Morning Reads: Weekend Edition 14, 15 June 2008

mika · Jun 14, 2008

SaturdayÔÇÖs Birthdays / Calendar

SundayÔÇÖs Birthdays / Calendar

womenridersnow.com
Lane positioning: Knowing where to be when

sportride.com
RIDING SKILLS SERIES: Using reference points when riding

MCN advice: How to make the best of a Nurburgring trip
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A couple miles up the hill from my old digs in Lilydale they are working on concept bikes. We never did things like this when I was in high school.
thekneeslider.com
Saint Thomas Academy Experimental Vehicle Team

cyrilhuzeblog.com
Mike Seate launches Caf?® Racer Magazine

Bikes in the Fast Lane
Motorcycle gang wars in Europe

triumph.co.uk
Street Triple Wins Best Bike Award for 2008

londonbikers.com
The New Ace Caf?® Racer

motorcyclist.com
Long Way Down on National Geographic ÔÇô Coming to a TV screen near you.

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motorcycledaily.com
The motor company takes its time

bbc.co.uk
BBC Q&A with James Toseland

bikerpunks.com
2008 MotoGP Catalunya Race action

planet-f1.com
Massa: Title race spiced up by KubicaÔÇÖs win

paddoctalk.com
Alonso set to make BMW announcement?

formula1.com
Renault cautious on planned safety car changes

formula1.com
Berger exclusive ÔÇô customer cars, the FIA Presidency, and those sale rumors

Edmunds.com
Puegeot obliterates Le Mans lap record

americanlemans.com
Corvette Racing claims first GT1 Pole for 24 Hours of Le Mans

Is Renault being frugal or preparing for another fickle exit from F1
eemsonline.co.uk
Renault to downsize F1 engine operation

autoweek.com
Former Toyota F1 boss Andersson dies in vintage-car crash

Racing Links and Feeds:

The Sanctioning Bodies
AMA Pro Racing ÔÇô with links to the various AMA series.
FIM
FIM World Championship ÔÇô Endurance
MotoGO ÔÇô Official website
SBK Superbike World Championship

Links to racing news feeds.
Auto Racing Daily: Motorcycle Racing
Auto Racing Daily: Superbike
BBC: Motorsport ÔÇô Rallying ÔÇô World Edition
Crash.Net: MotoGP
Crash.Net: World Superbikes
HighRevs.net: MotoGP
Motorsport.com : World Superbike
MCN: Motor Sport
MCN: World Superbikes
Roadracingworld.com
Superbike-News.co.uk: Superbike
Superbikeplanet.com

BMW Sauber F1

BMW Motorsport

motorauthority.com
Europeans saving thousands by buying cars in the U.S.

motortrend.com
VIDEO COMPARISON: 2008 Dodge Challenger SRT8 v 2008 Ford Shelby GT500

motoringfile.com
MINI workers temporarily laid off

thecarconnection.com
Eight cars to drive before you die

windingroad.com
RUMOR: Porsche planning a Golf-based small car for 2012?

carscoope.com
iCar: When VW met Apple

jalopnik.com
Gas prices up 8.2%, Hybrid sales down 11% in MayÔÇªwait WHAT?

jalopnik.com
Insert British Leyland Joke Here: 1976 Triumph TR7 commercial
[You know BMW owns the Triumph car name.]

luxist.com
The Scorpion Hybrid Supercar

autobloggreen.com
Are high gas prices ÔÇ£forcingÔÇØ Americans toward ethanol?

classicrallies.com
Pebble Beach consignments at the 2008 Rodeo Drive Concours dÔÇÖElegance

wheels24.co.za
FIRST DRIVE: Aston Martin DBS

worldcarfans.com
Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 photo update

I donÔÇÖt know what makes me always want an econobox racer like this. They are never big enough for 6ÔÇÖ 5ÔÇØ Mikas :ha

egmcartech.com
I go crazy after seeing the Toyota Aygo Crazy Concept

mika · Jun 14, 2008

BMW PressClub

ForsterÔÇÖs show of force

BMW Motorrad Motorsport team rider Gerhard Forster celebrated an emphatic victory in the third round of the Austrian Cross Country Championship (ACC) at the weekend at Ampflwang in Upper Austria. Following on from his excellent performance in the recent Red Bull Hare Scramble at Erzberg ÔÇô where he finished in seventh place out of 500 starters ÔÇô the ÔÇÿextremeÔÇÖ riding specialist won the ACC enduro in spectacular style, beating his nearest challenger by a massive seven minutes margin!

