2013 Bmw 328i Sedan (f30) Integrated Power Supply Module 12637591534 on 2040-parts.com

First MINI Coupé rolls off the production line

MINI Coupe - first production car rolls out at Cowley We’ve only recently had the reveal of the new MINI Coupe – well, the production car reveal, that is. We had the first reveal of the MINI Coupe Concept nearly two years ago and, despite the production MINI Coupe looking almost exactly the same as the concept, MINI managed to do the production reveal in two stages – one with swirly disguise round the rump followed by a full reveal a week or three later. Still, all the pre-production marketing flim-flam out of the way, MINI are getting down to actually making the car that promises to be the most fun (modern) MINI so far, and the very first MINI Coupe has now rolled off the production line at Cowley – cue PR opportunity.

OnStar and Verizon reveal camera-laden Buick

OnStar and Verizon are debuting a prototype Buick LaCrosse at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas that offers a range of futuristic technologies. The spy-tech features include cameras that monitor activity around the car which can be viewed from a smartphone and a computer, and an impact-detection system that can replay a video clip of fender-benders. There also are enhanced voice commands to access Web sites, including YouTube, Twitter and Wikipedia, and an electronic owner's manual for the car that's streamed onto the dashboard.

MINI’s Olympic Marketing Masterstroke

BMW has spent £40 million sponsoring the 2012 London Olympics, but it’s a small fleet of remote controlled MINI’s that provide the value. BMW has done all it can to promote its sponsorship of the 2012 London Olympics, and with a spend said to be in the region of £40 million, who can blame them? But it’s not just local shopkeepers and enthusiastic small businesses that are hamstrung by Olympic rules on advertising, the Olympic sponsors are too.