2017 SEMA Live Photos: BMW 440i Gran Coupe with M Performance Parts

Earlier today, we saw what sort of M Performance Parts would soon be available for the BMW 440i Gran Coupe. The BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe is a big favorite among BMW enthusiasts, as it sports typical 4 Series handling and dynamics, along with added practicality. It’s hard not to love that. So when BMW M Performance Parts get slapped on, us Bimmer fans get even more excited about it. While BMW unveiled the parts it’d be releasing for the 440i Gran Coupe earlier, we were live at SEMA and are bringing you some new photos to show what it looks like in person.

Under the desert sun of Las Vegas, the BMW 440i Gran Coupe looked stunning, showing off its new aggressive side. From the front, the carbon fiber lower front lip looks mean, almost M-like. While it’s just a BMW 440i, this specific car has the mug of a proper M car.

Out back, the carbon fiber rear spoiler looks excellent, almost continuing the upward curve of the sweeping roofline. It’s a perfect addition to the rump of the 440i GC. Also, the rear diffuser and carbon-tipped M Performance exhausts look great, adding some much-needed aggression.

I think the biggest visual upgrade, though, has to be its wheels. The 21″ black and silver wheels look really quite good, making the 440i Gran Coupe look even more expensive and premium than it is. While 21″ wheels might make the ride a bit too harsh, they sure do look cool.

Inside, the BMW 440i Gran Coupe M Performance gets BMW’s new Display Wheel II and a carbon fiber shift lever. Those give the cabim a racier look, something more M-like. However, the specific car we were looking at had its interior upgraded by BMW Individual as well. So it wore Golden Brown Merino leather with white piping and stitching.

This specific car also had the BMW M Performance Power Kit, which bumps power from 335 hp to 355 hp and torque is up from 332 lb-ft of torque to 369 lb-ft. So it gets aproper performance upgrade and should help make it significantly quicker.

We really enjoyed the BMW 440i Gran Coupe M Performance at SEMA. It was a real stunner that turned heads with its color, its upgrades and its presence.

The article 2017 SEMA Live Photos: BMW 440i Gran Coupe with M Performance Parts appeared first on BMW BLOG

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Brady and Kerley too good at Portmarnock Links

Portmarnock Hotel & Golf Linls

Clontarf's Eamonn Brady shot a five-under-par 66 to win the nett as Ardee's Brian Kerley claimed the gross with a super 68 in the TaylorMade Tuesday Winter Series at Portmarnock Hotel & Golf Links. 

An 89-strong field enjoyed benign conditions at the Bernhard Langer signature course and it proved to be a great day for former West of Ireland champion Brady.

He dropped just one shot all day and made six birdies, coming home in three-under 32 to edge out two-time former Irish PGA winner David Mortimer from Galway by three strokes.

Grange's Michael McDermott birdied three of the last four holes to take third place in the nett with a one-under 70.

Brian Kerley. Picture briankerleygolf.com

In the gross, teaching professional Kerley made five birdies and two bogeys in a three-under-par 68 to edge out Newlands' Jake Whelan by a shot.

Whelan made just two bogeys all day but he will be disappointed that both game on par-fives.

Kilkenny's Mark Power, fresh from winning the U18 Boys' trophy during the Darren Clarke Foundation weekend at neighbouring Portmarnock, took third place with a solid 70.

The 17-year old, plus three Irish international had 14 fours, three threes and just one five on his card.

But he wasn't the only youngster to shine.

Siblings James and Emma Fleming from Elm Park also took advantage of the mid-term break to tee it up.

Playing off five, 12-year old Emma shot an excellent, nett 75.

TaylorMade Tuesday Winter Series, Portmarnock Hotel & Golf Links (Par 71 SSS 75 CSS 75)

Tuesday 31st October

Nett

1. Eamonn Brady (Pro) Clontarf GC 66
2. David Mortimer (Pro) Galway GC 69
3. Michael McDermott (Pro) Grange GC 70

Gross

1. Brian Kerley (Ardee GC) 68
2. Jake Whelan (Newlands GC) 69
3. Mark Power (Kilkenny GC) 70.

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Video: Calvin Luk, BMW X3 Designer, Explains Car’s Highlights

The new BMW X3 is getting ready to be delivered to customers worldwide, continuing a success story that started two generations ago. The new car brings a new design to the table along with a lot of new technology that should compliment the new shapes adorning the outside. The X3 was designed by Calvin Luk, one of the youngest designers in BMW’s team right now. In the video below, the man himself explains the car’s design and highlights.

The X3 surprised us when it was unveiled, especially up front where, unlike the rest of the line-up, the headlights were not connected to the kidney grilles. They do come close but unlike its predecessor and basically the rest of the BMW range, the X3 still has a small gap between the headlights and the grilles. Furthermore, the front end’s looks vary quite a lot depending on the equipment line you go for.