In treacherous conditions, where heavy rain had poured down on the course until about an hour before the pro-class race began, Forster had started in 15th position on the grid, just behind his BMW Motorrad Motorsport team mate, Bert Meyer. Twenty-one-year old Meyer was participating in the ACC round as part of his preparations for this weekendÔÇÖs FIM World Enduro Championship GP in Poland.

Knowing that the difficult conditions could suit his style of riding, Forster set off on the BMW G 450 X, attacking the tricky terrain and timing his passes to perfection, moving through the pack swiftly to take the lead on the second lap. From there, he never looked back and stayed in front to take the victory and put BMW Motorrad on the top step of the podium.

ÔÇ£That was a very satisfying win for me,ÔÇØ said Gerhard. ÔÇ£There was so much rain prior to the start of the race, but that didnÔÇÖt bother me because I love the challenge of these conditions. My background is in trials and I found it fairly easy to pick the right lines around the track. There were about 60 riders in this race and starting in 15th place meant that I still had a lot of work to do. It was difficult to see anything with all the mud flying around, so I took off my goggles. I managed to get up to sixth place after the first lap and then worked towards getting to the front, which I did one lap later. At my fuel stop after an hour and 10 minutes, I had a 90 second lead, so I kept pushing and by the end of the race had increased this to seven minutes ÔÇô all in all a great result for the team.ÔÇØ

BMW Motorrad Motorsport rookie Bert Meyer started the ACC race with short knobbly FIM Enduro tyres, as his plan was to use this contest as part of his training preparations for the World Enduro Championship round in Kyidzyn, Poland, the following weekend. Starting from 14th on the grid, the young Saxon had also worked his way towards the front and was just 15 seconds adrift of Gerhard Forster going into the last lap. However, while pushing hard to catch his team mate, Bert crashed in a deep mud hole and was forced to settle for third place, after being passed by Thomas G??nter on a Husaberg.

Even so, having two BMW riders on the podium was still an excellent result, according to Team Manager Wolfgang Fischer, who was delighted with the efforts of his two riders: What a great day of racing and congratulations to both riders,ÔÇØ he said ÔÇ£It turned out to be a really challenging and technical enduro with lots of steep uphill sections, made even more difficult by heavy rain and deep mud! All the riders struggled of course, but it was rewarding to see the amazing levels of traction that Gerhard and Bert were getting with the G 450 X. In situations like this, you can really see all the development work starting to pay off.ÔÇØ

There was more good news for BMW Motorrad Motorsport in Ampflwang, as team mechanic Lee Palmer also celebrated a victory on a G 450 X. He had started in the semi-pro class to test some new components, but came away with a class victory ÔÇô beating his nearest challenge by over a lap.

While Bert Meyer now travels to northern Poland to join his BMW team mates for this weekendÔÇÖs fourth round of the eight-round 2008 World Enduro Championship, Gerhard Forster will be making his way to Obersaxen, Switzerland, where he will compete in the European Hill Climbing Championship on a BMW G 450 X in place of the injured Chris Pfeiffer.
Result ACC Ampflwang, ProClass
1. Gerhard Forster (GER, BMW Motorrad Motorsport) 9 laps
2. Thomas G??nther (GER, Husaberg) 9
3. Bert Neyer (GER, BMW Motorrad Motorsport) 9 laps
4. Daniel Stocker (AUT, KTM) 9 laps
5. Bernhard Walzer (AUT, KTM) 9 laps
6. Kurt Machtlinger (AUT, KTM) 9 laps
7. Wilfried Reiter (AUT, KTM) 8 laps
8. Edi Ederer (AUT, KTM) 8 laps
9. Rudi P?Âschl (AUT, KTM) 7 laps
10. Roland Schier (AUT, KTM) 7 laps

BMW Sauber F1 Team - Test in Barcelona - Day one
06-12-2008 Press Release

Test in Barcelona.

June 12th - 14th 2008
Day one ÔÇô Thursday

Weather conditions: Sunny in the morning, overcast in the afternoon with rain from 17:00 hrs.

