Mercedes, Jaguar, Range Rover and BMW- Repair and Consignment Sales Redwood City - Happy New Year - Bosch European Redwood City - (650) 368-3000

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Range Rover - Repair and Consignment Sales Redwood City - 2017 Land Rover Range Rover Sport preview - Bosch European Redwood City - (650) 368-3000

Land Rover’s Range Rover Sport is a worthy alternative to the more common German offerings for buyers in search of a mid-size luxury SUV.

Its powerful engines and lightweight aluminum construction ensure it remains dynamic, while its British charm and no-nonsense interior design make it stand out from the crowd.

And with a starting price in the mid-$60k bracket, it also represents decent value considering the vehicle is pretty much a twin under the skin with the pricier Land Rover Range Rover.

Introduced in its current form for the 2014 model year, Land Rover is adding some extra technology to the Range Rover Sport for the 2017 model year to ensure the vehicle is up to date. There also some more personalization option to enhance the look and comfort of the vehicle.

Inside there’s a larger touchscreen display (it now spans 10.2 inches) that accommodates an updated infotainment system. The latter, dubbed InControl Touch Pro, features improved connectivity and navigation as well as new apps. For example, the navigation now offers door-to-door routing when connected with a smartphone, as well as the ability to display full or partial maps in the digital instrument cluster.

Along with the updated infotainment system is a whole host of driver aids. Either standard or available, the list includes monitoring features for speed limits, blind spots, lane departure, and driver drowsiness. An automatic braking function is also included and can bring a vehicle to a standstill in an emergency. The adaptive cruise control also gets a feature that can adjust the speed in both directions when cruising along a highway, even bringing the vehicle to a stop when necessary.

To improve the vehicle’s off-road potential, Land Rover has added a low traction launch mode, ideal for slippery surfaces such as mud or snow. The system remains active until the speed exceeds roughly 18 mph. There is also an off-road mode for the infotainment system, which includes displays for vehicle geometry, drive assist controls, slope assist and wheel information. Finally, Land Rover has added a trailer assist feature that provides guidelines in the display to aid the driver when backing up.

There aren’t any changes for the exterior, though a new Design Pack is available that adds some special color touches. There are also more colors to choose from and new 19-in wheel patterns.

Also unchanged is the engine lineup.  The base option is a 340-horsepower supercharged 3.0-liter V-6. Above this is a 254-hp turbocharged 3.0-liter V-6 diesel. Further up is a 510-hp supercharged 5.0-liter V-8 and at the top is a 550-hp supercharged 5.0-liter V-8. The latter is fitted to the brilliant Range Rover Sport SVR, which can sprint from 0-60 mph in just 4.5 seconds.

The 2017 Range Rover will be available in late 2016 with a starting price of $66,645, including a $995 destination charge.

source; http://www.motorauthority.com/news/1104049_2017-land-rover-range-rover-sport-preview

by Viknesh Vijayenthiran

http://www.boscheuropean.com

Jaguar - Repair and Consignment Sales Redwood City - Jay Leno inspects the 'new' 1957 Jaguar XKSS - Bosch European Redwood City - (650) 368-3000

Jaguar plans to build nine new 1957 XKSS sports cars using the VINs of originals destroyed by a fire at the automaker’s Browns Lane plant before completion.

The new cars, known in the business as continuation models, are considered original, though of course they don’t have the patina or provenance that classic car connoisseurs adore.

Still, Jaguar managed to sell all build slots for the XKSS continuation models, even before any of the cars were completed. The asking price was a cool $1.5 million.

Jaguar on Wednesday unveiled a new XKSS, although it’s a 10th car that Jaguar will keep. Think of it as a rehearsal for the engineers before attempting actual customer cars.

Following its debut, which took place at the Petersen Museum, Jaguar give Jay Leno a chance to check out the fine work. Unfortunately he wasn’t allowed to drive the car since it isn’t street legal. In fact, this example doesn’t even have a VIN.

