09 Sea Doo Rxt-x255 Valve Cover Cylinder Head Cap on 2040-parts.com

BMW set to go front-wheel drive

BMW chairman Norbert Reithofer has confirmed that the German carmaker will introduce a new front-wheel-drive entry-level model positioned and priced below the existing 1-series as part of plans to help increase part sharing and to bolster the potential for production savings between the BMW and Mini brands, thus bringing an end to the era of rear- and four-wheel-drive-only BMW models. Speaking to AutoWeek at the Geneva motor show, Reithofer said internal BMW studies revealed that despite the downturn in the world's economy, there was continued demand for what he described as "premium vehicles" in the small-car class, before officially acknowledging plans that will see BMW produce a rival to the recently unveiled Audi A1 and a new Smart Forfour presently under development at Mercedes-Benz. "We will be extending the BMW and Mini brands into the small-car segment with new models and variants," he said.

New Lotus Elise in 2015

The 2015 Lotus Elise Of all the Lotus reveals today at the Paris Motor Show, the new Lotus Elise is perhaps the one most easily understood. After all, the current Lotus Elise has been with us for a decade and will be a rather long-in-the-tooth model by the time Lotus turns up with this replacement in 2015. Although the new Lotus Elise will be the closest to Colin Chapman’s vision of a real Lotus, it will be a bit on the pricey side, with prices starting at around £40k.

BMW reveals M3 GT2-based Art Car

This brightly coloured beast is BMW’s latest Art Car, and the company's entry into this year’s Le Mans 24hrs. Based on the M3 GT2, the 17th Art Car has been designed by Jeff Koons and was unveiled last night at the Centre Pompidou in Paris. BMW might not need such help – the M3 GT2 has already picked up a first place at this year’s Nurburgring 24hrs.