2011 BMW 5-series: Bavaria's midsize sedan takes cues from bigger 7-series brother

BMW's appetite for controversial design may have waned since the heights of former design boss Chris Bangle's oft-derided flame surfacing stratagem. But it shows no sign of fading completely, as we see in the first official photographs of the new sixth-generation 5-series, which goes on sale in North America by mid-2010. Codenamed F10, BMW's midsize sedan is restyled and reengineered in a bid to keep it ahead of key rivals such as the recently renewed Mercedes-Benz E-class and the Audi A6.

Maybach Coupe for sale: First Maybach Cruiserio Coupe up for grabs

Maybach Cruiserio Coupe - up For Sale We’ve run a couple of stories about a coupe version of the Maybach 57S this year, starting with the rather surprising news that a Maybach Coupe was coming - especially as it wasn’t going to be the spectacular Exelero Coupe – and culminating in the confirmation that German company Xenatec were building 100 Maybach Coupes. What I don’t think we knew at the time was that the whole Maybach Coupe plan was being funded by Saudi-based Auto Kingdom, which probably explains quite a lot. The Maybach has not been an explosive success since it launched – it’s been completely eclipsed by the far superior Rolls Royce Phantom – but its best market has probably been the Middle East, so Auto kingdom are probably pretty scure in the knowledge they can shift one or two of the Maybach Coupes on their home turf.

VW Golf GTI Edition 35 hits showrooms

VW Golf GTI Edition 35 We’ve had lots of motoring anniversaries this year, from the 50th of the iconic E-Type to the centenary of the Indianapolis 500. But one anniversary which is, in its own way, just as significant is 35 years of the Golf GTI, an anniversary being marked with the VW Golf GTI Edition 35, which hits UK showrooms this week after its début at Worthersee in May. The original Golf GTI was a revelation; light, nimble, fun and fast it was an instant hit – the first of the proper hot-hatches.