We have been attending BMW’s track press launch of the 2013 7 Series LCI (facelift), 2013 M6 coupe, 2013 M5 sedan, and Alpina B7 being held at the Laguna Seca raceway in Monterey, CA. We’ll be sharing our thoughts soon on some of these cars, but in the meantime, enjoy some photos of the 7 Series LCI from Laguna Seca and also its preview from a recent BMW event in Santa Barbara, CA.

For full information and more media of the 2013 7 Series LCI, see our Official 2013 7 Series LCI Thread.

BMW has issue a service bulletin (SIB / TSB) which will allow dealers across the country to reprogram / code all BMW models with the Auto Start-Stop feature so that the system defaults to the “Last User mode” (last used setting) the next time that the car is turned on. Check out auto start stop SIB 12 15 12 inside.

BMW Group remains on successful course in second quarter

01.08.2012

- New record figures for sales volume and revenues
- Second-best quarterly earnings in the company’s history
- Profit before financial result amounts to € 2.27 billion
- Automotive Segment second-quarter EBIT margin of 11.6%
- BMW Group reaffirms targets for financial year 2012

Munich. The BMW Group continued its success during the second quarter as well as in the six-month period to June 2012, achieving new record figures for sales volume and revenues and the second-best Group operating profit in the company’s history.

Second-quarter revenues rose by 7.3% to € 19,202 million (2011: € 17,888 million). Group earnings remained at a high level despite greater investment in new technologies and higher personnel costs: Profit before financial result (EBIT) amounted to € 2,270 million … CONTINUED

Check out the new M and M Performance displays at the BMW Welt in this epic photo thread.

The newly updated 2013 BMW 7 Series will again set new benchmarks in its class for performance, luxury, efficiency and safety.

The updates include significant powertrain upgrades for 740i / Li; 750i / Li, xDrive and BMW ALPINA B7 models –including BMW’s 8-speed Steptronic automatic transmission (8-speed Switch-Tronic high performance transmission for B7), xDrive – BMW’s intelligent all-wheel drive system – now available for the 740Li, as well as a completely new powertrain for the ActiveHybrid 7 and BMW ALPINA B7 which remains as the undisputed benchmark in terms of luxurious performance, chassis technology, and hand-finished exclusivity.

The new 7 Series boasts a revised exterior that features new technologies such as available LED headlights. The interior of the new 7 is similarly enhanced with a newly redesigned iDrive … CONTINUED

With the official announcement from BMW of the New Navigation Professional and iDrive/ConnectedDrive, many of you have inquired when the technology (both a software and hardware [cpu, graphics processor, hard drive] upgrade) would be implemented on the various models.

Below is the scheduled rollout for the new navigation and iDrive. These dates do not apply to the new iDrive Touch system, which will have a separate rollout and application schedule.

[b]]July 2012 Production:[/b]

3 Series touring and Activehybrid 3 (F31/F30h)
5 Series, 5 Series GT, 5 Series LWB (F10/F11/F07/F18)
M5 (F10M)
7 Series (F01)
M6 Coupe and Convertible (F12/F13M)

[b]November 2012 Production:[/b]

3 Series Sedan (F30)

[b]March 2013 Production:[/b]

1 Series Hatchback (F20/F21)
6 Series Coupe, Convertible, Gran Coupe (F12/F13/F06)

[b]April 2013 Production:[/b]

X3 (F25)

For those curious, the list of hardware upgrades (vs. the current) … CONTINUED

BMW’s latest full-length global TV spot “Feeling Remains” captures the feeling of how driving a BMW never leaves you.

Nuance Communications Inc. today announced that BMW will be making Dragon Drive! Messaging available in the new 2012 BMW 7 Series, BMW 3 Series Touring and BMW 3 Series ActiveHybrid vehicles, with additional models to follow. Dragon Drive! Messaging is a new BMW ConnectedDrive feature as part of the latest generation of BMW Navigation system Professional. Unveiled in May, Dragon Drive! Messaging is Nuance’s new automotive-grade connected car service that lets people speak emails and text messages.

The 2012 BMW 7 Series will be the first car ever to feature Dragon Drive! Messaging, hitting the market in July 2012, with the BMW 3 Series Touring and BMW 3 Series ActiveHybrid following later this year. Dragon Drive! Messaging delivers a fully-integrated mobile assistant messaging experience that lets drivers … CONTINUED

For the past few weeks, BMW has been offering a $300 discount on the 2012 3 Series for scheduling a test drive through the app, but they’ve now expanded the promotion to include all BMW models.

The discounts are as follows:

$300 Off 3 Series, 1 Series, X1, X3 and Z4 (all trims, including M models)
$500 Off 5 Series, 5 Series Gran Turismo and X5 (all trims, including M models)
$700 Off 7 Series, 6 Series, 6 Series Gran Coupe and X6 (all trims, including M models)

What you will receive is a voucher in the amounts listed above off the first payment on a new 2012 or 2013 BMW financed or leased through BMW Financial Services.

To receive your discount:

Step 1: Download The Ultimate Drive app (available on … CONTINUED