But don’t feel too bad for Leno. Only two years he got behind the wheel of an original XKSS, the actual example owned by Steve McQueen.

source: http://www.motorauthority.com/news/1107389_jay-leno-inspects-the-new-1957-jaguar-xkss

by Viknesh Vijayenthiran

http://www.boscheuropean.com

Mercedes, Jaguar, Range Rover and BMW- Repair and Consignment Sales Redwood City - Merry Christmas - Bosch European Redwood City - (650) 368-3000

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Audi - Repair and Consignment Sales Redwood City - First-ever Audi vehicle-to-infrastructure feature tested - Bosch European Redwood City - (650) 368-3000

A countdown clock silently ticks down to 0:00 in the Audi A4’s instrument cluster display, almost like the timer on an oven. Except instead of a baked casserole, the A4’s timer ends just as the traffic light in front of us turns from red to green.

This is no coincidence; the Audi has received this information from the traffic light itself. It’s one of the first cars available to consumers that can have a conversation with the outside world. And it’s a major leap forward.

Flick the A4’s turn signal and the system senses that you’re headed toward a protected left turn, where it starts counting down to when the signal’s arrow will change from red to green.

With this newfound time, which can admittedly add up in congested Las Vegas, Audi hopes its drivers will relax instead of impatiently tapping their fingers on the steering wheel.

At first glance, a countdown in the A4’s gauges seems of dubious value. After all, how impatient or distracted are we that we need to be told exactly when a traffic light is going to change? But this trick is no gimmick. Audi’s Traffic Light Information system, as the automaker calls it, represents the very first time a vehicle has communicated directly with a city’s infrastructure.

It’s yet another mile marker on the road to fully self-driving cars, the kind that will allow drivers to sit back and relax while reading a book while their vehicle motors along on a pre-determined route.

Several 2017 model year Audis—the brand’s A4, A4 Allroad, Q7, and Q5, with other models set to follow—can be fitted with this ability to talk to traffic lights via a 4G LTE cellular connection. It’s all part of the automaker’s Audi Connect suite of programs that utilizes the AT&T network for a number of connectivity features like making the vehicle a WiFi hotspot, sending news stories to the infotainment system, and displaying high-resolution Google Earth maps in the instrument cluster. Audi includes a Connect subscription for six months on so-equipped vehicles (about 80 percent of its 2017 A4 lineup). After that, it’s $30 per month for the plan that includes Traffic Light Information.

Behind the scenes

The hurdle, at least for now, isn’t the vehicles themselves or the relatively modest monthly charge for the full Audi Connect tech suite. It’s the infrastructure. Currently, the only connected city is Las Vegas, where tourists in taxis and pay-by-the-minute Lamborghinis cruising the Strip have no idea just what data is flying past them. This oasis in the desert has the most sophisticated vehicle infrastructure in the world.

All this data is transmitted to an innocuous beige building on a quiet corner a few miles from the strip. It’s in here that the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada operates a central traffic command center that, on the surface, looks just like what you’d find in any other major metro area. It’s a room full of screens, computers, desks, and, on our early December visit, a Christmas tree eerily wrapped in festive Nevada State Patrol crime scene tape.

From this nerve center, workers monitor about 1,100 of the metro area’s intersections and they’re connected to over 500 video cameras. Unlike other traffic command centers, Southern Nevada’s lives up to its name; it’s a partnership between the entire region’s towns and cities and its reach extends to the state’s borders with California, Arizona, and Utah. This consolidation means that our A4 can drive around the entire Las Vegas area predicting when traffic lights will change.

In addition to its partnership in Nevada, Audi says that it’s working with other cities, but the automaker concedes that it faces an uphill battle since most cities and suburbs handle things independently with little cooperation. Additionally, the Las Vegas area has invested heavily in smart road tech; the region believes that solving future congestion issues will depend more on improving traffic flow than on simply building more roads.  

