. Looking at cars from the last decade, we came up with 10 that seemed like they should stand the test of time. Most of the cars we picked had niche interest or a limited production run, ensuring some rarity in the future. A car like the first-generation Toyota Prius heralds the beginning of a new trend in the automotive world, while the Pontiac G8 marks the end of a brand. … Read more

Forgive a jaded car reviewer, but when the BMW M3 showed up on the schedule, I thought, meh. I had driven the current generation of M3 in coupe and convertible forms a couple of years ago, and all the cars I've reviewed since obviously left me jaded. (I know some of you are now thinking, if I kill you, do I get your job?)

But actually getting behind the wheel of the M3, hearing the growl of the engine as it fired up, feeling that thick steering wheel, erased all notion that this would be just another in a … Read more

VW says leave the driving to us, Scion upgrades its aftermarket cabin tech, and a Honda Insight goes too fast for the competition.

• VW shows autopilot tech

• 56.2 MPG could be the new Federal requirement

• Apple preparing to take the TBT lead back from Android?

• Scion finally upgrades its cabin tech with the launch of the 2012 tC RS 7.0 and the 2012 xB

• Honda Insight rally car banned for being too fast

DETROIT--As smartphones, tablets, and other sophisticated electronic devices become ubiquitous, automakers worry that young people may be more interested in the newest gadget than in owning a new car.

In a panel discussion last week at the Automotive News Green Car Conference, several players on the front lines of developing new cars and light trucks said vehicle connectivity is important in making vehicles more attractive to young drivers.

Bill Reinert, national alternative fuel vehicle manager at Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A., said the number of people aged 16 to 21 who are eligible for a driver's license, but … Read more

The secret to avoiding range anxiety while driving the Mini E may have less to do with how or where you drive, but in deciding which car to take in the first place.

BMW and the University of California, Davis, released a study of 120 families who leased the Mini E in California, New York, and New Jersey from June 2009 to June 2010. A majority of drivers reported that the Mini E met their daily driving needs, but they also said a second gas-powered car was key to avoiding the EV's shortcomings.

When asked to agree or disagree … Read more

MUNICH, Germany--They all shared a medium: Andy Warhol, Jeff Koons, Alexander Calder, David Hockney, Robert Rauschenberg, Frank Stella, and 12 others. But it wasn't canvas. In fact, it was the metal surfaces of a group of BMW cars, and together, for more than 35 years, they created one of the most unusual and unlikely collections of all time.

These are the BMW art cars, a group of 17 works by those world-famous artists and other leaders in the pop art movement. While most of the great works by these geniuses hang stationary on walls or stands around the world, … Read more