Temperatures: Air: 18 ÔÇô 31 ??C, Track: 23 ÔÇô 43 ??C

Number of drivers participating: 9 of 8 teams

Fastest lap overall: Luca Badoer (Ferrari) 1:22.043 min

Circuit length: 4.655 km

Robert Kubica
Chassis / engine: BMW Sauber F1.08-06 / BMW P86/8
Test kilometres today: 322 km (69 laps)
Fastest lap: 1:22.682 min

Programme:
Robert Kubica today worked on the aerodynamical and mechanical setup of the BMW Sauber F1.08. He concentrated on evaluating different options for the upcoming French Grand Prix. Although the afternoon session was shortened by one hour due to rain the BMW Sauber F1 team could complete most of itÔÇÖs scheduled test programme.

In the morning Kubica encountered a minor technical issue. After radio contact with his engineer he did a precautionary stop. After repairs his car ran faultlessly for the rest of the day.

What comes next:
The BMW Sauber F1 Team will continue testing in Barcelona for two more days. Tomorrow Robert Kubica will be on duty again continuing the work in preparation for the French Grand Prix. Nick Heidfeld will take over on Saturday.

mika · Jun 14, 2008

MINIInternational presents "Sustainable Cities" 2008. For the first time ever, the MINI lifestyle magazine is assigning a common theme to all four issues this year: sustainability. Kyoto, Copenhagen, San Francisco and the "Ruhr Metropolis" are centres of sustainable lifestyles and the subjects of the four MINIInternational journals in 2008.
06/12/2008

Munich. MINIInternational, the MINI lifestyle magazine, will be focussing this year on four "Sustainable Cities". Kyoto, Copenhagen, San Francisco and Essen/the Ruhr area have been chosen as the "Green Cities" by the editors of MINIInternational because of their commitment to sustainability. Issue 01/2008 "Kyoto - The Capital of Sustainability" has just been officially presented on 30.5.2008 with a launch event in the Sfera Building in Kyoto.

MINIInternational embodies the most important MINI values. It is cosmopolitan, classless, emotional and authentic. The magazine sees itself as a cultural platform, reflecting the sophisticated lifestyle. It has been published since 2001, initially appearing twice year, and then four times a year since 2002. Each issue presents a city in which there is plenty going on, and provides a portrait of creative minds. MINIInternational makes a clear distinction between the lifestyle section and the product section, which informs readers separately about the MINI brand. The magazine has been awarded many prizes all over the world for editorial design and for the quality of its journalism.

The concept and editorial design were the brainchild of journalist Anne Urbauer ("Wallpaper", "NZZ am Sonntag", "Liebling") and creative director Mike Meir?® ("brand eins", "032c", "Arch+"). The team has tailor-made a magazine for MINI that fits both visually and in terms of content with the premium small car and the world it inhabits.

For 2008, a motto was chosen for the first time linking all four cities: MINIInternational will be providing a portrait in 2008 solely of cities that are considered, each in its own way, to be models of a sustainable lifestyle, thus strengthening the realisation that sustainability and quality of life belong together. Sustainability does not simply begin and end with applying ecological principles; it also includes further ethical and social aspects of life. The architect Richard Rogers, whose worldwide success started with the Pompidou Centre, has worked out a number of criteria which define what goes to make up a sustainable city. These include not only environmental awareness but also criteria such as rapid communications, mobility, creativity, aesthetics and fairness. The MINIInternational editors took these as their guide.

The first to be selected was Kyoto, Japan's oldest Imperial city - a city where the people have a deep bond with their cultural heritage and which has nonetheless managed to be innovative at all times. In Kyoto, the first World Climate Protection Protocol was negotiated in 1997, and the city administration aims to exceed its targets wherever it can. The projects presented in MINIInternational include the Miyako Ecology Center, designed by Ken Kodoma in 2002. This environmental information centre uses solar energy, geothermal heat and rainwater in such innovative ways that CO2 emissions are 30% lower than in comparable buildings that do not use renewable energies. Municipal buses and the city's dustcarts are powered by biodiesel, recovered from recycled waste oil. The active contributions made by the city's population, who take the oil from tempura restaurants to the 1,000 collection points, for example, helps reduce CO2 emissions.

