Wednesday, 1 February 2017
BMW Sticking with Diesels in the United States
http://ift.tt/2jWnbKp
The past 16 months have been something of a stress test, not just for Volkswagen but for the diesel auto market as a whole. Volkswagen’s diesel emissions scandal brought increased EPA scrutiny, resulting in established models from Mercedes-Benz and BMW put on hold and hopes of ever seeing performance diesels such as the Volkswagen GTD and BMW’s awesome new quad-turbo “super diesel” effectively dashed.
from Car and Driver BlogCar and Driver Blog http://ift.tt/2jE1TQI
via IFTTT
Read More...
The past 16 months have been something of a stress test, not just for Volkswagen but for the diesel auto market as a whole. Volkswagen’s diesel emissions scandal brought increased EPA scrutiny, resulting in established models from Mercedes-Benz and BMW put on hold and hopes of ever seeing performance diesels such as the Volkswagen GTD and BMW’s awesome new quad-turbo “super diesel” effectively dashed.
With diesel versions of the Mazda CX-5, Chevrolet Equinox, and Ford F-150 all due this year—as well as the return of the Chevrolet Cruze diesel—it would be premature to call diesels dead for the United States. Yet with VW sitting it out, Audi considering diesel only for SUVs, and Mercedes-Benz in the process of reevaluating its product plans, the market is hardly continuing where it left off. So we asked Fritz Steinparzer, BMW’s global head of diesel-engine development, how the diesel turmoil will affect BMW.
To sum up: He’s pragmatically optimistic about diesels’ future in the BMW product mix—although it’s clear that what happens in Europe over the next few years will ultimately drive the technology’s U.S. fate.
Diesels have made up more than 50 percent of new-vehicle sales in Europe in recent years, but a recent study anticipated that diesels will comprise just 9 percent of that market by 2030. That’s partly due to tougher new emissions rules and the cost of meeting them. The baton is expected to be passed from diesel to hybrid and electric models, especially among small cars—and that could impact what we see in the U.S.
We’ll see a continued downward trend in diesel small-car sales globally, Steinparzer admitted. “But in the bigger, heavier cars, from the customer point of view, diesels are still a very robust solution,” he said. In the U.S., it’s far less a matter of meeting technical hurdles than a discussion with the public. “For passenger cars, if there is enough customer demand we will offer it,” Steinparzer said, “because technically, the solution to meet regulatory demands, we have it.”
The EPA and CARB did a lot of additional tests to other manufacturers’ products after the VW issue, according to Steinparzer. “They never had a problem with our cars here [in the U.S.],” he said, emphasizing that he prefers the American approach and its well-defined driving cycles over Europe’s emissions standards, which are based on engine tests and often don’t correlate well to tailpipe emissions. More realistic driving-based emissions testing methods for Europe will commence in September, and a tighter set of limits will go into effect in 2020.
Meeting U.S. Diesel Emissions Regulations Isn’t the Real Issue
In order to make diesels progressively cleaner in the future, better fuels aren’t necessary, according to Steinparzer, because BMW has a toolbox of several strategies available. Those include further improvements to the injection system and combustion process—to drive down raw “engine out” emissions—and/or applying wider exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) strategies that work closer to full load. And because urea-injection systems, which spray a solution into the hot exhaust stream to reduce NOx, work best in a specific temperature range (540 to 930 degrees Fahrenheit), engineers are considering either a post-injection system or an electrically heated catalyst for the exhaust system. BMW diesels are also due to get a new round of updates to their onboard diagnostics, Steinparzer said.
EPA scrutiny led BMW to suspend production of its U.S.-spec diesel models in late 2016. Although those models were cleared after some additional emissions testing and recertified by late summer, it has taken time to bring them back into the mix. BMW 328d models returned to dealerships in October, while X3 xDrive28d models returned in December; fresh stocks of the BMW X5 xDrive35d are arriving in dealerships this month.
That said, there’s some hope in the numbers. To our request about pent-up demand for diesels, BMW pointed to sales of the 3-series family, which were up more than 28 percent in December versus the same month in 2015. Although BMW North America doesn’t break sales down by submodel—and that increase could include more than a few of the 330e iPerformance plug-in hybrid that was also introduced during this same period—we hear a clear message from BMW: Diesels are here to stay, hopefully for a long time.
from Car and Driver BlogCar and Driver Blog http://ift.tt/2jE1TQI
via IFTTT
How Dodge Cuts Unholy Mass Out of the Challenger SRT Demon (It Has One Seat!)
http://ift.tt/2jW2Uok
from Car and Driver BlogCar and Driver Blog http://ift.tt/2ki2BFi
via IFTTT
Read More...