Frankly, they’re right. Adding lanes to reduce congestion is an exercise in futility, highway planners have discovered. Studies indicate that more lanes simply encourage more driving, which doesn’t fix anything. Cities beyond Las Vegas are in the process of removing freeways—something that highway departments in Milwaukee and Portland, Oregon, have already done. Instead, new roads are increasingly set to rely on “connected” technology that will allow the pavement itself, in addition to the stop lights in Las Vegas harnessed by Audi, to communicate directly with vehicles to alert them to changing road conditions.

This level of vehicle to infrastructure communication is, of course, in its infancy. On our Las Vegas drive, the Audi occasionally ignored some traffic lights and for others the system was off by a few seconds. To discourage drivers from simply stepping on the gas instead of looking up to confirm that the light has changed, Audi has the counter disappear after it reaches four seconds remaining; those last few seconds are up to the driver.  

But look beyond that beta-feeling clunkiness and it’s not hard to imagine a future where vehicles will automatically slow down, come to a halt, and turn off their engines at traffic lights before starting up again on their own.

source: http://www.motorauthority.com/news/1107662_first-ever-audi-vehicle-to-infrastructure-feature-tested

by Andrew Ganz

http://www.boscheuropean.com

BMW - Repair and Consignment Sales Redwood City - Bring the 5 alive! New 2018 BMW M550i xDrive detailed - Bosch European Redwood City - (650) 368-3000

We haven't even received our first new BMW 5-Series this side of the Atlantic, but already BMW is announcing performance models to whet our appetites.

On Saturday, BMW detailed the new 2018 BMW M550i xDrive sedan—presumably the last stop before full-fledged M5 glory.

What we know: the M550i xDrive will hit 60 mph in under 4 seconds; that it's the only way to get a V-8 in a 5-Series without opting for the M5 or an Alpina 5-Series; and that the twin-turbo V-8 will make 456 horsepower and 480 pound-feet of torque, which is one more beautiful horse more than the outgoing V-8 in the current 5er, and 60 hp more than the Mercedes-AMG E43.

You'd be forgiven for seeing the new 5-Series and mistaking it for the old one—not much has changed with the seventh-generation model.

On top of a new plug-in hybrid model, we already know about 530i and 540i models with inline-4 and inline-6 power respectively. BMW is keeping close to the vest details about an M5 model that we expect, but we've already heard that it'll let drivers switch between rear- and all-wheel drive modes because sometimes you feel like a nut—sometimes you don't.

Look for the new 2018 BMW M550i xDrive to arrive in dealers sometime in spring 2017. Be sure to ask for the BMW M550i xDrive by its full name on first and subsequent references because then you'll sound like an NFL quarterback barking a play call in the huddle and that's just cool.

source: http://www.motorauthority.com/news/1107862_bring-the-5-alive-new-2018-bmw-m550i-xdrive-detailed#image=100585607

by Aaron Cole

http://www.boscheuropean.com

Range Rover - Repair and Consignment Sales Redwood City - Fourth Range Rover model scooped: latest news on Land Rover's X6 rival, dubbed Velar - Bosch European Redwood City - (650) 368-3000

These are the latest spy shots of a slinky coupe-alike Range Rover crossover, based on the Jaguar F-Pace, that’s designed to slot between the Range Rover Evoque and the Range Rover Sport. 

Codenamed L560, it will be the fourth addition to the current Range Rover family. Internally, it’s reputedly referred to as the 'Velar' by JLR suits – in a nod to the original Spen King-era 'Velar' three-door Range Rover. Jaguar Land Rover also submitted a patent application for the Velar name earlier this year, although it's not yet clear if this is the intended name for the production model.

The Velar is an incremental model for Land Rover, reflecting the rising fortunes in Solihull as the world laps up more and more crossovers and SUVs. It's also a car that will pitch Range Rover headlong into the sporty soft-roader segment, challenging the likes of the BMW X6 and Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe. Traditionalists, look away now...