Copenhagen is aiming to be the "World's Leading Environmental Capital" and "World's Leading Bicycle City" by 2015. Other examples that show that Copenhagen is a major "Sustainable City": nearly 12 percent of all privately used consumer goods are produced organically, 97 percent of households are connected to district heating, which is more than anywhere else. Copenhagen's schoolchildren are learning all about healthy nutrition in the "organic food programme". In 2009, the eyes of the world will be on Copenhagen, when the follow-up agreement to the Kyoto Protocol is to be approved at the next World Climate Conference. The MINIInternational issue focussing on Copenhagen will be appearing in June.

San Francisco is regarded by many experts as being the "sustainability capital" of the USA. Many things that still have to be implemented elsewhere have already become a matter of everyday life in San Francisco. Plastic bags, for example, have long been banned in San Francisco. More than 200 electric cars operate on city business and the city's buses offer innovative transport facilities for bicycles in order to promote their use. In San Francisco, absorbent mats made from human hair have been developed which are able to absorb oil particularly efficiently in the event of tanker accidents. The Pritzker prize-winner Renzo Piano designed the largest landscaped roof in the USA, incorporating 1.7 million plants, for the New Academy of Science Building. The new building in the Golden Gate Park has been built with a view to sustainability. MINIInternational San Francisco will be appearing in September.

The fourth 2008 issue, in December, will be devoted to a very special type of urban area: Essen and the Ruhr area will be operating in the future under the name of the "Ruhr Metropolis". The largest conurbation in Germany is successfully facing up to the challenge of transforming itself from a traditional industrial landscape with particular ecological problems into a modern, sustainable habitat with a quality of life that looks to the future. This is reflected in the conversion of coal-mines to cultural centres, especially the Zollverein mine, which is now a UNESCO World Heritage site and which is opening a concept store for sustainable regional products, the recycled furniture from the "ReUseNet" network, the solar city of Gelsenkirchen, where a huge solar plant has been opened on the roof of a former coal store of the "Schalker Verein" steelworks, and the refurbishment and renaturation of the once polluted river Emscher, now a leisure park.

The Sustainable City issues of MINIInternational 2008 will each have a circulation of around 230,000 and will be published in five languages (German, English, French, Japanese and Chinese). MINIInternational can be obtained from MINI dealers worldwide, online at www.MINI.com/MINIInternational, by subscription, at trade fairs and other events, at international kiosks, in selected book stores and through other cooperative agreements.

From Lifestyle TO Lifescience, BMW Group DesignworksUSA expands breadth of design work to help design high-tech Eye Surgery system for Advanced Medical Optics (AMO)
06/12/2008

Los Angeles, CA - June 11. In continuing its thirty-five years as a leading, award-winning global design consultancy, BMW Group DesignworksUSA has expanded the breadth of its innovative design work into the area of ophthalmic medical devices with the Spring 2008 production of the Advanced Medical Optics' (AMO) next generation eye surgery system-WHITESTAR SignatureÔäó. AMO-a global medical device leader focused on the discovery and delivery of innovative vision technologies that optimize the quality of life for people of all ages-recognized the opportunity to establish a leadership position in the cataract-removal market and approached the design firm to help create its next generation surgery technology.
"Designing the WHITESTAR SignatureÔäó system for Advanced Medical Optics was both a challenging and fulfilling experience for our team," said Verena Kloos, BMW Group DesignworksUSA President. "Every project we work on presents its own unique challenges, along with a great sense of achievement upon tackling those challenges. However, in expanding the breadth of our design work from a typical lifestyle product to a very complex life science product, it was especially gratifying for the team to know that their efforts would directly result in improving the lives of others."

The WHITESTAR SignatureÔäó system is an all-new premium surgical platform that sets new industry standards, is more advanced than competitors' products and cements AMO's leadership position. The device is not a laser, but rather works with ultrasound to break up cataracts, which are an opacity of the crystalline lens of the eye that leads to vision loss if untreated. Once broken up, the device suctions the cataract, extracts it and allows for replacement with an artificial lens by the ophthalmologist. The WHITESTAR SignatureÔäó system optimizes the procedure while giving physicians the tools to deliver optimal patient outcomes in less time.

"We had successfully worked with AMO seven years prior and had helped produce the SOVEREIGNÔäó System for eye surgery, a multi-award winner including a Gold IDEA-a Design Distinction award from ID Magazine-and a MDEA Silver Award," said Holger Hampf, BMW Group DesignworksUSA Director of Product Design. "We were excited to have another opportunity to work with AMO on the next generation machine."

