M aficionados take note: The 2010 X6 M (and yet-to-be-tested X5 M) represents the most dramatic shift in BMW's Motorsport division since its inception – and it's not because they're the first crossovers branded with the tri-tone "M" badge. This high-riding duo are the first M machines ever to be equipped with all-wheel drive. The first fitted exclusively with an automatic transmission. And the first (and surely not the last) to pack a pair of turbochargers. M has evolved, but BMW hasn't lost the plot – it's completely rewritten the screenplay, added Michael Bay firepower and harnessed the electronic might of a supercomputer farm to tie it all together.



Photos Copyright ©2009 Damon Lavrinc / Weblogs, Inc.

For the last eleven years, BMW has partnered with MotoGP to provide safety vehicles, although this year the car setting the pace is, well, not a car. Just days after BMW officially introduced the X6 M at the New York Auto Show, one had already hit the track at the MotoGP in Qatar.

Complete with a twin-turbo 4.4-liter V8 engine producing 555 horsepower, the X6 M can perform its duties essentially in stock form. The only changes apparent include a light bar on top and BMW Motorsport livery. With the racing series coming to Monterey for the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix, we got our first look at the X6 M safety vehicle and made sure to snap some pics alongside its M6 counterpart. Check out our high-res gallery below.



Photos copyright ©2009 Drew Phillips / Weblogs, Inc.

You know you've always wanted to drive a four-hundred-horsepower BMW through city streets like a bat out of hell, and now the Bavarian automaker has the legal remedy. All you'll need to do is get certified as an ambulance driver and convince your local emergency response unit to invest in this X6 ambulance, which BMW is showcasing at the upcoming RETTmobil rescue vehicle show in Fulda, Germany. The ultimate driving machine question is, which will be more difficult? Considering on one hand that the certification process is takes longer than the ending of a Peter Jackson film, and on the other that ambulances tend to require a lot of space and that the X6 is among the least utile crossover vehicles on the market, we'd say it's about a draw.

Following the X6 M safety car which BMW rolled out for MotoGP, in actuality this specially-equipped X6 xDrive50i, (complete with 407hp twin-turbo 4.4-liter V8 and more lighting than Kevin Costner's corn field) is being presented as a first-responder vehicle, carrying a doctor or paramedic to the scene of an emergency before an ambulance can get there. Few details are available, but then again, there are few cities with the kind of budget to acquire one of these bad boys. Check it out in the gallery below.



[Source: BMW]

The crew at Acura have released a single teaser of a new concept due to arrive at next month's New York Auto Show. The darkened overhead image doesn't show much, but the angular front and rear fenders, single set of door handles and sloping roofline gives us a glimpse of the BMW X6-fighting crossover spied in the past. Acura has confirmed plans to add an all new niche model into its line-up for 2010 as it continues to strive for Tier 1 status. If it's a four-door coupe-like CUV, some might question the logic, but with two crossover architectures already available, it might be a low-cost way of matching BMW model-for-model.

UPDATE: Four more images added to the gallery thanks to AcuraZine.

Call it V5, 5-Series GT, 5-Series Fastback, Progressive Activity Sedan... call it what you will. Whatever moniker you give it, BMW has evidently crossed the Rubicon and there's no turning back. As expected based upon BMW's previously leaked roster of 2009 reveals, the 5-Series -based hatchback has been approved. Called "one of the bravest designs ever signed off by BMW," it is BMW's take on everything-all-the-time: a flexible, luxury GT.

Although it is being referred to as a 5-Series family member, the car is actually expected to arrive on the same platform as the 7 Series. As such, the PAS is coming off as the ultimate tweener car: longer than a 5-Series sedan, yet shorter than a 7-Series; taller than a 5-Series, yet shorter than an X6. Cost is expected to straddle the gap, too: it should cost more than a 5 Series but less than a 7-Series. One description offered was "more of a 'tall 7-Series hatchback than a low-rise X6."

At the very front, the PAS is said to take cues from the CS Concept. That nose treatment flows into a sedan-like lower body topped by an X6 greenhouse, rear hatch, and rear end treatment. Interior design cues will come from the new Z4, and a roomy, semi-raised cabin is promised. Possible engines for the car in Europe include the 3.0-liter turbo diesel, while a 3.0-liter gas could would come to the States.

