Frequent Business Traveler » BMW

Lincoln Introduces Elegant Simplicity with MKZ Concept

Jonathan Spira — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 05:01:50 +0000

I first saw the MKZ Concept at a preview in New York City in December and I kept noticing one thing, the mirrors. They were razor sharp and elegant, as was the car itself.

When I was young, our neighbor had an “antique” 1964 Lincoln Continental, a car I consider one of the most elegant American cars to date. While the MKZ is thoroughly modern, it nonetheless has the flair of the Continental.

The uninterrupted panoramic glass roof makes for a very open cabin and the roofline is smooth and flowing.

The view from the side is clean and elegant and there is little unnecessary brightwork or trim – although I would personally stay away from the chrome wheels. I was, however, disappointed that the car didn’t feature suicide doors (for some reason, carmakers shun this term: Rolls-Royce uses “coach doors” for example) in the manner of the ’64.

The interior is wood, aluminum, and leather – think Scandinavian cool – and the seats looked very comfortable (we weren’t allowed to sit in them, however). The concept car’s seats were champagne in color and had unevenly distributed perforations, giving the seats a distinctive appearance.

The dashboard is very high-tech but not off-putting. The instrument cluster is really a 10.1” TFT display and there’s an 8” touchscreen display in the center stack. I’m not a fan of touchscreens (even Lexus has moved to a joystick controller) but the voice commands of Sync and My Lincoln Touch will probably make up for it.
It will be interesting to see how the button-operated electric shift works in person. My first thought was to Packard, which had introduced an electrical push-button shifter in the 1950s but technology has, of course, clearly progressed in the past half century. Most cars with automatic transmissions either have the gear-shift lever attached to the steering column (BMW tried an electronic version of this with the 2001 7er Series, without much success) or in the center console. It will be interesting to see how Lincoln buyers react to this break with tradition.

According to Lincoln, the MKZ Concept “strongly hints” at what the next-generation MKZ will look like. Lincoln, Ford’s sole luxury brand since the disbanding of the automaker’s Premier Automotive Group (which included Aston Martin, Jaguar, Land Rover, and Volvo in addition to Lincoln), considers the redesigned MKZ a key aspect of its transformation to a twenty-first century luxury car maker. Based onwhat we saw of the the MKZ Concept, it looks like they are on their way.

BMW Debuts 3 Series, ActiveHybrid 3, ActiveHybrid 5

Paul Riegler — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 05:01:00 +0000

The 2012 BMW 3 Series made its United States debut at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, along with the 2012 ActiveHybrid 5 and the 2013 ActiveHybrid 3.

The ActiveHybrid 5 is based on the 535i sedan and is powered by a 3.0-liter turbo-charged I-6 engine and electric drive system that together develop a total of 335 hp, coupled to an eight-speed transmission.

The new 2012 3 Series sedan will be initially available in two variants, the BMW 328i and the BMW 335i. Standard features include a 6.5” display with iDrive controller, Bluetooth connectivity, an iPod/USB interface, an eight-speed automatic transmission, auto start-stop, Dynamic Driving Control with Eco Pro, brake energy regeneration, and larger wheels.

The ActiveHybrid 3 is the first 3 Series hybrid (BMW already has the ActiveHybrid 7 and the ActiveHybrid 6) and should be on sale in early 2013.

BMW Top-Selling Luxury Car for 2011

Paul Riegler — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 01:19:27 +0000

BMW took the title of top-selling luxury car brand in the U.S. for 2011, a title Lexus has held for the past ten years.

By selling 247,907 BMW-brand cars and SUVs, BMW edged past Mercedes-Benz, which sold 245,231 in the same period. These sales figures only include luxury automobiles and do not include other brands or commercial vehicles.

Lexus’ sales were hampered by vehicle shortages that resulted from supply-chain disruptions from the March 2011 earthquake in Japan.

Your Favorite Frequent Business Traveler Articles in 2011

Eva Leonard — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 00:19:29 +0000

As the year draws to a close, we present our year-end recap of the Frequent Business Traveler articles that resonated most strongly with you in 2011.

The pieces range from reviews of flights aboard some of the most-talked-about new commercial aircraft, to test drives of luxury cars, to your takes on what hotels aren’t doing right.