Range Rover Sport Coupe, aka Velar: here in 2017

Yes, you read that right. This car is at a more advanced stage of development than you might think. The new Land Rover Discovery is next in the queue, and pegged to be revealed in autumn 2016 at the Paris motor show – but this sportier, slinkier SUV is next up with a likely debut in spring 2017.

UK dealers are poised to start selling the newcomer in mid to late 2017. Its price is likely to surpass £60,000 and push way towards six figures in top-end spec. There's money in them there sporty, posh mud-pluggers. 

This prototype was spotted at the Nürburgring, too, suggesting Land Rover’s putting in the time required to make sure the Velar will pack a suitably sporting edge – which will allow it to better rival the German offerings. 

But the Land Rover L560 won't go off-road, will it?

Surely not, if the typical market profile of the average X6 or GLE owner is anything to go by. But, being a Land Rover, it will have to have decent go-anywhere ability baked in from the outset. Those Jag F-Pace underpinnings mean it'll be based on the group's latest aluminium architecture, with a suite of six- and eight-cylinder petrol and diesel engines to provide the power to all four wheels. 

Don't forget the in-house Ingenium engine range will soon spawn straight six motors, to replace the ageing, Ford-related V6 motors. Needless to say, a nutty SVR performance derivative is a dead cert, likely toting more than 500bhp.

The new British-built six-cylinder Ingenium engines, hailing from the state-of-the-art factory in Wolverhampton, are due in late 2017. CAR can reveal the following details:

• Launch date Late 2017
• Fueling Direct injection, petrol and diesel
• Capacity 3.0-litre straight six
• Petrol power outputs 300/400/500bhp 
• Diesel power outputs 275/335/400bhp

Equally, the range could be stretched downwards to include four-pot engines like those found in the F-Pace, should the market – or a global recession – demand it.

This is a Range Rover aimed squarely at road use and street-side posing. Don't expect a seven-seat version, as with the Range Sport. It's an expression of just how luxury and road-biased the brand can go. If you thought the Evoque was radical, wait until you see the Velar, say insiders.

source: http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/spy-shots/land-rover/fourth-range-rover-model-scooped-latest-news-on-land-rovers-x6-rival/

by Tim Pollard

http://www.boscheuropean.com

Jaguar - Repair and Consignment Sales Redwood City - Could the Jaguar F-Type move to a mid-engine layout? - Bosch European Redwood City - (650) 368-3000

Our friends at Road & Track used their time at the Los Angeles auto show wisely. Sitting down with Ian Callum led to a long chat about Jaguar's future, and the magazine's article makes for a rather interesting read. Buried toward the end of the story is an interesting tidbit about the possible future of the automaker's wonderful F-Type. There's a chance it could move to a mid-engine layout down the road.

It seems that a mid-engine design was considered for the car early in its creation. Callum states that an initial design concept saw the F-Type powerplant sitting amidship, and that would certainly have led to a different looking vehicle compared to the one we know today. The F-Type represents a long evolutionary leap forward over its E-Type ancestry, so it's hard to imagine the modern car not having a long hood and short rear deck.

Still, Callum believes that Jaguar has the ability to create vehicles that are not required to fit into any pre-established boxes. The I-Pace is the company's latest "mold breaker," and now a future F-Type could push that conversation along even further.

The mid-engine F-Type would also leave room for a front-engine sports car below the F-Type in Jaguar's lineup. Callum didn't comment on that possibility.