As with the previous design program for AMO, DesignworksUSA began with extensive design research to develop a strategy. The team observed how the current equipment was being used by eye care professionals. Focus groups and interviews with surgeons and nurses provided real-world feedback and inspired numerous design innovations. The design team even had the opportunity to use existing products to remove cataract-damaged lenses from simulation test eyes. The on-site visits and focus groups proved to be very valuable in validating both the product design and user interface direction.

The design language for the WHITESTAR SignatureÔäó embraces deep usability concepts and innovative ideas that developed from direct interaction with the products' end users. The design team evolved the form and physical structure of the machine, and working closely with AMO's engineers, developed a totem-like verticality for the device. Mobility was increased with the addition of a 5-star caster base that also provided greater stability. Innovative handles that wrap around the machine were added, providing the ability to grip and move the equipment from several different points of access with multiple hand positions. The essential foot pedal was redesigned to provide additional comfort during procedures and incorporates a built-in charging dock.

Although the overall footprint of the device was reduced, the actual screen interface was enlarged for greater visibility and ease of use during surgery. Information design for the screen display was the primary challenge for DesignworksUSA's Communication Design team. In a close collaboration with AMO, the design team concentrated on analysis of information types, work flow order and prioritization. The meta-goal was to reduce the display of information to a single-frame environment, in which all information could be readily accessible at all times. "We created a unique GUI that interpreted AMO's brand with a whole new logic structure, " says Monika Zych, BMW Group DesignworksUSA Director of Communication Design. "The device offers more features and functionality, but the interface is simpler and easier to use." This approach to the visual design on the screen allows the nurse to interact quickly during procedures, making adjustments as required, with complex preferences intuitively usable and just a touch away.

"I'm very pleased with the resulting design for this premium product," said Hampf. "It is a true demonstration of the value of a design effort from start to finish all under one roof. Without expertise in product design, user interface, engineering, modeling and more, we would not have been able to produce the needed design."

AMO released the WHITESTAR SignatureÔäó system production version this Spring and early feedback on the system has been extremely positive.

BMW Group DesignworksUSA
With offices in Los Angeles, Singapore and Munich, BMW Group DesignworksUSA is a subsidiary of BMW Group with diverse and cross-functional expertise in the field of design strategy, design research, brand communications, color, materials, and finish, product development, 3D modeling and engineering. Beyond its automotive design work for BMW Group, the design consultancy is commissioned by a large number of leading companies working in the transportation, consumer electronics, medical, consumer packaged goods, and lifestyle industries. More information can be found at: www.designworksusa.com

BMW Group In America
BMW of North America, LLC has been present in the United States since 1975. Rolls-Royce Motor Cars NA, LLC began distributing vehicles in 2003. The BMW Group in the United States has grown to include marketing, sales, and financial service organizations for the BMW brand of motor vehicles, including motorcycles, the MINI brand, and the Rolls-Royce brand of Motor Cars; DesignworksUSA, an industrial design firm in California; a technology office in Silicon Valley and various other operations throughout the country. BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC in South Carolina is part of BMW Group's global manufacturing network and is the exclusive manufacturing plant for all Z4 models, X5 Sports Activity Vehicles and the X6 Sports Activity Coupe. The BMW Group sales organization is represented in the U.S. through networks of 338 BMW passenger car centers, 335 BMW Sports Activity Vehicle centers, 142 BMW motorcycle retailers, 82 MINI passenger car dealers, and 30 Rolls-Royce Motor Car dealers. BMW (US) Holding Corp., the BMW Group's sales headquarters for North, Central and South America, is located in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey.

Os carros mais esportivos de 2008: seis vit??rias para o BMW Group na vota?º?úo dos leitores realizada pela revista alem?ú Sport Auto.
06/11/2008