In true demonic fashion, Dodge is teasing us with tidbits of information about the Challenger SRT Demon spread over next 10 weeks. For motorheads, this is the worst form of torture—knowing a wickedly powerful and purpose-built street machine will exist, but not knowing many details is like a never-ending Christmas Eve for an eight-year-old. But a little news has trickled out on, exactly, how the beefy Challenger lost some weight.
Dodge Challengers are heavy machines. In base V-6 form they flirt with two tons. Add a couple hundred pounds for the iron-block 5.7-liter Hemi and a few more when the car makes the jump to the 6.4-liter Scat Pack or the base Challenger SRT 392. The Hellcat from which the Demon spawns weighs nearly 4500 pounds—707 horsepower is a heavy number to carry around, after all.
To shed some unholy mass from a Demon, Dodge ditches everything it can, starting with all the seats except one for the driver. Dumping the rear and passenger seats sheds 113 pounds, 58 of that for the passenger throne alone. (A betting man could safely wager that the seats, and their respective belts, could be available as dealer-installed options.) Ditching the trunk trim saves another 20 pounds, and 18 pounds of sound-deadening material goes away, too. As we speculated, the speakers are all gone except for two small ones in the doors for the warning chimes; that and a simplified wiring harness pares another 24 pounds.
Further mass reductions compared with Hellcat-spec Challengers include ditching the parking sensors (two pounds), replacing the power tilt and telescoping steering column with a manual version (four pounds), 18-inch wheels in place of 20-inchers (16 pounds), hollow anti-roll bars (19 pounds), and the surprising choice of four-piston front brake calipers grabbing 14.2-inch rotors to supplant the Hellcat’s 16-pounds-heavier pair of six-piston grabbers and 15.4-inch rotors. (Maybe this isn’t intended as a road-course machine?)
Simple arithmetic puts this reduction at 232 pounds, slightly more than previously indicated. Dodge also admitted that there’s 17 pounds worth of new body add-ons (which we assume includes the fender flares and maybe a front splitter) and a further eight or nine pounds added back in when the drive- and half-shafts are upgraded to handle the increased torque that the Demon surely will possess.
It’s a dribble, we know, but get used to it. Dodge has promised another nugget every week until the Demon is fully uncovered at the New York auto show in April. If we can, we’ll make a deal with this devil to get you the info sooner.
from Car and Driver BlogCar and Driver Blog http://ift.tt/2ki2BFi
via IFTTT
Join the Chorus: BMW Should Bring This New 5-series Wagon to America
http://ift.tt/2kVR6m6
from Car and Driver BlogCar and Driver Blog http://ift.tt/2ksbaPO
via IFTTT
Read More...
A small fraternity of enthusiasts and automotive journalists keeps telling carmakers we need station wagons. They’re sportier than SUVs, more beautiful than high-roof crossovers, and have a sophisticated retro aura. Few automakers have listened to our pleas, and when they did, it didn’t always turn out so well. When was the last time you saw a Cadillac CTS wagon? We can’t remember, either. (But we miss it.) Nonetheless, this new BMW 5-series Touring has us starting up all over again.
BMW North America, though, is paying us no heed. In Europe, the situation is much different. The market for station wagons is huge: Sedans are seen as stodgy, and SUVs suffer from a combination of poor fuel economy and a lower top speed. Why put up with it, especially when station wagons are as beautiful as the new BMW 5?
The new model looks sleek and harmonious, with an upper character line that stretches all the way to the Hofmeister kink in the D-pillar. There is a stylized spoiler below the rear window (which opens separately from the liftgate), and a functional one at the top of it. Bigger than its predecessor in every dimension, it offers a substantial cargo hold, yet it maintains a relatively low roofline. Of course, it comes with the whole suite of assistance systems and luxury features that arrived with this latest generation of 5-series; the semi-autonomous-driving functions even work at speeds up to 130 mph.