A mid-engine Jaguar F-Type could lead to the creation of a new rival for cars like the Audi R8 and Lamborghini Huracán. You can possibly add the future Porsche 911 and Corvette to that list, too. It's a battlefield that could certainly make for some lovely (and loud) competition, and we look forward to the day when all they line up alongside each other. Of course, we also want Jaguar and Chevrolet to keep their front-engine sports cars as well.

source; http://www.motorauthority.com/news/1107398_could-the-jaguar-f-type-move-to-a-mid-engine-layout

by Jeff Glucker

http://www.boscheuropean.com

Mercedes - Repair and Consignment Sales Redwood City - Mercedes-AMG GT R claims rear-wheel-drive Nürburgring record with 7:10.92 run - Bosch European Redwood City - (650) 368-3000

Numerous prototypes for the Mercedes-AMG GT R were flung around the Nürburgring as part of the car’s development program—and it appears all that hard testing has paid off.

The car is shockingly fast, as evidenced by this video from the good folks at Sport Auto. Test driver Christian Gebhardt took the GT R around the Nürburgring in 7:10.92, which makes it the fastest rear-wheel-drive production model around the notorious race track.

The GT R’s closest rival, the Porsche 911 GT3 RS, now seems downright pedestrian with its 7:20 time. The only cars faster are the Porsche 918 Spyder (6:57), Lamborghini Aventador SuperVeloce (6:59.73) and Nissan GT-R (7:08.68). Of course, those faster cars benefit from the extra traction of all-wheel drive.

Fitted to the GT R during its epic run were the stock Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires, and as you'll in the video they provide plenty of grip throughout—even as the car hits 302 kmh (187.6 mph) down the straight.

If you’d like to sample the GT R yourself, the car is due in showrooms in the summer of 2017. It arrives as a 2018 model.

It features the same drivetrain as the rest of AMG’s GT sports car lineup but its peak output has been dialed up to 577 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque. New suspension plus a much wider track has also been installed and there’s no missing all the added aerodynamic elements. Another key mod is the four-wheel-steering system. Simply incredible.

source: http://www.motorauthority.com/news/1107681_mercedes-amg-gt-r-claims-rear-wheel-drive-nrburgring-record-with-710-92-run

by Viknesh Vijayenthiran

http://www.boscheuropean.com

Aston Martin - Repair and Consignment Sales Redwood City - Aston Martin's Updated Vanquish S Is A Beautiful Reminder Of Its Naturally Aspirated V12 - Bosch European Redwood City - (650) 368-3000

If you’re not quite sold on the new Aston Martin DB11 and its twin-turbo 5.2 liter V12, Aston has just updated its range-topping Vanquish S to remind you it sill makes that glorious naturally aspirated V12.

The exquisitely tweaked Vanquish S has been updated with a slew of engineering upgrades, including larger intake manifolds boosting the 5.9 liter V12 up 26 horsepower on the top end, totaling at 595. The 8-speed transmission has also been re-calibrated, the suspension setup has been sharpened, all of which has dropped the zero to 60 time down 0.1 second to 3.5, according to Car Magazine.

On the outside, the car gets a face-lift and quad-exhaust singing out of the back, as well as some additional carbon fiber touches all around. There’s some minor updated options on the inside, including some amazing quilted leather work featured in the photos.

Speaking of the photos:

source: http://jalopnik.com/aston-martins-updated-vanquish-s-is-a-beautiful-reminde-1789022429

by Justin T. Westbrook

http://www.boscheuropean.com

Audi - Repair and Consignment Sales Redwood City - VW admits Audi transmission distorts emissions during tests - Bosch European Redwood City - (650) 368-3000

On November 6, German media first reported that certain automatic transmissions used in gasoline- and diesel-powered Audi cars had software that could determine whether the car was being tested by regulators and then switch to a more economical shift program in order to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

The Volkswagen Group has since confirmed that Audi does have transmissions that distort emission levels when cars are being tested.

"Adaptive shift programs can lead to incorrect and non-reproducible results" when the cars are tested, the VW Group confirmed to Reuters via email on Sunday.

In the email, the VW Group said it was in talks with and providing technical details of the adaptive shift programs to regulators in Germany as part of a government-led investigation in response to the media reports.