Munique/S?úo Paulo ÔÇô 6 de junho de 2008. Seis vit??rias e outros cinco modelos entre os vencedores ÔÇô este foi o resultado final do BMW Group na vota?º?úo dos leitores ÔÇ£Os carros mais esportivos de 2008ÔÇØ, realizada pela revista de carros esportivos ÔÇ£Sport AutoÔÇØ. Esse resultado impressionante demonstra mais uma vez a posi?º?úo de destaque do BMW Group como um fabricante de ve?¡culos excepcionalmente esportivos. Modelos das marcas BMW e MINI subiram ao p??dio dos vencedores em 11 das 14 categorias reservadas para carros de produ?º?úo em s?®rie. Juntamente com suas seis vit??rias nas respectivas categorias, isso significa que o BMW Group saiu dessa vota?º?úo dos leitores da revista ÔÇ£Sport AutoÔÇØ como o fabricante mais bem sucedido ÔÇô da mesma forma que no ano passado.
Com as categorias de avalia?º?úo divididas em segmentos de pre?ºo, vers?Áes de carroceria e motor, havia um total de 230 modelos, incluindo 146 ve?¡culos de produ?º?úo em s?®rie e 84 vers?Áes personalizadas. Quatro modelos ?á gasolina e dois modelos a diesel conquistaram vit??rias para o BMW Group em suas categorias. O sucesso de maior destaque foi obtido pelo BMW 123d Coup?®, que ganhou 50,5% dos votos para motores a diesel com pre?ºo de at?® 35.000 euros, enquanto que na categoria acima dessa o BMW 335d ficou em primeiro com 39,5% dos votos. Na categoria de carros pequenos, o novo MINI John Cooper Works terminou em primeiro com 37,7% dos votos, enquanto as classes sed?ú de at?® 45.000 e 90.000 euros foram liderados pelo BMW 335i (34,4%) e o BMW M3 Sed?ú (38,3%) respectivamente. O sexteto vitorioso foi completado pelo BMW 335i Coup?®, que recebeu 20,4% dos votos e foi considerado o coup?® mais esportivo na categoria de pre?ºo at?® 45.000 euros.

Um resumo dos resultados dos modelos do BMW Group:

MINI John Cooper Works: Vencedor ÔÇô carros pequenos
BMW 130i: Segundo ÔÇô carros compactos
BMW 123d Coup?®: Vencedor ÔÇô diesel at?® 35.000 euros
BMW 335d: Vencedor ÔÇô diesel acima de 35.000 euros
BMW 335i: Vencedor ÔÇô sed?ús at?® 45.000 euros
BMW M3 Limousine: Vencedor ÔÇô sed?ús at?® 90.000 euros
BMW M5: Segundo ÔÇô sed?ús acima de 90.000 euros
BMW Z4 Roadster 2.5si: Terceiro ÔÇô convers?¡veis/roadsters at?® 40.000 euros
BMW M3 Convers?¡vel: Segundo ÔÇô convers?¡veis/roadsters at?® 80.000 euros
BMW 335i Coup?®: Vencedor - coup?®s at?® 45.000 euros
BMW M3 Coup?®: Terceiro - coup?®s at?® 90.000 euros

Esse excelente resultado d?í continuidade ?á s?®rie vencedora do BMW Group em termos de pr?¬mios internacionais. Ainda em maio de 2008 o fabricante conquistou seis pr?¬mios para cinco motores na renomada premia?º?úo ÔÇ£Motor Internacional do AnoÔÇØ. Pela segunda vez consecutiva, o pr?¬mio geral desta competi?º?úo ficou com o motor Twin Turbo de seis cilindros ÔÇô que proporciona um fascinante dinamismo de condu?º?úo para modelos como dois dos premiados mencionados acima, o BMW 335i e o BMW 335i Coup?®.

mika · Jun 14, 2008

Vendas do BMW Group crescem 3,9% em maio
06/11/2008

Munique/S?úo Paulo, 6 de junho de 2008 ÔÇô Mais uma vez o BMW Group aumentou suas vendas de autom??veis em maio. Foram entregues a clientes 133.496 ve?¡culos BMW, MINI e Rolls-Royce (ano anterior: 128.434) no m?¬s em quest?úo. Isso representa um crescimento de 3,9%. De janeiro a maio inclusive, as vendas subiram 6,7%, totalizando 618.731 ve?¡culos (ano anterior: 579.745). ?ë a primeira vez na hist??ria da empresa que mais de 600.000 ve?¡culos s?úo vendidos nos primeiros cinco meses.
Marca BMW cresce 2,0%
Para a marca BMW, as entregas cresceram 2,0%, passando a 110.704 autom??veis (ano anterior: 108.515) em maio. Foram vendidas 515.989 unidades de janeiro at?® o final de maio, o que representa um aumento de 4,4% em rela?º?úo ao mesmo per?¡odo do ano anterior (494.417). Mais uma vez os principais respons?íveis pelo crescimento foram os modelos do BMW S?®rie 1, que registraram vendas de 22.090 ve?¡culos (ano anterior: 10.932 / +102,1%) no m?¬s passado; os modelos BMW S?®rie 5 Touring com vendas de 4.505 unidades (+9,7% / ano anterior: 4.105) e os modelos BMW X5 com 10.275 (+2,9% / ano anterior: 9.981) unidades vendidas.

