BMW 6 Series News

... following the lines of the already seen 6 Series convertible.Both new Beemers run turbocharged V8s, 4.4 litres and 300kW in the case of the coupe, the M5's output through its seven-speed gearbox hasn't been announced.But the Germans promise this M5 will be a "new interpretation of the business sedan that aspires to reach the level of driving dynamics typical of a high-performance sports car".

Almost a quarter of a century later he managed to buy one; an Alpina B10 replica. (Alpina is a German tuning, customising and motorsport company specialising in BMWs.) Kelly's car started life as a 1986 BMW M635 CSi. It was bought for $55,000 in 1993 by Martin Dibb of Melbourne who then spent $82,000 completely rebuilding it to Alpina B10 specifications.The first thing to go was the auto box which was replaced with a Getrag five-speed manual.  It also received a shorter drive shaft, engine remapping, Alpina-spec suspension, Bilstein dampers, stainless steel exhaust system, engine blueprint and balance, Alpina forged pistons, Alpina brake callipers, ventilated discs, Alpina wheels, a Stowes of Sydney paint job and exterior/interior fit-out with Alpina stickers, badges and decals, including a replica certification plate on the glovebox.The new owner fell in love when he saw it.  "My wife Gail and I love everything German," Kelly says.  The first car the Californian bought was an American 1955 Fordomatic V8 he paid $300 for when he was 16.  "I outgrew it and went to uni and sold it," he says.He then owned a Nissan 269Z, followed by an MG TD before he started his German love affair with a Porsche 924 which he took to Germany where he worked for a while.  "A bit silly to buy it in the States and then take it to Germany," he says  "That's when Gail started falling in love with BMWs. She had a 735i."The couple then moved to Australia where they owned a Toyota Camry, Honda CR-V, then a 2004 BMW X5 4.4-litre V8, a 1981 Porsche 928 auto and a 1984 928 GTS.  They still own the X5 and Porsches and belong to both the BMW and Porsche owner clubs.She says "German cars are reliable, comfortable and they feel safe."  He says, "I like the styling and power."  She says, "He used to rubbish me because I loved BMWs."Then he stumbled on the BMW Alpina replica and the friendly family feud over marques ended.  He bought it for $55,000 in December and plans to show it at various concourse events.  "I was looking for the perfect show car and this is it," he says."I didn't mind it being a replica.  "It was converted with Alpina's blessing, but they wouldn't give it a genuine coach badge."So how does it drive?  "Absolutely great," he says.  "It's got herb," she says. "But it's his baby. I don't drive it."  They haven't been driving it much at all lately as they don't take it out in the rain."The previous owner never drove it in the rain, either," Barry says.  "I spend a lot of time cleaning it, nourishing the leather, conditioning the trim."  He keeps his baby in his garage under a special tailored cover he had made in the US for $300.  "It fits like a glove," he says.  "And I always keep a chamois in our cars, just in case it rains."

Even in the exotic $200,000-plus class the porky German coupe and convertible are far from stars, with just 62 delivered down under by the end of November - a 42 per cent slump from the same time in 2008.But the lacklustre results in Australia have not slowed development of the upcoming replacement for the current 6 Series in Europe.  The droptop Six has just been caught by Carparazzi in the Arctic at the start of the latest winter testing season.Surprisingly, the Cabrio is out first and it comes with a folding canvas roof and not one of the popular coupe-convertible hardtops.  BMW, Benz and Audi have now all gone canvas on recent droptops, mostly because it frees luggage space and also because it makes it easier to put people into back seats.Carparazzi says the Cabrio test car has a fake rear window sitting inside the fins used at the trailing edge of the folding roof, something carried over from the previous model.  The shape, too, is very similar to the outgoing 6 Series despite changes to almost every panel.The Six is currently only sold as a V8-powered 650 in Australia but the global line-up will run to a 630, 650 and 635d when the new model arrives.

Logic tells me that German engineers are infallible, and that the BMW 650i I'm driving will stop itself from rear-ending everyone, thanks to its Active Cruise Control with Stop & Go Function.