1.) Exclusive Interview: American Airlines Officials Discuss Boeing, Airbus Deal
Jonathan Spira gets the scoop from then CEO Gerard Arpey

2.) The Complete Guide to European Delivery Programs
Go to Europe, pick up your new car, drive on the Autobahn, and save big money

3.) Land Rover LR4 Review and Road Test – Off-Road Winter Driving in Vermont
Was that a sleigh – or a Land Rover – that just zoomed through the forest?

4.) Lufthansa Airbus A380 Flight 400 Frankfurt to New York Review
Launch carrier Lufthansa now flies the biggest bird in the skies

5.) ANA Boeing 787 Dreamliner Tokyo Haneda to Okayama – My First Flight and Review
Jonathan Spira goes for a ride in the year’s most highly anticipated new aircraft

6.) 2012 Mercedes-Benz ML350 4Matic and ML350 BlueTec Review and Test Drive
The Mercedes-Benz SUV experience is now more refined then ever

7.) Lufthansa FlyNet In-Flight Internet Review and Test Drive
Lufthansa is the first (again) to deploy trans-Atlantic Wi-Fi

8.) Dinner for One: Review
The low down on one of Central Europe’s most popular New Year’s Eve traditions

9.) BMW 335d Review
Get behind the wheel of the BMW 335d, The Diesel Driver magazine’s 2011 Diesel Car of the Year

10.) Pet Peeve Survey: Many Hotels Fail to Deliver Quiet Rooms and Working Internet
Not getting what you need at hotels? You’re not alone.

BMW Adds Yelp to In-Vehicle Online Offerings

Jonathan Spira — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 23:05:07 +0000

Starting today, BMW drivers in the U.S. can tap into Yelp while on the road. The BMW-specific offering allows users to search through listings that include restaurants, cafés, stores, banks, and parking garages.

The Yelp application supports category searches, and presents results by distance (from the vehicle’s current position) and rating. Each entry includes the rating, address, distance, telephone number, and the three most recent reviews. This information can be e-mailed to any e-mail address from within the vehicle. In addition, the reviews can be read out loud to the driver.

The Yelp application is available to drivers of recent-vintage BMWs with navigation and the optional BMW Assist Convenience Plan.

The Complete Guide to European Delivery Programs

Jonathan Spira — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 23:00:19 +0000

How to Pick Up Your New Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, or Volvo in Europe, Drive on the Autobahn, and Save Money

When I was 10 or 11, I accompanied my parents to the local Mercedes-Benz dealer for them to discuss ordering a car. Unlike the way my friends’ parents purchased cars, which was to pick one out at a local dealership, my parents were planning to pick up a new Mercedes-Benz sedan at the factory in Sindelfingen, Germany.

Last year, almost 5,000 Americans purchased a car in a similar fashion, traveling to Europe to pick up a brand new Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, or Volvo, and even more will do so this year.

Picking up one’s car at the factory is not, however, a practice limited to Americans. Indeed, BMW built the BMW Welt (pictured), which opened in October 2007, at a cost of nearly 500 million euros largely to accommodate customers in Germany and other European nations who wanted to take delivery at the factory. Mercedes-Benz expanded its Kundencenter in Sindelfingen (which is near Stuttgart) as well, and both companies deliver up to several hundred cars each day to people who will drive them all the way home.

Of course, Americans can’t drive their cars all the way home – but they can drive them in their natural habitat for several weeks and then send them off by ship across the Atlantic. By doing so, they will not only have the trip of their lives but they will be saving anywhere from 4 to 13% and bringing back the largest souvenir possible from a trip, namely a new car.

HOW EUROPEAN DELIVERY WORKS

While European Delivery, also known as Overseas Delivery, Tourist Delivery, or Factory Delivery, is relatively unknown, it is available at every dealership in the U.S. from Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, and Volvo.

A buyer simply goes to the dealership and orders a car for European Delivery, typically three months in advance of the desired delivery date. The savings vary by manufacturer (see the chart at the end of this article) but they are far from inconsequential as a buyer will save a minimum of several thousand dollars on a purchase, with the exception of cars from Porsche, which does not provide any discounts and, in fact, charges an additional fee for the service.

European Delivery is not only free (except from Porsche) but you get a variety of additional benefits and amenities above what most traditional car buyers would get. One night in a luxury hotel is standard except for BMW. All automakers provide you with admission to their respective museums, and they feed you while you are at the delivery center.

