2011 BMW ActiveHybrid X6
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The hybrid graveyard is growing. BMW and Mercedes-Benz, the German luxury makers that teamed up to adapt GM's Two-Mode Hybrid to high-end luxury vehicles, have both canceled both the hybrid vehicles that used the system for 2012, after no more than three model years. Pricey and low-production We learned last month that the Mercedes-Benz ML 450 Hybrid (b. 2009, d. 2011) would not carry over into the redesigned, all-new 2012 Mercedes-Benz ML-Class lineup. Now BMW has ended its ActiveHybrid X6 (b. 2010, d. 2011), the only other vehicle to use the pricey and complex GM Two-Mode Hybrid system that...
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BMW Front-Wheel-Drive Hybrids Coming In 2014 From New PartnershipIt's not just Toyota that sells multiple models of hybrid cars now. German luxury brands are getting in on the act too. BMW announced today that it was forming a joint venture with France's Peugeot-Citroen to design and build hybrid-electric powertrains. The new enterprise is an expansion of the...
John Voelcker -
BMW Hybrid 5-Series On Sale in 2011, Hybrid 3-Series To Follow
BMW's chief executive officer, Norbert Reithofer, has confirmed that the company's ActiveHybrid 5 sedan will go on sale as early as next year. Reithofer told shareholders yesterday at BMW's annual meeting that the car it showed at the Geneva Motor Show in March as the BMW Concept 5-Series...
John Voelcker -
3 Green-Car Trends: Smaller Cars, More Turbos, Luxury Hybrids
Everyone has opinions. But if you had to wrap up what's happening in green cars today by naming three trends, what would they be? The ever-eager publicists at auto-classified site AutoTrader.com sent us their list of three changes in the world of eco-friendly vehicles. We've reproduced them below...
John Voelcker -
2009 Los Angeles Auto Show: Preview
Only a handful of U.S. auto shows count as important. Detroit, in January, is one; historically, New York in April has been another. But the up-and-comer is the Los Angeles Auto Show, which now occurs in late November or early December and focuses on green cars of all stripes: hybrids, electric...
John Voelcker -
BMW's Other Hybrid: 2010 BMW ActiveHybrid 7 Sedan
For 2010, BMW is releasing two hybrid vehicles that are very different both in style and in their approach to using electric power to assist the gasoline engine. We've already covered the 2010 BMW ActiveHybrid X6 "sports activity coupe", which uses the Two-Mode Hybrid system jointly developed by...
John Voelcker -
"Our goal was to fundamentally change the view of hybrids," said Peter Tünnermann, project manager for the 2010 BMW ActiveHybrid X6. "We wanted to make a 'non-hybrid' hybrid." In other words, a hybrid that didn't drive like a hybrid. And in that goal, BMW has succeeded admirably. Drivers at the international launch of BMW's first hybrid-electric vehicle agreed that if the badges and instruments had been removed, they would have been hard-pressed to know that this latest X6 had electric motors and all sorts of software wizardry between its engine and the wheels. Their only clue...
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Preview: 2012 Volkswagen Touareg Hybrid
Our editor Marty Padgett is spending the day with Volkswagen, driving new models, learning about advanced technologies, and quizzing executives. Here's his preview of VW's upcoming Touareg Hybrid sport utility vehicle. Volkswagen will launch a hybrid electric model of its Touareg sport utility...
John Voelcker