Encomendas de BMW X6 at?® o final do ano
O novo BMW X6 teve uma excelente estr?®ia. Ele est?í dispon?¡vel no mercado dos EUA desde o final de abril de 2008 e tamb?®m na Europa nas concession?írias e filiais BMW desde 31 de maio. Nas ??ltimas cinco semanas j?í foram vendidos 2.652 ve?¡culos. Em maio, foram entregues a clientes 1.730 unidades. O modelo ser?í lan?ºado no Jap?úo no final de junho e na China em agosto.

Ian Robertson, membro do Conselho Administrativo da BMW AG respons?ível por Vendas e Marketing declarou: ÔÇ£Nossos pedidos para o X6 j?í est?úo completos at?® o final de 2008. O sucesso do X6 mostra que muitos clientes estavam esperando um ve?¡culo como esse. Em 1999 n??s lan?ºamos o BMW X5 como o primeiro SAV (Sports Activity Vehicle ou Ve?¡culo para Atividades Esportivas). Desde ent?úo, muitos de nossos concorrentes se voltaram para esse conceito de um ve?¡culo on/offroad esportivo e ?ígil. Agora, com o BMW X6, estamos mais uma vez criando um segmento de ve?¡culo completamente novo ÔÇô o de um SAV Coup?® (SAC). Esse novo tipo de ve?¡culo combina a versatilidade de um SAV com o desempenho din?ómico de um coup?® esportivoÔÇØ.

MINI ultrapassa a marca de 100.000 unidades, vendas de Rolls-Royce crescem 96,4%
Em compara?º?úo com o alto n?¡vel do ano passado, a marca MINI cresceu 14,2% em maio, totalizando 22.682 unidades (ano anterior: 19.863). O MINI Clubman tamb?®m manteve sua bem sucedida trajet??ria. Com a venda de 4.476 ve?¡culos no m?¬s em quest?úo, ele foi respons?ível por cerca de um quinto do total de vendas da marca. Nos primeiros cinco meses desse ano, foram entregues a clientes 20,3% mais carros MINI (102.361 / ano anterior: 85.107).

A Rolls-Royce tamb?®m continua registrando um crescimento extremamente positivo. A importante marca de carros de alto luxo entregou 110 modelos da fam?¡lia Phantom em maio (ano anterior: 56 / +96,4%). Desde o in?¡cio do ano a Rolls-Royce j?í vendeu um total de 381 carros (ano anterior: 221 / +72,4%).

BMW Group cresce na Europa, ?üsia e nas Am?®ricas
Na Europa foram vendidos 78.645 ve?¡culos no m?¬s de maio (ano anterior: 75.347 / +4,4%). Os grandes e bem estabelecidos mercados da Europa ocidental foram respons?íveis pelo maior porcentual de vendas, com 74.330 unidades (ano anterior: 71.672 / +3,7%). Fortes taxas de crescimento continuaram sendo registradas nos mercados emergentes da Europa oriental. Com 3.677 ve?¡culos vendidos, o aumento nessa regi?úo ficou em 21,3% (ano anterior: 3.031).

Os mercados americanos tamb?®m cresceram 3,7% (37.182 ve?¡culos / ano anterior: 35.866). As Am?®ricas central e do sul registraram um crescimento de 2,9% (1.275 / ano anterior: 1.239) e 18,8% respectivamente (802 / ano anterior: 675), na Am?®rica do norte o aumento de vendas de autom??veis foi de 3,4% (35.105 / ano anterior: 33.952). Apesar da cont?¡nua desacelera?º?úo da economia dos EUA, o BMW Group alcan?ºou um aumento de vendas de 3,1% no mercado daquele pa?¡s, passando a 31.781 ve?¡culos (ano anterior: 30.819). O Canad?í atingiu um crescimento de 6,1% em maio, totalizando 3.324 unidades (ano anterior: 3.133).

