BMW Thinks About All-Wheel Drive For M Cars Again

There are changes afoot in the Volkswagen Golf family. We'll begin with the bad news, the two-door Golf GTI will be no more in the U.S. Car and Driver was able to confirm this news with Volkswagen. Why? 
“The trend is clearly shifting toward four-door models,” said Volkswagen of America’s marketing chief, Hendrik Muth.
Originally, Volkswagen was planning to offer the two-door GTI for 2017, but only in the base S trim. 
Now for the possible good news, Volkswagen is considering adding all-wheel drive to the standard Golf. During the press launch of the Golf Alltrack, Volkswagen's vice president of product marketing and strategy Dr. Hendrik Muth explained that adding 4Motion to the Puebla, Mexico factory has brought forth new possibilities. The Truth About Cars asked if one of the possibilities was adding all-wheel drive to the standard Golf and Muth answered "Yes".
Volkswagen wants to give Subaru a real challenge in the compact class. The Japanese automaker is the only one that offers all-wheel drive on their standard compact models - Impreza and XV Crosstrek. 
Source: Car and Driver, The Truth About Cars
Pic Credit: William Maley for Cheers & Gears

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There are changes afoot in the Volkswagen Golf family. We'll begin with the bad news, the two-door Golf GTI will be no more in the U.S. Car and Driver was able to confirm this news with Volkswagen. Why? 
“The trend is clearly shifting toward four-door models,” said Volkswagen of America’s marketing chief, Hendrik Muth.
Originally, Volkswagen was planning to offer the two-door GTI for 2017, but only in the base S trim. 
Now for the possible good news, Volkswagen is considering adding all-wheel drive to the standard Golf. During the press launch of the Golf Alltrack, Volkswagen's vice president of product marketing and strategy Dr. Hendrik Muth explained that adding 4Motion to the Puebla, Mexico factory has brought forth new possibilities. The Truth About Cars asked if one of the possibilities was adding all-wheel drive to the standard Golf and Muth answered "Yes".
Volkswagen wants to give Subaru a real challenge in the compact class. The Japanese automaker is the only one that offers all-wheel drive on their standard compact models - Impreza and XV Crosstrek. 
Source: Car and Driver, The Truth About Cars
Pic Credit: William Maley for Cheers & Gears

BMW Group U.S. Reports August 2016 Sales
BMW brand sales decrease 8.0 percent MINI brand sales decrease 2.7 percent Woodcliff Lake, NJ – September 1, 2016… Sales of BMW brand vehicles decreased 8.0 percent in August for a total of 25,531 compared to 27,755 vehicles sold in August, 2015.  Year-to-date, the BMW brand is down 8.3 percent in the U.S. on sales of 204,744 vehicles compared to 223,348 sold in the first eight months of 2015.
 
Notable vehicle sales in August include the BMW 7 Series which increased to 1,230 cars, the BMW X3 which increased to 4,668 vehicles, and the BMW X5 which increased to 4,121 vehicles.
 
“The clear trend toward Sports Activity Vehicles took a good-sized leap forward in August, as our U.S. plant again increased production and availability of the always popular BMW X3 and X5 pushing total X model sales to 44% of BMW retail in the U.S. in August,” said Ludwig Willisch, President and CEO, BMW of North America. “With the production increase, I fully expect the key SAV numbers to remain strong in the U.S. through the end of the year.”
 
BMW Group Sales
In total, the BMW Group in the U.S. (BMW and MINI combined) reported August sales of 30,500 vehicles, a decrease of 7.2 percent from the 32,864 vehicles sold in the same month a year ago.  Year-to-date, BMW Group sales are down 9.2 percent on sales of 239,631 vehicles in the first eight months of 2016 compared to 263,908 in the same period in 2015. 
 
MINI Brand Sales
For August, MINI USA reported 4,969 automobiles sold, a decrease of 2.7 percent from the 5,109 sold in the same month a year ago.  Year-to-date, MINI USA reported a total of 34,887 automobiles sold, a decrease of 14.0 percent from 40,560 automobiles sold in the first eight months of 2015.