[Source: Autocar]

BMW Blog has trained its spyglass on what it says is a list of BMW rollouts for 2009, and it will begin next month with the brand spankin' new Z4 showcased at the Detroit Auto Show. It is March, though, that will bring year's first real bounty. At Geneva, BMW will be showing off a concept version of the Progressive Activity Vehicle (half 5 Series, half X6), the Concept eDrive (an electric 1 Series or 3 Series), a Z4 Individual, and the Rolls-Royce 102EX (otherwise known as the RR4). Then in April, BMW's taking the show to Shanghai with the 760Li.

Post-Shanghai, you'll get a few months to digest. Then at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September, BMW is expected to have the production-ready Progressive Activity Vehicle on display and the MINI Crossover. It is there, perhaps, that they'll also trot out a show pony speedster they call the Vision-Z with eDrive, their idea of "progress of sports cars for the future." And sprinkled on top throughout the year come launches of the 7 Series xDrive, 7 Series Hybrid, X5 M, X6 M, and X6 Active Hybrid. For bimmer lovers, 2009 is going to be a jubilee year.

[Source: BMW Blog]

The latest iteration of BMW's all-singing, all-dancing plutocrat limo will roll out the door starting at $81,125. That sum will get buyers the 2009 750i (including $825 for destination charges), but those who are looking for a bit more legroom in back will have to pay $85,025 for the 750Li. Production for these models began last month, but don't expect to see them on the forecourts of your local BMW Center until later this spring.

The rest of the BMW lineup is also getting a nudge on pricing, with the average MSRP climbing by 0.7 percent. All pricing increases are effective January 1, 2009; so if you're planning on gifting yourself a M5 or X6 for the holidays, make sure you do so before New Year's.

Click on the jump for BMW's official press release and full-line model pricing for 2009.


[Source: BMW]

You know things have gone awry when BMW now offers three different flavors of non-cars, all of them antithetical to the Bavarian brand's classical claim to fame. The X6 is the latest addition to the range, joining the X3 and X5, and BMW is calling it a Sports Activity Coupe, creating an acronym that's oddly prescient for a vehicle that's essentially a post-bris X5. Beyond the looks that are an acquired taste, we wanted to know if there's BMW goodness baked into the X6, so we swiped the keys to an X6 XDrive 35i for a week with the SAC to find out.



Photos Copyright ©2008 Dan Roth / Weblogs, Inc.

UPDATE: Image removed at request of owner.

At first we couldn't understand why the BMW X6 was birthed, and then we couldn't figure out why Acura of all companies needed to create something to compete with it. Top Speed has rendered unto us what such an enigma might look like, and, well, it ain't all bad. That's probably because it looks like an MDX with a descending roofline out back. Of course, it's impossible to know how much of any rendering is pure fiction, but The Majestic Shield of Acura matched with those lights and a proper amount of real estate could be the ideal pairing of design features and suitable canvas. Porsche's floating LEDs in the front bumper don't go astray, either. We still can't say it makes sense, but Acura, if you're really going to do this, have a look here first.

[Source: Top Speed]

Idle hands are the devil's playthings, and apparently AC Schnitzer has a lot of time on its hands. You're only required to read the first two lines of the company's press release to realize that the crew formerly known for creating rolling automotive masterworkz have officially donned their collective bouffants, made like the Fonz and jumped the shark. Here's proof: The BMW X6 Falcon.

Using the X5 Falcon as unfortunate inspiration, the X6 variant gets the same stretched out body work, giving the 'ute a 70mm wider track in the front and an additional 80mm in the rear. According to AC, extensive testing was done on the Nurburgring to hone the Falcon's high-speed prowess, aided by a new front lip, air intakes, repositioned fog lamps, side skirts and rear wing. Black or silver 22-inch Type VII wheels fill the massive arches and although it's not clear in the release, we suspect that some lowering springs were used to keep the ride-height in check.

As for power, the only models to benefit from engine tweaks are the X6 3.0d and 3.5d, boosting power to 272 hp (from 235 hp) and 310 hp (from 286 hp), respectively. And naturally, AC will sell you a set of chrome tailpipes, aluminum interior trim, pedals and floor mats emblazoned with its logo.

Hit the jump to read AC's comically overwrought press release.