Na regi?úo da ?üsia, foram vendidos 6,9% mais ve?¡culos no m?¬s passado (13.210 / ano anterior: 12.354). Ao mesmo tempo, a tend?¬ncia no maior mercado asi?ítico, a China (incluindo Hong Kong e Taiwan), manteve-se muito positiva com um aumento de 15,9%, totalizando 5.625 autom??veis vendidos (ano anterior: 4.855). No Jap?úo, o segundo maior mercado da ?üsia, o BMW Group vendeu 3.723 unidades. (ano anterior: 4.611 / -19,3%).

As vendas de motocicletas BMW em maio de 2008 totalizaram 11.580 unidades (ano anterior: 12.289/-5,8%). De janeiro at?® o final de maio, foram entregues a clientes 45.032 motocicletas BMW (ano anterior: 47.632 / -5,5%).

BMW do Brasil tamb?®m apresentou excelentes resultados
No Brasil, a marca BMW registrou um aumento de 41% na venda de ve?¡culos no m?¬s de maio em compara?º?úo ao mesmo m?¬s de 2007. Foram vendidos 265 modelos da marca BMW, totalizando 1207 unidades vendidas no acumulado do ano - um aumento de 55% com rela?º?úo ao mesmo per?¡odo do ano passado.

No segmento das duas rodas, com rela?º?úo a maio de 2007, a BMW Motorrad Brasil registrou aumento de 75% em 2008, tendo entregue 140 motocicletas a clientes. No acumulado do ano, a divis?úo de motos atingiu 474 unidades, o que representou aumento de 55,9% com rela?º?úo ao mesmo per?¡odo em 2007.

Conversion tools:

Periodically articles in the Morning Reads list things such as prices in units you may not be familiar with. Here are links to some conversion tools for your use.

Universal Currency Converter by xe.com

Online Conversion tools by onlinecoversion.com

Morning Reads standard measure of bike value is the Rdstr. The Rdstr is pegged to the U.S. Dollar and is currently trading at 1 Rdstr = $12,620 U.S. dollars

BlogRoll: some of the blogs I have collected while purposefully wondering around the internet.

M.R. Traveler

2009 Dakar
The journey of overcoming serious mental illness to do the 2009 Dakar

NATIONAL MUSTARD DAY IS SATURDAY, AUGUST 2nd.

Mount Horeb Mustard Museum
P.O. Box 468
100 West Main Street
Mount Horeb, WI 53572

Start planning your trip now. We'll roll out the yellow carpet for you. For our out of town visitors, we have secured a block of rooms at the nearby Deer Valley Lodge for the special Mustard Lovers price of only $199 per room for the entire weekend (Friday and Saturday nights). That's a savings of $58 over the regular summer room rates.
You must book your room by July 2. Call 1-888-924-1601 and mention "Mustard Block" when you reserve. With its indoor waterpark, Deer Valley Lodge is great for families. www.DeerValleyLodgeWI.com.

Places 2 Ride Blog

www.biker-events.com
Finding the Good Times on 2 Wheels

Horizonsunlimited.com ÔÇô Newsletter

2008 International Rally
Gillette, Wyoming, July 17-20 2008

Mining The Website

Threads worth following:

Biku

[url=http://forums.bmwmoa.org/showthread.php?p=332553#post332553]North to ALASKA!

Road Side Attrations

The elections threads; then vote early and often.

News and Features
An archive of posted features, news and photos

TodayÔÇÖsRoadFood.com

FORUM REVIEWS

GEAR: BWM 51L SportBag

DETAILING: Rejex ÔÇô Great product if you donÔÇÖt like bugs

Woot

Todays Woot
The Blog

Packer News: Packers.com, jsonline.com - Packers Plus Online

Humor

Over Heard in New York | Voice of the City
Sluggy Freelance
The Onion
xkcd

STUFF

totallymotor.co.uk
Fuel price rises prompt job quit considerations

Bike Candy:

The End

Ridesalot · Jun 14, 2008

morning reads

Thanks !

Ridesalot

Morning Reads: Weekend Edition 14, 15 June 2008

mika

Still Wondering

mika

Still Wondering

mika

Still Wondering

mika

Still Wondering

Ridesalot

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