Just came back. Some of us (me incl.) expected M5 Touring and M6 Convertible, but the news for the BMW M5 and M6 of 2006 was as we knew Start button as well as 305 km/h limiter on the European and Asian BMW M5. Warranty and Fahrertraining included for a bit more than 2000. Can be done afterwards as wel las before delivery. However we got to talk to BMW M Director Ulrtich Bruhnke again, which we was very nice of him considering his tight schedule. I will write a complete report within some days
but some notes follow below. Also, we could not ask all the 45+ questions since we realized he really was short on time.
- Individual for USA is being looked into and that wont be fixed this year, maybe next year. Ordering Individual is a problem in USA because alot of US customers are changing their orders under the timeframe of 8 weeks, and this cannot be doen with Individual, so dealers are afraid of being stuck with a rare colour they cannot sell. However, they now the problem and they are working omn it right now.
- Manual gearbox gearing etc is not yet decided, development is still udnerway.
- Power is +/- 5%, thereby it can have 530 HP sometimes
- 305 km/h limiter is chosed because BMW M want to "soirt out" all the tyre manufacturers that cannot make >300 km/h tires.
- "There will be more news during this year..." Bruhnke told us with a smile.
Some more general news:
- AC Schnitzer presented thir kit to the M5. Go here for pics. Hamann as well, go here for pics. I think AC Schnitzer really have continued their "new" styling language with alot of chrome and I would almost say the "cash register sound" than begins with a b... Hamann had their version as well. I have seen AC Scnitzer, Hamann and Hartge kits for the M5 and I prefeer the Hartge the most. Some parts from exterior or interiour are nice on both the AC Schnitzer and Hamann but as a complete package Iprefeer Hartge design that goes more in line with BMW own design.
- Alpina showed the B6 Convertible and the cheapest Alpina yet: D3 with 200 HP, a diesel 3 series.
- Audi RS4 will have the carbon brakes from A8 W-12 6,0 as an option.
Exhaust will get louder when you press the sport button. Only Sedan planned for USA in the beginning.
- Oh, I met Bangle again, but I did not talk to him...
Bruhnke, head of BMW M division
Startbutton on M5:
Startbutton on M6:
The BMW Alpina B6 Convertible. Could it be the perfect car for cruising the winding roads of the Cote dīAzur? Probably! The standard 6-series convertible is a nice car, but when Alpina has worked their magic on the chassis, installed their 500 bhp supercharged V8-engine and improved the interior with ultra-soft leather it must be. As you see on the picture, even Burkhard Bovensiepen canīt keep his hands away from it.
The B6 is fitted with Alpinaīs Dynamic wheels. If you want the classis 20-spoke wheels, Iīm sure that would be possible too. The stripes are optional.
Here is Alpinaīs first version of the E90 3-series, called D3. Believe it or not, itīs based on a diesel! Well, itīs not Alpinaīs first diesel-powered car. In 1999, they introduced the D10 BiTurbo which was developed together with BMW. The D3 is the cheapest Alpina yet. Itīs based on the BMW 320d, has 200 bhp with unchanged fuel-consumption.
The B7 looked as nice as ever. As all the cars in the Alpina stand, it was painted in Alpina-blue.
Here is Alpinaīs founder and owner Burkhard Bovensiepen together with the most powerful road-car engine the company has produced. The supercharged V8-engine can be found in the B5, B6 and the B7.
The Alpina stand is a very nice place to spend time in. Weīre not the only ones who think that. Here is Alois Ruf chatting with two other gentlemen. We also saw Bernd Pischetsrieder and Norbert Haug there, chatting with Burkhard Bovensiepen.
The most exclusive Alpina model in the line-up. Donīt touch!
Maserati showed two new version of their Quattroporte. Mechanically, the cars are the same but the specifications differ. This one is called Sport GT, and the more luxurious version is called the Executive GT.
The picture shows the interior of the Maserati Quattroporte Executive GT. Not a bad place to spend time in. Very nice materials!
Quite a nice luggage-set Maserati offers for the Quattroporte. But what else would you expect from a collaboration between Maserati and Salvatore Ferragamo!?
At Ferrariīs. Luca Di Montezomolo showing us how superior the Ferrari 430 is to the Lamborghini Gallardo...
Speaking of the 430, Ferrari showed the Challenge version for the first time. Itīs is around 200 kg lighter than the standard 430, but itīs not available as a road-car...yet! Expect to see the successor to the 360 Challenge Stradale soon!
Another shot of the Ferrari 430 Challenge.
Just to show you what youīre driving, in case you forget when youīre at the track.
Ferrariīs "Manettino" switch on the steering-wheel. What mode would you choose? Sport or Race?
Aggressive? It could only be a Lamborghini. This is the Murcielago, the top of the line-model. No changes made to it this year, except that itīs now available with ceramic brake discs.
Pure art? No, itīs just the wheel of a Lamborghini Murcielago. Look at the brake disc, and you will see that this Murcielago is equipped with the new ceramic brake system.
This is the Lamborghini Gallardo SE. More power, 520 bhp instead of 500, and some other improvements makes this the most desirable Gallardo yet.
Nice line-up. All Lamborghins this year was painted in the same white colour. The colours reminds us of the popular white colour Audi used to paint their top-models in, in the 80īs...Brought back to life?
Audi introduced the new RS4. The old one was only available as an estate, but the new one is only available as a sedan at first. This time Audi has dropped the turbo-charged engine, and instead opted for a BMW-like high revving N/A-engine. The RS4 is a very nicely designed car, with a lot of nice touches. Just look at the steering-wheel at the picture above. The steering-wheel is the same as in the Lamborghini Gallardo.
Porscheīs press conference. Wendelin Wiedeking made a very good impression. He made the Panamera, the first foor door Porsche ever, official and said that it would be available in 2009. They hope to sell around 20000 a year. He also announced that the Cayenne will be available in a hybrid-version in the future. Interesting times at Porsche!
Re: A short update from Geneva (BMW M, Alpina and the tuners)
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