Customers can choose from three model lines – xLine, Luxury Line and M Sport – and the BMW Individual range of products to align the inside and outside of the new BMW X3 even more precisely with their personal tastes. With over 1.5 million units sold since the original X3 was launched back in 2003, the SUV can definitely be considered a success in any manufacturer’s book. And since estimates claim that nearly half the cars sold in 2021 will be SUVs, BMW need to take care of its X range of models.

In the end, we’ll let Calvin explain the highlights of the car’s design. 

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Curran pips Moriarty at Druids Heath

The 13th at Druids Heath

St Margaret's Eoin Curran claimed the top prize in the second outing of the Titleist sponsored Druids Glen Winter Alliance at Druids Heath.

Playing alongside former Challenge Tour winner Colm Moriarty, the five-handicapper had 38 points to win on a countback from the Glasson man, who won the best gross.

"I signed up for the winter alliance the night before and had the luck and pleasure of playing with one of the finest golfing talents Ireland has ever produced in @colmmoriartygolf," Curran said on his Instagram account. 

"The other two lads weren't bad either. Not often I'm standing on the first tee with the worst handicap by 5 strokes or more!"

Clontarf Golf Club's PGA professional Eamonn Brady was second with 36 points with Druids Heath's Matthew Kiernan third with 35 points and Arlow's John Murphy the next best with 34.

Druids Glen's PGA professional Patrick Geraghty leads the overall Order Merit after the first two outings by four points from Curran, Delgany's Marc Nolan and week one winner Johnny Young, the former Rosslare professional.

The Alliance event will be played at Druids Glen and Druids Heath over the winter months with the overall winner the player with the best eight scores.

• Week 2 results
• Order of Merit
• Next out, Week3, Monday, November 6, at Druids Glen.

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Video: BMW M140i vs Mercedes-AMG A45 Acceleration Comparison

BMW M Performance cars were brought out in recent years with a sole purpose in mind: to fill a performance gap in the brand’s line-up. And while for the most part that’s exactly what they achieved, in the case of some models it’s not exactly there yet. I’m referring to the BMW M140i, of course, the one M Performance model that doesn’t have an M version sitting above it in the line-up.

The reason why that’s the case remains a mystery as BMW never told us why the 1 Series in hatchback guise never got a full-on M model. Sure, some have used the M2 as a surrogate but in the end, the M2 is a Coupe and the 1 Series is made up by Hatches, in either 3-door or 5-door guises. Another reason we can think of is the fact that the M140i is fast enough already and can provide plenty of thrills for the average hatchback enthusiast.

That said, the M Performance hatch from BMW is kinda hitting above its weight when it comes to comparing it to its rivals. The Mercedes-AMG A45 is the meanest one out there, with specs that should scare even the best hatches in the automotive world at the moment. On paper, the Merc is considerably faster than the M140i in a straight line. That advantage should also be visible on the track but right now we’re more interested in straight line acceleration.

Since we’re talking about specs, we should mention the A45 AMG comes with a 2-liter 4-cylinder 381 HP engine, all-wheel drive and a 7-speed gearbox. It has a claimed sprint to 100 km/h (62 mph) of 4.1 seconds and a limited top speed of 155 mph. That’s the same top speed the M140i claims but the rear-wheel drive Bimmer arrives at the 62 mph benchmark in 4.6 seconds, thanks to its 340 HP coming out of the straight six mill under the hood. Get it with all-wheel drive and that drops another 0.2 seconds. And the video below will show that the two are a lot closer in real life than what the spec sheet would claim.

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Video: BMW M5 with M Performance Exhaust Revs for Camera in Short Teaser

One of the weak points of the old BMW F10 M5 was without a doubt the exhaust. Maybe that wouldn’t have been such a big issue if the people from AMG didn’t release their own rival for the M5 with an exhaust that sounds like it will simply make windows shatter. 

Until we get to sample the car and get a better idea of how it sounds, we’ll have to resort to whatever sources of information we can get. The video below looks like a commercial that could air on a US network pretty soon and instead of showing us the standard M5 going for a spin, it delights our senses with the upgraded model, fitted with every bit of M Performance goodness the Germans unveiled just yesterday at SEMA.

That’s right, the M5 in the footage below is wearing the complete M Performance works and it looks like a million bucks. But what about the sound it makes? Well, this would be one of the first chances you get to hear the M5 with the M Performance exhaust at work. It’s a short soundbite but still it offers a hint of what the titanium pipes bring to the table. Judging solely by the footage below, things do seem enticing, to say the least. 

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