Volvo will pay for your flight to Sweden (as well as for a friend to accompany you); Mercedes-Benz will waive the delivery fee (currently $875); and BMW invites you to take advantage of a special redelivery program at the Performance Delivery Center at the company’s factory in Spartanburg, South Carolina, which includes a driving school as well as dinner and overnight accommodations.

EARLY DAYS

Today’s European Delivery programs can trace their roots directly back to the 1950s when members of the armed forces returning from Europe brought with them a taste for smaller and somewhat sportier European cars. Indeed, many soldiers and airmen purchased cars for use in Europe and then shipped their cars to the States.

In the 1960s, with the exception of the occasional Volkswagen Käfer (Beetle), a foreign car was truly unusual in the United States. Today’s popularity of European cars can be traced back to Max Hoffman, the Austrian emigrant automotive entrepreneur who, starting in 1948, almost single-handedly created the imported car business in the U.S. and, during the course of his career, imported and/or marketed Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, Porsche, Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Jaguar, and BMW vehicles.

Mercedes-Benz, Saab, and Volvo started their European Delivery programs in the 1950s, but the 1960s, with the advent of the jet age, gave European carmakers the impetus to market to those Americans who might be taking their first European vacation. They could drive around Europe in their own car, save on the expense of a rental car, save money on the purchase, and have a great story to tell. Hoffman (then at BMW) and his peers at Mercedes-Benz, Saab, Volkswagen, and Volvo lost no time in aggressively marketing these programs to the first generation of American jetsetters.

Other entrepreneurs saw possibilities here as well. Until U.S. safety and emissions regulations made it near impossible to bring in a European-spec vehicle, enterprising car dealerships in Europe advertised their own independent European Delivery programs.

Click here to continue to Page 2 – Arranging Your Own European Delivery

Jaguar C-X16 Sports Car Production Concept Review

Jonathan Spira — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 19:00:43 +0000

The realm of concept cars has changed dramatically in recent years. Concept cars used to be purely experimental. Today, many concept cars are teasers, representative of a model that is soon to be introduced but has not yet been officially announced.

The Jaguar C-X16 is one such vehicle. It’s Jaguar’s vision for the twenty-first century sports car and it will become available at your local Jaguar dealer some time next year.

At the launch party at the Frankfurt IAA (Frankfurt Internationle Automobil-Ausstellung), where it was hardly a secret that this was going to be a production vehicle (even a price range was announced), the room was nonetheless silent when the C-X16 made its rather impressive appearance being driven onto the stage.

Jaguar calls the C-X16 a “one plus one” sports car. It’s a two seater but it’s clearly a driver’s car and the passenger is, well, optional. From a design perspective, Jaguar says it has “seductive looks” but that’s probably because they don’t want to say it’s “pure sex” in print. The C-X16 was not only the belle of the Frankfurt IAA ball but, when it goes into production (presuming it does), it will be one of the most distinctive and beautiful cars on the market.

The C-X16 is a hybrid but a rather unusual one. The high-performance hybrid system is activated via a red button on the steering wheel, adding 70 kW (95 hp) and 235 Nm (173 pound-feet) of torque for up to ten seconds on demand. Passing? Going from 80-120 km/h (50-75 mph) takes 2.1 seconds. The car goes from 0-100 km (0-62 mph) in 4.4 seconds.

The car’s 3.0-liter V-6 engine produces 280 kW (380 hp) and 450 Nm (332 pound-feet) of torque and is mated to an eight-speed transmission.

This is why the design of the car’s rear, which was in part borrowed from the C-X75 concept car (more on that later), is so important. As the C-X16 driver blows the doors off everything it passes, that’s probably all other drivers will ever see.

DESIGN

The Jaguar C-X16 is one of the few cars that gives the appearance of motion even when standing still. You may not notice it at first (simply too bedazzled by its beauty?), but the lines of the car are not only clean but the surface itself is very very smooth. There are no wings or spoilers visible.

Upon closer inspection, you may notice something else is missing: namely, that there are no door handles visible. They are completely flush with the car’s surface. A touch-sensitive sensor built into the handle triggers a silent electric motor that raises the handle for entry. And if you look carefully, you will find a front splitter, which provides down force, and that is complemented by the side sills and rear design which use the Venturi effect to channel air smoothly across the sides.

