BMW

It's almost springtime. For some people that means flowers, rain, new life and all that sappy stuff. I would probably drive past the new foliage and bird-watchers though, because your local BMW dealership will probably have a new M3 on the lot, featuring the 2011 BMW M3 "Competition Package."  Available in Spring of 2010, this add on will be available for all models (Coupe, Sedan, Convertible) and will cost $2,500.

It includes lightweight alloy wheels, lowered suspension (10mm), trick looking carbon fiber front and rear spoilers, and a new EDC setting simply called, "sport mode." Along with that wildly creative EDC setting comes several new stability control programs, all aimed at improving the handling and driving experience. The aero bits look great. The raw carbon fiber accents the body color (unless it's black) and will help the car stand out among the seemingly thousands of new M3s seen daily. The rear spoiler is a nice touch, elongating the shape of the trunk and balancing the profile.

G-Power may not be a name that readily comes to mind when you think of BMW tuners, but the company is really hoping to change all that in short order. Last time we heard from this German mod shop they unleashed the world's fastest BMW coupe - the G-Power M6 Hurricane. This time around they are taking a crack at the BMW X5 with the same storm weather naming convention and ridiculous power conversions.

The G-Power Typhoon "Black Pearl" is about as extreme a sport 'ute as you'll find (this week). The Bimmer's 4.8-liter V8 engine gets reengineered with new pistons, rods, crankshaft, fuel injectors and benefits from revised ECU mapping and additional cooling systems. If that wasn't enough, it's also bootstrapped with an SK III RS supercharger and outfitted with a new intake and exhaust. With 625 horsepower on tap (an increase of 270 hp), the Typhoon blasts from 0 to 62 mph in just 4.5 seconds with a top end of 186 mph.

BMW has finally acknowledged what we have been waiting for with baited breath; there will be an M-tuned 135i offered to the public. And only a few days after we named the 135i one of our Top Sports Cars of 2010, specifically because of its tuning potential. Coincidence? Yeah, probably. But great news nonetheless.

In 2007, BMW showed the world its Tii concept, a worked-over 135i with a slight body kit, tuned suspension and even a racing stripe. That concept sat brewing for a few years and finally has an official green light. The BMW 135i "M1" will go on sale in mid-2011 in the UK, with no word on a U.S. offering just yet. But judging by the success of the 135i, and my country's love of everything fast and shiny, it will cross the pond swiftly.

Back in April, Heineken took a page out of Bud Light's funny-book and created some pretty comical ads showing a comparison between a woman's fantasy closet filled with couture apparel and a guy's penultimate setup filled with beer. Taking things one step further, as a follow-up, massive cardboard boxes with the words 'Walk-in Fridge' were strewn around Amsterdam just before garbage day.

MINI recently hopped on the this bandwagon just after Christmas, strategically distributing massive cardboard cartons with torn gift wrapping in trash heaps all over the same Dutch city. Each box had a large diagram of the car with the words MINI COOPER across the top as if the car had been packaged inside. Naturally, people were intrigued with the ad campaign and their reactions were caught on video (after the jump).

Here it is: The final 5 Top sports cars in the price range of $40-50k for 2010. Part 1 (click here if you missed it) was a diverse mix of metals from the desert-romping Raptor, to a Caterham that can almost fit in a truck bed. They all provide great fun, or great convenience, and I wouldn't kick any of them out of my garage. For the Top 5, no concessions were made. There's no pickup trucks, hybrids, or bone-shattering go-karts here. Just the best performance cars you can get...

As we all know, or have heard, the German autobahn is the mecca of motoring for high-performance enthusiasts. For many long stretches of road there are no speed limits with the only exceptions coming by way of junction points, construction zones or areas where noise or pollution are problematic. With a highway system where extreme speeds are the norm, a special type of patrol car is needed for law enforcement. Every year the Essen Motor Show is home to the annual Tune It Safe! program and showcases a variety of police cars jazzed up by various tuners to promote safety in the industry. This year, AC Schnitzer was commissioned by BMW to create a police car concept based on the BMW 123d Coupe.

The BMW 123d Coupe is an unlikely pursuit vehicle with just a small twin-turbo, 2.0 liter 4 banger putting out 204 hp. Therefore, AC Schnitzer went to work by boosting output to 241 horsepower with 354 lb-ft of torque. Styling tweaks include a front splitter, rear wing and roof spoiler, chrome tailpipes and sport mirrors along with a set of larger AC Schnitzer wheels. The BMW E82 has been dropped 30mm and rides on a new suspension system. The interior benefits from Recaro racing seats, lots of carbon fiber trim and components, a sports steering wheel and aluminum accents such as the pedal set and foot rest.

LEGO has been around since the 1930s, starting out with wooden blocks and then moving to plastic bricks when the technology became available. We have all enjoyed this wonderful toy over the years and witnessed all kinds of amazing reconstructions designed to mimic many of the world's wonders and most impressive buildings. There is almost nothing that can't be done with LEGO. A few months back we even saw a fully functioning LEGO V8 engine. Recently, BMW sponsored a project to raise funds for disadvantaged children which involved building a life-sized X1 entirely out of LEGO blocks.

There were 800 kids between the ages of 5 and 13 who participated, and it took them just four days to build a BMW X1 to scale, using thousands of yellow, gray and black bricks. The model measures 4.5m long, 1.8m wide and 1.5m high. Each LEGO block snapped into place resulted in a donation to the Children's World "Die Arche". Roughly 165,000 LEGO bricks were used in total. If you happen to be in Munich, the LEGO BMW X1 will be on display at BMW Welt ('BMW World' in German) starting November 25th.

Collaboration can be good and bad. Metallica and the San Francisco symphony; good. Bush and Cheney; bad. This time it's the high-end German tuners Lumma Design and G-Power teaming up to make the baddest BMW M5 to date. And they have. Feast your eyes on the new CLR 730 RS Lumma Design. Don't let the long confusing name distract you, it's simply incredible.

This may be a match made in heaven. Lumma Design's forté with the BMW M5 was to focus on the suspension and body, not the engine. So they called G-Power, another German-based tuner that has been tweaking Bimmers for over 25 years. By focusing solely on BMW they have a level of knowledge few can touch. In this case, twin-turbos, breathing through Lumma racing cats, bring the already potent V-10 up to a biblical 730 hp and 516 lb-ft. of torque. Forget the helicopter Jeeves, I'm in a hurry, bring me the Lumma M5.