G. David Felt
Alternative Fuels & Propulsion writer
www.CheersandGears.com
 
2017 Chevy BOLT Update

Car & Driver did a ride along on a near production BOLT with  Bolt’s chief engineer, Josh Tavel . It was interesting to read that while Tavel stated the BOLT does zero to 60 in 7 seconds, that that drove it said the feel in the butt is that it is faster than that. They also stated that hit feels even faster the the BMW i3. Picture are here of a early run on the assembly line of a Chevy BOLT. These car pictures are our best view of what the production run BOLT will look like and it is looking very nice indeed.
Some of the other interesting notes is that Josh is an SCCA Spec Racer. As such he had been very focused on making sure the BOLT is dialed in for the best of both worlds, daily driver and performance junkie. The story had the following to say as they got to take the BOLT out and about in the Detroit area.
At 3600lbs, this compact CUV is what the public wanted when GM did their research, not some slick slice through the air Jelly bean car like Tesla, but a CUV. So this pretty much puts to rest the whole airflow thing, as they did their best while giving the public what it has asked for, a roomy, high seat position CUV.
Also with 200HP and 266lbs of Torque, the story states that you have a clear choice, put the transmission in D and drive it like any other auto or slip it into L and Drive it normal but enjoy just like the Tesla S a return on regenerative power. What this means is you can get some of the battery recharged driving in the regen mode. Interesting is that Josh says if you drive the full 200+ miles you can get about 40 miles added back into the battery, so then you have a 200+ range plus 40 miles more when driving in L mode using regenerative mode.
To quote the Story in regards to steering as many here have always talked about the numb feel in various auto's;
" The electrically assisted rack-and-pinion steering is slack-free on-center, quick to respond, and nicely weighted. Walking that fine line between comfort for civilian drivers and engaging dynamics for enthusiasts is no easy feat, but Tavel deserves credit for balancing the two conflicting mentalities."
There is plenty more to be said about the auto, an example is that using a DC quick charge, gives you 90 miles of range in 30 min. It is worth clicking the link above to read the story.
Over all this has made me even more excited about the BOLT and what it can do for the public. Especially that after a 50+ mile drive in the BOLT, they say that having plenty of space for passengers, personal stuff and a highly congenial attitude makes the BOLT a Joy. I do like the BOLT in White as the 19 Pictures show with a decent interior.
If you want to read just how much the BOLT beats the BMW i3, then read this story. 
Chevy BOLT stacks against the BMW i3
Considering this is written by the folks at BMWBlog, they feel the BOLT was designed to give customers the range of a Tesla but focused on the i3 as it's clear CUV competitor.  They also feel that the BOLT is faster than the stated 7 seconds for 0 to 60. They make some other statements and still claim that the i3 is an excellent package for the money. Not sure how they see that as the i3 is 80 miles range compared to the 200+ of the BOLT. Plus looking at the pictures, the BOLT is a superior interior I believe, but then this was written by a BMW fan.

BMW Group U.S. Reports July 2016 Sales BMW brand sales decrease 4.4 percent MINI brand sales decrease 8.0 percent WOODCLIFF LAKE, N.J., Aug. 2, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Sales of BMW brand vehicles decreased 4.4 percent in July for a total of 25,777 compared to 26,970 vehicles sold in July, 2015.  Year-to-date, the BMW brand is down 8.4 percent in the U.S. on sales of 179,213 compared to 195,593 sold in the first seven months of 2015.   Notable vehicle sales include the BMW 7 Series which increased 31.3 percent, the BMW 2 Series which increased 66.1 percent, and the BMW X1 which increased 79.1 percent.   "The volatility that has characterized the 2016 sales year was clearly evident in the beginning of the third quarter," said Ludwig Willisch, President and CEO, BMW of North America. "As we have seen through the early months of the year, the 2 Series and X1 have acquired a strong following and the 7 Series continues gaining ground.  At the same time, the global popularity of our X models continues to constrain our sales here in the U.S."      BMW Group Sales In total, the BMW Group in the U.S. (BMW and MINI combined) reported July sales of 30,551 vehicles, a decrease of 5.0 percent from the 32,161 vehicles sold in the same month a year ago.  Year-to-date, BMW Group sales are down 9.5 percent on sales of 209,131 in the first seven months of 2016 compared to 231,044 in the same period in 2015.    MINI Brand Sales For July, MINI USA reported 4,774 automobiles sold, a decrease of 8.0 percent from the 5,191 sold in the same month a year ago.  Year-to-date, MINI USA reported a total of 29,918 automobiles sold, a decrease of 15.6 percent from 35,451 automobiles sold in the first seven months of 2015.  
BMW Group
Vehicle Sales BMW of North America, LLC, July 2016
    July 2016
July 2015
%
YTD July 2016
YTD July 2015
%
i3
1,479
935
58.1%
4,359
5,391
-19.1%
i8
166
217
-23.5%
786
950
-17.3%
2 Series
1,708
1,028
66.1%
10,765
6,370
68.9%
3 Series
6,799
7,729
-12.0%
39,775
50,525
-21.3%
4 Series
2,186
3,190
-31.5%
21,462
28,083
-23.6%
5 Series
3,303
2,186
51.1%
23,578
25,767
-8.5%
6 Series
523
311
68.2%
2,398
5,395
-55.6%
7 Series
1,203
916
31.3%
6,808
6,139
10.9%
Z4 
124
118
5.1%
675
1,190
-43.3%
X1
2,130
1,189
79.1%
14,269
7,094
101.1%
BMW passenger cars
19,621
17,819
10.1%
124,875
136,904
-8.8%
X3
2,678
2,340
14.4%
22,506
15,623
44.1%
X4
329
407
-19.2%
2,944
3,553
-17.1%
X5
2,744
6,011
-54.4%
24,948
35,162
-29.0%
X6
405
393
3.1%
3,940
4,351
-9.4%
BMW light trucks 
6,156
9,151
-32.7%
54,338
58,689
-7.4%
BMW brand
25,777
26,970
-4.4%
179,213
195,593
-8.4%
Cooper /S Hardtop 2 Door
813
2,482
-67.2%
7,053
12,727
-44.6%
Cooper /S Hardtop 4 Door
924
1,036
-10.8%
7,243
9,297
-22.1%
Cooper /S Convertible
536
272
97.1%
2,366
1,979
19.6%
Cooper /S Clubman
1,076
0
0.0%
5,487
0
0.0%
Coupe
0
25
-100.0%
6
283
-97.9%
Roadster
1
78
-98.7%
4
751
-99.5%
Countryman
1,422
1,203
18.2%
7,702
9,481
-18.8%
Paceman
2
95
-97.9%
57
933
-93.9%
MINI brand
4,774
5,191
-8.0%
29,918
35,451
-15.6%
TOTAL BMW of North America, LLC
30,551
32,161
-5.0%
209,131
231,044
-9.5%