During the launch event I had occasion to chat privately with Ian Callum, Jaguar’s design director and proud father of the C-X16. He sees the hybrid sports car as “the very essence” of Jaguar’s future.

AN UNUSUAL HYBRID

The word “hybrid” has far more associations with cars such as the Toyota Prius than with automobiles capable of going 186 mph, which sounds even more impressive as 300 km/h. A few automakers, notably BMW, have used hybrid options to boost performance to some extent as well, but the C-X16 brings an entirely new meaning to what one envisions when one thinks “hybrid.”

To review, the C-X16 starts with a supercharged 3.0-liter V6 producing 280 kW (375 hp ) and 450 Nm (332 pound-feet ) of torque which is quite respectable on its own. Jaguar then adds the “experimental” high-performance hybrid system that boosts output by 70 kW (94 hp ) and 235 Nm (173 lb-ft ).

The battery pack, charged through braking regeneration, is mounted under the front seats. The C-X16 can run on the petrol motor alone, the electric motor, or both. On electric power alone, the top speed is 80 km/h (50 mph ).

Presuming it goes into production, the C-X16, which has engine shut-off at idle,will be the greenest sports car on the market.. It meets Euro 6 emissions standards (which come into effect in 2014) and the CO₂ rating is 165 g/km.

Jaguar says that the powertrain was inspired by the automaker’s Limo Green XJ prototype whose rear wheels are driven by a 145 kW electric motor fed from a lithium-ion battery pack (under the floor of the trunk).and by the 778-hp C-X75 plug-in hybrid supercar concept that debuted at the 2010 Paris Show. The Limo Green’s motor is recharged by a small petrol motor that serves as a generator, not a direct power plant. The C-X75 had four electric motors, each driving one of its wheels, and the batteries driving these motors got their power from two diesel-fed micro gas turbines.

One look at the C-X16 and one sees a lot of the C-X75 including the front grille and the wrap-around tail lights. I see the influence of the 1961 E-Type although it is hard to pinpoint exactly where. I just got a feeling of it when standing next to the C-X16.

Click here to continue to Page 2 – The Iconic Jaguar E-Type and Multimedia Content

Photo Contest Winners: Car and Travel

Paul Riegler — Sun, 12 Jun 2011 18:54:18 +0000

From scenic routes to winding roads, from the Großglocknerhochalpenstraße to the Stelvio Pass to the Col de Turini to the San Bernadino Pass, Executive Road Warrior readers love the classic road trip and took hundreds of pictures of the roads they drove on with their automobiles.

Based on the entries submitted for this contest, BMW drivers in particular like to take pictures of their cars. All but one of the images submitted (and there were several hundred) were of a BMW.

Three of these outstanding photos stood out to our judges more than the others.

The First Prize winner is Jim Hill, who took his photo in front of Schloß Hohenschwangau (the childhood residence of King Ludwig II of Bavaria near the village of Schwangau) . Jim wins a BMW Chronograph watch.

Second prize goes to Andrew Lance for his photograph taken at Lac du Mont Cenis in the French Alps. He wins a BMW Golf Bag.

The third prize in this category goes to Alan Dalsass for a photo taken at the Albulapass. north of St. Moritz and the Julierpass. He wins a BMW 3.0 CSL by Alexander Calder 1:18 model.

Congratulations to all of our winners, who will be eligible for the Grand Prize as well. The winners of the Scenic View category of the My European Vacation Photo Contest will be announced in coming weeks.

Once the final winners are announced, we will start the final phase of the My European Vacation Photo Contest.

For the Grand Prize drawing, each prize winner will submit 1.) An essay discussing the place where the photograph was taken and 2.) Three travel tips. The Grand Prize Winner will receive a three-night stay at the Four Seasons Hotel in Prague, Czech Republic. The second Grand Prize winner will receive a Hewlett-Packard Projector Companion.

2012 BMW 650i Convertible Review and Test Drive

Jonathan Spira — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 22:45:06 +0000

The BMW 650i Convertible is all-new for 2012 and the drop-top version is being introduced in the U.S. a few months in advance of the coupe, to take advantage of what will hopefully be a warm and sunny summer.

