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BMW says SUVs killed the sports car market

In many ways, we're living in a golden age of automotive performance. After all, it's possible to show up at a Dodge dealer, hand over about $60,000 and storm away with a 707-horsepower Challenger Hellcat. Or for those who prefer a touch more luxury, the BMW M4, Mercedes-AMG C63 and latest Cadillac ATS-V offer between 425 and 503 horsepower, depending on your pick, with a bit more poshness. However, none of these powerful vehicles fit the classic definition of a two-place, droptop sports car, and according BMW head of sales Ian Robertson, that's because the segment is very much in the doldrums.
According to Robertson, two factors seriously wounded the classic sports car market. First, the global economic crisis of a few years ago put a serious hurt on sales, according to Bloomberg. Further worsening the situation, the boom in popularity of luxury SUVs and crossovers in the past few years hasn't allowed for much recovery. Even car-hungry China hasn't helped much because of the smog in many cities and preference among some of the very rich there to be chauffeured.
Combined, Audi TT, BMW Z4 and Mercedes-Benz SLK sales peaked around 114,000 units a year in 2007, but they are only expected to reach 72,000 annually by the end of the decade. Robertson is pretty pessimistic about the market's comeback too. "Post-2008, it just collapsed. I'm not so sure it'll ever fully recover," he said to Bloomberg.

BMW releases complete pricing info on M3 and M4

When BMW unveiled the M3 and M4 at the Detroit Auto Show back in January, we told you that the new sportsters were starting at $62,000 and $64,200, respectively. That leaked info, though, only told a small part of the story for the new M cars. Now, we have the complete pricing sheet on the new coupe and sedan, direct from BMW.
The pricing intel that we had at the time was correct - prices start at $62,000 for four doors and $64,200 for two. Those prices don't include the $925 destination charge. Potential customers should also plan on spending an extra $550, as seven of the eight paint options are of the metallic variety. BMW's trademark Alpine White is the only no-cost paint option.
As for the cabin, customers will, interestingly, have the choice of a cloth/leather combination as standard. That's in addition to the standard suite of leather options. There are also extended leather and full leather options, for $950 and $3,500, respectively. There are three option packages available, covering all the extra goodies for the M3 and M4.

BMW may keep next 1 Series out of the US

As BMW prepares to introduce the all-new 2 Series coupe and convertible, the 1 Series name definitely won't be going away. We know new sedan and hatchback models are in the works; including the GT shown above. According to Car and Driver, though, the future of the 1 Series nameplate in the US could be dependent on rival premium small cars like the Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class and Audi A3.
In an interview with C/D, BMW's North American head of product planning and strategy, Paul Ferraiolo, said that pricing might be the biggest deterrent to offering the third-gen 1 Series in the US. As he points out, BMW currently prices the 1 not too far from the 3 Series, but Mercedes-Benz and Audi will have their new small cars priced well below the $30,000 mark. BMW's Mini brand will also factor into the consideration since the 1 GT will share its underpinnings with the next-gen Cooper lineup.