Adaptive shift programs are designed to change transmission shifting patterns either to boost fuel economy or performance. They often form part of driving modes selectors.

However, Bild am Sonntag, which first reported about the Audi transmissions, claimed the California Air Resources Board discovered software that made the transmissions enter a low-performance mode designed to deliver low CO2 emissions whenever the engine is started and only switch to standard performance if the steering wheel is turned more than 15 degrees in either direction, which wouldn’t be the case during laboratory testing.

Reuters, citing two people familiar with the matter, reported that regulators in the United States were seeking more information to determine whether the software constitutes a defeat device.

The software is different to the original “defeat device” found in millions of diesels cars from the VW Group that was designed to detect whether a car was being tested and then hide nitrogen oxide levels. The VW Group only in October reached anagreed-upon settlement for its 2.0-liter engines fitted with this defeat device. However, the automaker is yet to reach an agreement for its 3.0-liter engines with the device.

Stay tuned for an update.

source: http://www.motorauthority.com/news/1107239_vw-admits-audi-transmission-distorts-emissions-during-tests

by Viknesh Vijayenthiran

http://www.boscheuropean.com

BMW - Repair and Consignment Sales Redwood City - Let's make the BMW M2 better - Bosch European Redwood City - (650) 368-3000

Less than 24 hours ago we told you the BMW M2 was the vehicle you must have in your garage, by awarding it the Motor Authority Best Car to Buy 2017 title. That still holds true, but the reality is, it's not perfect.

The BMW M2 could be better.

If you want that show but no go

Let me be clear. Nothing I'm about to say right now makes the M2 better in my opinion, but some think it would. Other, more expensive cars wearing BMW M's tri-color badge have M-specific mirror caps, M sport seats, either a carbon fiber roof or the option for one, a long options list including stitched leather this and extendable that, not to mention carbon-ceramic brakes. The M2 has none of this, and you can't option this stuff. Of course, since none of this makes it go faster or become more pure, to us it's just fine.

Less is more, really

In my perfect M2 a lot of what's standard would be stripped out. Get rid of the navigation and iDrive infotainment system, including the screen. A simple dot-matrix display will do just fine, thanks. While I'm at it, I'd also like to see the active safety tech such as adaptive cruise control and forward-collision warnings removed, along with the automatic climate control and rain-sensing wipers.

The executive package for $1,400 with a rearview camera, heated steering wheel, automatic high beams, active driving assistant, speed limit info, wireless phone charging with WiFi hotspot, and parking sensors isn't necessary.

Those sport seats are great, but they don't need to be power operated, nor do they need to be covered in leather. Slap some manual controls on those seats along with some M-Tech cloth and call it a day. A little Alcantara for extra grip wouldn't hurt, though.

The most offensive thing about the M2? You can't turn off the rev-matching feature without disabling all the safety systems, including electronic stability control. This feature needs to go or at a minimum let the driver disable it forever.

Every real M car has an oil temperature gauge where the typical instant fuel economy info goes in the BMW gauge cluster, below the tachometer. Except, not the M2. It has an engine temp gauge which is merely a slider that goes between hot and cold. For anyone beating the snot out of the M2—which frankly it begs you to do—you want a real oil temperature gauge like a proper M car.

The steering is a smidge too heavy, and it's numb. Others can get electric power steering right—looking at you, Porsche—and yet BMW can't?

It's still fantastic

Look, the above are all small things. To me, they are big things, but in reality they aren't in the grand scheme of things. Why? Because this is 2016 and the M2 proves BMW hasn't completely given up.

Nothing's perfect in this world. Nothing. But darn it, if even some of the above was corrected on the M2 we'd be over the moon. It likely won't be, but we're putting it out there.

Now, sell me my cloth-seat, no-frills, simplified M2 for $40K and let's call it a day, BMW.

source: http://www.motorauthority.com/news/1107259_lets-make-the-bmw-m2-better

by Joel Feder

http://www.boscheuropean.com