Gone are the odd-looking eyebrows over the headlamps and the odd-shaped trunk lid as well as other design elements championed by BMW’s former chief designer, Chris Bangle. While there is a strong familial resemblance, the third generation of the 6er looks lower, more angular, and far more elegant than its predecessor and indeed, it is longer, wider, and heavier. The 650i shares the robust twin-turbo 4.4-liter V-8 that’s in the 550i and 750i. With 400 horsepower at 5,500 rpm, the 650i now sports 40 additional horses, something that comes in handy considering the extra weight on board.

In May, I had the opportunity to spend a day driving the 650i convertible in sunny Los Cabos on the Baja peninsula in Mexico.

My 400 km drive took me from my hotel, Las Ventanas al Paraiso, along Mexico Highway 1, towards San Jose del Cabo. I continued on Mexican Highway 1 until I reached my destination, La Paz, and then drove the reverse route back to the hotel.

Most of the driving was on well-paved, two-lane highways where speed enforcement was nonexistent. Massive speed bumps slow traffic down as one approaches a town or village. We drove through multiple towns along the way, including Las Cuevas, Buenavista, Los Barriles, San Bartolo, San Antonio, and El Triunfo.

I had heard that driving in Mexico would be interesting, but I didn’t realize that the major difference between driving the US and driving in Mexico is that drivers who want to drive fast in the U.S. have to worry about the highway patrol, while drivers in Mexico who want to go fast only have to worry about the occasional stray horse or cow wandering onto the road.

Signage in Mexico was very clear, and there was a variety of road signs I had to become familiar with. In addition to the ubiquitous speed bump signs and important signs such as “salida” (“exit”), a few of my favorites were “respite las senales” (“obey the road signs”) and “no maltrate las senales” (“don’t abuse the road signs”). Of course, my very favorite was “curvas peligrosas” (“dangerous curves”).

On the open roads of Baja Sur, heading from Cabo to La Paz, the 650i really shined. The 450 pound-feet of torque were instantly available and made passing slower traffic (and most everyone was slower) a non-issue. The wonderful curvy roads allowed the 650i to surprise me with its agility and grip. Thanks in part to rear-wheel steering, tight corners (“curvas peligrosas”) were no reason to slow down that much.

Click here to continue to Page 2 – BMW 650i: Handling and Dynamics

BMW X3 xDrive35i Review and Road Test

Jonathan Spira — Wed, 11 May 2011 00:43:54 +0000

First introduced in 2003, the BMW X3 is all new for 2011. While over 600,000 original X3s were sold, including 150,000 in the U.S. Production in Graz, Austria ended on August 31st of last year and production of the next generation X3 started the very next day, at BMW’s Spartanburg, South Carolina plant.

The redesigned X3 neatly addresses the two criticisms that we had for the earlier version, namely insufficient legroom in the rear and a harsh ride (although based on the prior generation 3 Series platform, its handling was anything but 3 Series-like).

The new X3 is immediately recognizable as a BMW with a forward-slanting twin-kidney grill and bold contour lines that meet at the grill. Typical of BMW’s Sports Activity Vehicles (which include the X1, X5, and X6), the twin round headlights with round fog lamps form a pattern characteristic of the line. Other familial traits include flared wheel arches with a short overhang both in front and in the rear.

I was surprised at how much bigger the new X3 was when I first got into one. It turns out that its dimensions are close to the first generation X5. As a result, rear seat occupants won’t have to bang their knees against the front seatbacks.

The new X3 is half an inch (12 mm) taller, 3.36” (83 mm) longer, and 1.1” (28 mm) wider. Ground clearance has increased by half an inch (12 mm) and the 110.6” (2810 mm) wheelbase is 0.6 inches (15 mm) longer.

The interior befits a BMW and is markedly improved from the previous generation, which I had criticized as Spartan and inelegant. The driver-oriented cockpit is complemented by the Central Display in the center stack, which features an 8.8” high-resolution trans-reflective screen, making it the largest such display in its class.

I found ample storage compartments, trays, and cup holders throughout the vehicle. The cargo space is versatile. Depending on how you arrange the rear seats (both up, one up, etc.), the cargo volume ranges from 19 to 56.6 cubic feet (550 to 1,600 liters). If you specify the optional rear seats with ski pass-through, they have three segments, making a variety of configurations possible.

Click here to continue to Page 2 – Driving the BMW X3 xDrive35i