First look at 2015 BMW M3 and M4

Images of the 2015 BMW M3 and M4 have leaked – courtesy of Autocar UK. The M3 and M4 are, essentially, the same vehicle, with the M3 being a coupe and the M4 being a sedan. Both will sport the new M engine – the S55 B30. This is a 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged in-line six-cylinder engine that produces 425 horsepower and 405 pound-feet of torque. Top speed is 155 mph.

The M3 and M4 will be offered with a six-speed manual transmission or a seven-speed M DCT dual-clutch transmission.

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‘Tranformers’ director Michael Bay’s $13.5 million Bel Air estate

Director Michael Bay (Transformers, Armageddon, Bad Boys, The Rock) has placed his Bel Air home on the market for $13.5 million. The estate features features clean, crisp lines, soaring ceilings, and lots of natural light.

The home, which has four bedrooms and six bathrooms, has almost 8,000 square feet of living space. Some highlights include a central living room with huge fireplace, large formal dining room, family room with bar, state-of-the-art theater, wine cellar, and a library/den. Outside there is a lush, private garden, pool, spa and exceptional views.

The residence was designed by the late Jack Warner. Bay purchased the home for $5.16M in 1999.

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From UK to South Africa: Holiday Home for a Well-Traveled Couple

We’ve seen our fair share of stunning properties designed by the illustrious SAOTA – Stefan Antoni Olmesdahl Truen Architects and each customized home spoke about the client’s needs and wishes. This particular holiday home – Cove 6 – carries on our fascination with the studio’s work in collaboration with Antoni Associates by boasting a design inspired by indigenous fynbos surroundings. Located on a cliff’s edge in “The Cove” estate near a town in the Western Cape Province of South Africa known as Knysna, this luxurious property is characterized by a modern combination of materials that sum up to a dream holiday home.

The Cape Town-based studio designed this airy and beautifully proportioned dream holiday home for a well-traveled couple who live in the UK. Taking advantage of the stunning cliff views and complementing the natural color palette and texture provided by the site, architects created a cozy, natural atmosphere. They anchored the sculptural summer holiday retreat to the site by using heavy stone clad walls and built a contemporary home complete with elevated timber decks and a swimming pool cantilevering over the fynbos landscape, rocks and water below. An uncluttered holiday retreat like this one allows the landscape and breeze to flow right through it and impregnate a sense of calmness in every space.

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Sebastian Vettel’s Formula One helmet sells for record $118,000 at charity auction

Formula One superstar Sebastian Vettel’s helmet has sold for a record $118,000 at a charity auction. Vettel, the four-time world champion, wore the helmet when he won this year’s German Grand Prix. The sale price tops the previous world record of $116,189, which was paid for a helmet that belonged to Brazil’s late three-time champion Ayrton Senna.

The money raised from the sale of Vettel’s helmet go to Wings for Life charity, which focuses on research into spinal cord injuries. Wings for Life was established by Red Bull Racing owner Dietrich Mateschitz.

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Can the Bugatti Veyron drive in snow? (Watch)

A car with such exceptional potential as the Bugatti Veyron 16.4 *) calls for equally exceptional testing conditions:
Repeated switches from the high-speed circuit to city traffic and from the highway to the racetrack, steep uphill climbs and descents, and every possible curve radius. The internal tests required top speeds, full-throttle acceleration to up to 350 km/h, again and again, and repeated full brake maneuvers with a force of 1.3 g. The Bugatti test engineers drove more than 1,000 km per day, only interrupted by the necessary service breaks. And then there were the extensive test drives on the extremely tough Nürburgring Grand Prix circuit, and non-stop autobahn drives.

In addition to these internal tests, the Veyron 16.4 had to pass all official roadworthiness tests just like any other serial production vehicle for road traffic. Approval criteria included reliability, stability, fine-tuning of driveline, chassis, and transmission, as well as the overall condition of the car after 50,000 driven kilometers. This was rounded off by the thousands of hours the Veyron 16.4’s engine, drive train, brakes and chassis were inspected on numerous test benches.

Next, the Veyron was exposed to weeks of heat and cold tests at extreme temperatures ranging from -20°C (-4°F) to 50°C (122°F). The car and its inexhaustible four-wheel drive braved both the ice and snow of Northern Europe and the sizzling South African heat. Even in the snow, the Electronic Stability Program always detects the degree of road grip, adjusting the engine control systems accordingly. The active rear axle lock not only helps the car take fast turns, but also ensures non-slip acceleration even in the snow. One particularly memorable episode occurred when a heavy van with camera equipment got stuck in a Scandinavian snowdrift – to be pulled out by the Veyron, which mastered this task like a professional tow truck.

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