And that’s a velocity that is easily reached by all of the engine options offered in Europe. In fact, three out of four are governed at 155 mph: the 530d with a 261-hp turbocharged 3.0-liter six-cylinder diesel, the 530i with the 248-hp turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four familiar to Americans, and the 540i with a 335-hp turbocharged 3.0-liter six (also seen in our market). Only the 520d with its 187-hp turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder diesel maxes out at 143 mph—although, in its favor, you can spec it with a six-speed manual transmission, a lovely alternative to the eight-speed automatic that is standard in all the other models.
No matter the powertrain, we think this wagon is beautiful. Just look at these pictures. And it’s so much more cool than your parents’ crossover SUV. BMW North America has told us categorically that there is no chance the 5-series Touring will come to the U.S. market. Of course, we think they should reconsider. Just listen to us, BMW.
from Car and Driver BlogCar and Driver Blog http://ift.tt/2ksbaPO
via IFTTT
The Good News: It’s a Buyer’s Market for Used Vehicles; The Bad News: Your Car Is Depreciating Faster
http://ift.tt/2kqTVPz
from Car and Driver BlogCar and Driver Blog http://ift.tt/2kqPhRB
via IFTTT
Read More...
What’s to be done with all the used cars and trucks? The question was at the forefront of the 2017 National Automobile Dealers Association convention in New Orleans. Of concern for car and truck dealers is the glut of vehicles coming off leases this year, which will inevitably drive down prices for used vehicles. Their loss could be used-car buyers’ gain.
“I think from [the automaker’s] perspective, that’s bad news,” Toyota Motor North America CEO Jim Lentz said at a roundtable with journalists Sunday. “From the consumer’s perspective, it’s pretty good news. There are going to be some great deals out there on certified used passenger cars.”
The key word there is “certified.” Dealers and manufacturers alike are poised to woo customers toward certified pre-owned vehicles, or CPOs, which have low mileage and come with a manufacturer-backed inspection, a warranty, and other perks. The push makes sense, as most cars and trucks coming off leases will be newer, and CPOs typically cannot be more than five or six years old.
The supply of used vehicles up to five years in age on the market already grew by 13 percent in 2016, led by a 33 percent rise in off-lease maturities, according to data from the research firm J.D. Power, which was shown during a session at the NADA convention. Another 6 percent increase in used-vehicle volume is forecast for this year. For car and truck shoppers, that growth in volume points toward a buyer’s market for used vehicles. On the flip side, if you own a car or truck, it is likely to lose its value faster in 2017.
In 2016, wholesale used-vehicle prices went down for the first time since the last recession, dropping 4 percent, according to J.D. Power, and the slide is expected to continue this year. At the same time, average incentive spending on new vehicles—or the amount automakers spend on cutting deals with consumers to boost sales—hit an all-time high of $4001 last year. J.D. Power data says incentives are expected to continue to grow this year.
“What that means, from a consumer standpoint, is that your new vehicle depreciates faster,” said Jonathan Banks, vice president of J.D. Power’s valuation services.
Cars and trucks already had an acceleration in depreciation last year, according to J.D. Power figures. Every segment depreciated by double digits, save for large trucks, which had their value drop by 8 percent. “Trucks are still doing amazingly well,” Banks said, adding, however, that a continued increase in used-truck supply could hit prices there as well.
In 2017, J.D. Power expects the deprecation rate in cars to increase from 20 percent to 21 percent, and in trucks to rise from 14 percent to 18 percent.
“The higher incentives on the new vehicles, the lower that transaction price is for the new vehicles,” Banks said. “That puts downward pressure on used [vehicle prices].”
Meanwhile, with more used cars and trucks coming on the market, and used-car prices falling accordingly, some automakers may have to spend even more on incentives to get people into new vehicles.
“You get kind of a vicious circle between the two, which could be really bad, especially when you’re spending a lot of money,” Banks said. “So it’s a bit of a frightening situation, in my opinion.”
Dealers do not seem to be panicking, and some told C/D anecdotally that downward pressure on used car and truck prices has not yet been too abrupt at the dealer-lot level.
Michelle Primm, general manager of the Cascade Auto Group in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, said the further decline in used-vehicle prices will likely mean a greater focus on sales of certified pre-owned vehicles, where the dealer can draw more value.
“We’ll adjust to market habits,” Primm said. “Car dealers are nimble.”
from Car and Driver BlogCar and Driver Blog http://ift.tt/2kqPhRB
via IFTTT