BMW 1-Series M Coupe Crash No3

In what is quickly becoming a rather alarming trend, we have the third reported crash involving the new BMW 1-Series M Coupe.

After the heavy fender bender in South Korea that we told you about on July 22 and the Polish mishap on July 29, today we bring you a more serious incident that occurred in South Africa, courtesy of 1Addict forum member Dossantr on behalf of his unnamed friend that owns the white 1 M Coupe.

According to Dossantr's description of the incident, the driver of the 340-horsepower BMW swerved to avoid a person running across the road and collided with an oncoming car while a third vehicle was also involved in the crash.

The collision was pretty hard with the BMW's bumper wedged into the blue mini (it looks like an older Kia Picanto). Fortunately, no one is said to have been injured.

Chrysler Group to Deliver 14 Plug-in Hybrid Rams to San Francisco

The Chrysler Group is taking its first baby steps in the plug-in hybrid arena with the launch of an evaluation program that will see around 140 plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) being supplied to selected cities and states across the USA.

On Tuesday, August 2, Chrysler will deliver 14 Ram 1500 PHEV prototypes to the City of San Francisco as part of a three-year assessment program.

"The city [San Francisco] will evaluate the vehicles in real-world driving conditions and report regularly to Chrysler Group LLC all driving and charging experiences with the demonstration vehicles," the Detroit automaker said in a statement.

The Ram 1500 PHEV combines a liquid-cooled 12.9kWhr lithium ion battery pack and a 6.6 kilowatt (kW) on-board charger with a 5.7-liter HEMI V8 engine featuring a Multiple Displacement System (MDS) and a two-mode hybrid transmission.

Chrysler says that the vehicles are part of a pure demonstration program and that there are no plans for a production version of the PHEV Ram 1500 truck at this time.

Aside from the Ram pickup truck, the Detroit automaker is also developing a similar fleet of 25 Town & Country minivans with plug-in hybrid technology for demonstration and evaluation purposes.

Mahindra India First Global Cult Brand

M&M is not just a well-known candy but also the name of a part of the Mumbai-based Mahindra Group - an Indian conglomerate with a market value of $17.6 billion that has 119,900 employees in more than 100 countries and is involved in almost everything from banking and agribusiness, to aerospace technology and real estate.

M&M, which stands for Mahindra & Mahindra, is the flagship company of the Mahindra Group and has a presence in both the automotive and tractor businesses. Anand Mahindra, son of one of India’s richest families, leads the company.

Mahindra certainly has great ambitions for his company and SsangYong, the bankrupt Korean manufacturer which he bought in November 2010. Automotive News reports that Anand recently stated “We want to be India’s first global cult brand”.

The Indian company is not new to the game. It already has a 65 year old history, having begun assembling the legendary Willys Jeep in 1947. It also is, since 2010, the world’s largest tractor manufacturer. Now, Anand Mahindra is focusing on the car business and has decided that he wants to make his company a global player.

Mahindra and SsangYong currently manufacture a wide range of products. Their car line-up consists of 13 models, the most recent of which is the Korando SUV, but they also manufacture many other vehicles like trucks and tourist buses.

Anand Mahindra’s aim is to invest in SsangYong and turn it into a global brand known for its SUVs: “I see our relationship with SsangYong as an inflection point that will contribute greatly to the future success of the Mahindra Group.”

India’s expanding economy, along with the West’s problems, may serve Mahindra’s plan well. “Several Indian companies saw opportunities for global expansion and were able to buy these assets when some overseas companies were restructuring,” says Nikhil Nath of Hong-Kong based Nomura Holdings.

One well-advertised case is the acquisition of Jaguar and Land Rover by Tata Motors. “Those companies will become truly global in the next decade. M&M’s SsangYong deal shows such an aspiration” Nath concludes.

Audi New A6 Hybrid

When Audi pulled the wraps off the newest iteration of the A6 in November, 2010, the Ingolstadt-based automaker made no word about the availability of the hybrid variant in the North American market. And officially, the Germans are still refusing to confirm the A6 Hybrid.

However, Car&Driver magazine is now reporting that it has received confirmation from "several reliable sources within Audi" that the new A6 Hybrid will be sold in the USA starting from next year with a price "somewhere north of $55,000".

It is believed that the U.S.-spec model will be similar to the European version that also goes on sale in 2012.

The European model employs a parallel hybrid concept combining a 2.0-liter TFSI gasoline engine delivering 211-horses and 350 Nm (258.15 lb-ft) with an electric motor that produces an output of 33 kW (45 hp) and 211 Nm (155.63 lb-ft) of torque.

Directly mounted behind one another, the four-cylinder gasoline engine and the electric motor have a brief combined system output of 245HP (180kW) and 480 Nm (354.03 lb-ft). A modified 8-speed tiptronic transmission transfers power to the front wheels.

The electric motor draws energy from a lithium-ion battery system, which weighs in at 36.7 kg (80.91 lb) and is located in the collision-protected area under the luggage compartment. Audi says the luggage capacity is 375 liters (13.24 cu. ft), which is significantly less than the regular model's 530 liters (18.7 cu.ft).

What you get in return is a 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) sprint time of 7.3 seconds and a top speed of 238 km/h (148mph), but more importantly, a combined fuel economy in the European cycle of less than 6.4 liters per 100 km (36.75 US mpg) with CO2 emissions of less than 146 grams per km (234.96 g/mile).

In addition, Audi says that the A6 Hybrid can be driven up to 100 km/h (62mph) under electric power alone.

MINI UK Launches New Soho Editions for Hatch and Convertible

Following the release of the MINI Clubman Soho edition last year, the British automaker decided to name all of its special edition models after London boroughs, districts, streets and landmarks.

As a result, the Soho nameplate has now been applied to the three-door hatchback and soft-top convertible model, both of which will be available in the United Kingdom in Cooper and Cooper D models from now until March 2012.

The Soho editions sport an exclusive ‘White Silver’ metallic paint, which is not available on any other current MINI Hatch or Convertible model, as well as 17-inch Black Star Bullet alloy wheels, Bi-Xenon headlights with black interior reflectors and white indicators.

As for the interior, the two MINI Soho models gain Anthracite headlining, a 3-Spoke sport leather steering wheel and ‘Piano Black’ interior surfaces.