It's not every day you drive along a dark, winding road at night, actually willing a kangaroo to hop out in front of you. But where else could we fully test BMW's freaky, futuristic Night Vision system?We had to discount taking it onto a battlefield against similarly equipped tanks, because we don't have the Top Gear TV show's budget.Hunting a group of C-grade actors pretending to be commandos through a jungle, Predator-style, was discounted for similar reasons.The system, a $4000 option on the 5, 6 and 7 Series, uses a thermal-imaging camera to beam hot and steamy footage of the road ahead, some 300m ahead, in fact, to the display screen in the middle of the dash.It works stunningly well, but can also be supremely distracting if you keep it on while driving around town.The really fascinating stuff is all the useless information Night Vision provides you with.Like how much heat comes out of the diff on a four-wheel drive, the fact that some people are, literally, hotter than others, and some have really hot legs, and that you can see the exhaust system glowing on every car in front of you.In fact, every vehicle looks like it's had one of those hoony blue downlights installed.You can also determine, among the parked cars, which ones have been driven most recently.It really does make you feel like the Predator, if the Predator got a job in a bank, started wearing a suit and bought a posh car.The information you're presented with verges on overload, and watching the screen did make two passengers feel physically ill.The fact that, being a bit of a geek, I couldn't take my eyes off the screen was also bordering on dangerous. But the Night Vision system really comes into its own when you get out of town and there's suddenly a lot less heat to see on the screen, allowing you to look at the road, like you're supposed to.This means your eyes are drawn to the Night Vision screen only when something,  a cyclist, a kangaroo, a particularly keen hitch-hiker poping up in the distance.The advantage in this setting is obvious, as the thermal-imaging camera picks up these hot items before the naked eye can.As BMW helpfully points out, about 45 per cent of fatal road accidents occur at night, even though more than two-thirds of all driving is done during the day.And it's a fair bet that our headlight-loving fauna is involved in a disturbing number of those night-time incidents.With that in mind, $4000 doesn't seem like a lotto spend. Even if it saves you only once, it'sa great investment.What is a slight concern is that, until the technology becomes as common as satnav, you're going to have a lot of rich toy boys driving around showing off their Night Vision to their mates, barely having their eyes on the road.The system we tested was installed in a 550i that was so heavily laden with gadgetry it made the space shuttle look like the Wright Brothers' little plane.When we weren't oohing and aahing over the infra-red images, we did notice that it was a fine executive express with plenty of grunt, sweet steering and a smooth ride.If I could just find that $163,900 I lost down the back of the couch (plus $4000 for Night Vision), I'd think about buying one. 

Car makers are following in the footsteps of Mercedes-Benz and Lexus by putting folding metal hard-tops within the reach of more car buyers than ever before.It's a case of Viva la France in this instance, as Renault and Peugeot have folding metal hardtops starting well under the $50,000 mark, with the Pug 307CC Sport the only transgressor at $55,000.The rest of the Peugeot drop-top range – the two 206CC models and the 307CC Dynamic – will feature on the Peugeot display at Wayville, giving wind in the hair motoring with French fl air for a $32,990 starting price.The base 206CC is powered by a 1.6-litre engine – there's a two-litre model as well – and it's only got decent room for two people, although it offi cially seats four. The 206 is nearing the end of its model life so stay tuned for a drop-top 207.The 307CC offers a little more room for the rearseat occupants, although it uses similar drivetrains. Holden might be sourcing its light and small car entrants from Korea, but its fashionable two-seater drop-top is still from Europe. The two-seater is keenly priced and, while only available in manual, will get plenty of attention from new car buyers. Holden's present Astra has a soft-top but expect the next one to follow in the Tigra's tyre tracks, although it's no sure thing for Australia.Mitsubishi will be showing something close to its drop-top contender, the Colt coupe-cabriolet, which has started production in Italy.The folding metal hardtop is built from the Colt fi ve-door platform and rather than the three-door, the 2+2 convertible will join a revamped Mitsubishi light car range.But don't think the rag-top has gone the way of the dodo – anything but.The reigning Wheels Car of the Year is Mazda's new MX-5, which retained its manual folding soft-top for the sake of saving weight.BMW's 6-Series drop-top might cost more than $200,000 but that pricetag buys a soft-top, albeit one that is well-insulated. The company's Z4 has retained a rag-top, as has the BMWowned Mini range.Chrysler's Crossfire – a feature of the brand's stand at this year's show – also has a rag-top.Volvo's new open-topped star, the C70, has ditched the cloth roof for a solid top, while the Lexus SC430 has offered buyers of the brand the security of a metal roof with wind-in-hair enjoyment since its inception.Bentley and Lamborghini will be wellrepresented in the megabuck drop-top realm with cloth lids, as will the all-new Jaguar XK convertible.

More than 25,000 admirers, tyre kickers and buyers packed the Convention Centre at South Bank on the second day of the show last Saturday, smashing all previous records.The 8000 increase on the previous single-day best crowd was helped by the official season launch of the V8 Supercar championship which featured all the stars and cars of the Holden versus Ford series in nearby Little Stanley St.While most come to dream there are those who use the opportunity to compare notes between rival brands at close range and under the one roof.With fuel prices remaining high, the cost of running a vehicle remains a key buying consideration among many buyers.For those wanting to stretch their dollar further at the pump there are fresh injections of turbo diesel variants in the passenger car line-up including Volkswagen's Polo oil burner for $22,990.Lexus provided the Queensland public with its first look at the GS450H saloon, a luxury petrol/electric hybrid which is scheduled to do business in local showrooms from May.BMW, which is showing off a new range of V8 engines in the 5, 6 and 7-series at the show, says it will have a hydrogen-powered 7-series on Australian roads in two years but there is a need for government intervention to possibly sort through filling station infrastructure.While the future is firmly set on alternative power sources, there remains an unwavering passion for hot blooded exotic sports machines.In performance alley at the show there is the stunning Pagani Zonda Roadster, priced at $1.3 million or the equivalent of four median-priced Brisbane homes.While Holden is flooring the fans with the hot rod Efigy, it also previewed its next four-wheel-drive wagon, the Capitva.VW took the covers off the new Passat sedan and wagon while Fiat had a range of Puntos which will signal the Italian maker's return to the passenger car ranks in Australia this year. The show continues until Sunday.