What Makws the M2 good

BMW now makes thirteen different models, and that's not counting all the Gran Turismo, Gran Coupe, coupe, and wagon variants. That's a big jump from the 3, 5, and 7 Series trio that made up the showroom when BMW carved out its reputation as the ultimate driving machine. Like in the NHL, expansion comes with dilution. Not every BMW delivers on the promise of the twin-kidney grille. Fortunately, the M2 does, something we reconfirmed on a trip to GingerMan Raceway.

The M2 is the spiritual successor to cars like the E39 (1998–2003) M5 and all the M3s that came before the current one. By now you've heard the old saw that the M4 (and M3) feels artificial, with fake engine noise and more customized settings than a Chipotle restaurant. So the M2 is not that.

It's also fast. In a slower, less capable car, the limit comes easily, and you gain speed by working on lines and technique to scrub less speed here and get on the throttle sooner there. The M2 provides the kind of performance that requires occasional track tourists like me to unlock the internal limits that creep into the brain after too many hours of mind-numbing work commutes. And then the world comes alive and time stretches out, every input to the car playing out in slow motion.

The sensation that comes from driving the M2 hard isn't derived from raw performance. Other cars are faster (must we mention the M4 again?), but don't feel as special. The M2 has the kind of chassis balance that lets you choose any combination of steering, gas, or brake to set your desired vector - the kind of custom settings we fully endorse. A 365-horsepower engine seems downright sensible these days, but it's also making a statement against the endless proliferation of horsepower. The M2 stops at "fast enough" and nails every other part of the driving experience.

Complaints? Sure. We forgot how thick that BMW M steering wheel is, and it borders on absurd. And the seat track skews outward, so that you don't sit parallel to the length of the car. The rest of the car is a modern exercise in gadget restraint. The only option group is the Executive Package, which adds frills like a heated steering wheel and automatic high beams. And with the exception of Apple CarPlay, the rest of the options are purely cosmetic. That is, if you skip the $2,900 dual-clutch transmission, which you should. That means that, unlike most sports cars on sale today, the base M2 (at $53,395) comes standard maximum performance. If that doesn't sum up the purity of the BMW M2, well, look anywhere else on the car because it's a masterclass in the perfect execution of the sports car.

Today in history: Cuban rebels kidnapped a legendary F1 driver

The history of cars can veer into some very weird territory. For instance, it was 59 years ago today that Cuban communist rebels associated with Fidel Castro kidnapped one of the greatest Formula One racers of all time to try and stop a race.

Most of us don't remember a time when the Castros didn't rule Cuba. Before the Communist rebels seized power, Cuba was governed by a US-backed dictator – President Fulgencio Batista. A year before rebels would finally oust Batista, he hosted the 1958 Cuban Grand Prix on February 23. Fighting between the Batista regime and communist rebels was intense at this time, but Batista pushed for the race to stay on schedule to maintain the image of Cuba as a playground for the rich.

The race itself was a disaster. A driver was killed in a crash during pre-race rounds. The race started an hour and a half late, and then Grand Prix drivers only made it six laps before a Ferrari ran off course, killing seven spectators. One person who wasn't on the track was the previous year's reigning champ and one of the top Formula One drivers of all time. Where was the Argentine driver Juan Manuel Fangio?

The night before the race, armed men associated with Castro's 26th of July movement abducted Fangio from his hotel room. The Communist rebels hoped that by kidnapping the biggest name in racing they could draw international attention to their movement. Fangio spent 29 hours as a captive. During his time with the rebels, they allowed him to listen to the race on the radio and then watch the aftermath of the crash on television. Fangio developed a case of Stockholm Syndrome and decided that, although he didn't care about politics, the guys with the guns and communist literature weren't so bad after all. The men eventually dropped Fangio off at the Argentine embassy and he remained lifelong friends with his former captors.

While the kidnapping didn't derail the 1958 Grand Prix, the rebels' plan did work in a way. To the Cuban people, Batista's failure to track down the kidnappers was a sign his grip on power was slipping. There would not be a 1959 Grand Prix. By that year, Batista was gone, and a new socialist government was in control of the island. Fangio went on to set multiple records in Formula One racing, and remains to this day the driver with the highest percentage of wins in the sport.

Tesla confirms 5,000 Model 3s a week will be built by the end of the year, with 10,000 a week in 2018. Here's the latest news.

The Tesla Model 3 is one of the most anticipated new cars of 2017, and it’s a potential game-changer for the California based electric car company – it’s the firm’s cheapest offering yet, and also its first attempt at creating a mass production EV with true mainstream appeal.
The Model 3 is a compact saloon sitting underneath the Model S in Tesla’s range, and comes with a BMW 330e baiting price tag. £35,000 is the magic number, and Tesla plans for first deliveries of the vehicle to take place in Q4 2017.

The latest update from the carmaker is good news for the 400,000 or so customers who have placed a £1,000 deposit on the Model 3. Tesla expects to be in a position to produce around 5,000 Model 3 per week towards the end of this year, with production of the new car ramping up to 10,000 per week at some point in 2018.

Production delays have hampered Tesla launches in the past, but this latest update reveals the company is on track with the Model 3. Limited production will begin in July, with volume production by September. Across all three of its vehicles, Tesla aims to be capable of making 500,000 cars a year in 2018.

New 2017 Audi A5 Cabriolet: prices and specs

New Audi four-seat convertible gets two petrols and two diesels, with a 349bhp six-cylinder turbo reserved for the S5 model.

Audi has revealed UK launch prices and specifications for the new A5 Cabriolet, the final member of the new A5 family. Order book are open now, with first deliveries scheduled for April. Prices will start at £35,235.
The new A5 Cabriolet made its debut at last year’s LA Motor Show, joining the A5 Coupe and 5-door A5 Sportback. We’ve also driven it for the first time, on the eve of sales commencing.

The design of the elegant convertible follows predictable Audi themes with the strong shoulder line and steeply raked rear window angle lifted from the Coupe, along with Audi’s trademark grille and the latest signature LED headlamps. Short front and rear overhangs give it a sporty stance while maximising space in the four-seat interior. At 4,673mm long, the new Audi A5 Cabriolet is 47mm longer than the previous model.

Top Gear's latest trailer featuring a Bugatti Chiron

Top Gear is returning on March 5, and after a lackluster first series with the new hosts, the new group seems determined not to hit a sophomore slump. Chris Evans is gone, and the latest teaser trailer shows the new trio of Matt LeBlanc, Chris Harris, and Rory Reid strapped into some pretty fantastic cars, including the Bugatti Chiron and the Ford GT.

All of the typical Top Gear segments appear to be present, though the quick cuts don't give us many details. The trailer shows a copious amount of powerslides from an assortment of cars, and even Chris Harris racing around Daytona. Aside from the Bugatti and Ford, cars from Porsche, Lamborghini, Ferrari, BMW, Aston Martin, and Alfa Romeo are all present. Co-hosts Eddie Jordan and Sabine Schmitz don't appear at all, so it seems their roles may be downplayed to focus on three guys, as was the case pre-reboot.

We have some hope for this re-relaunched show and will be keeping an eye out for more details in the lead-up to the series premiere