These images, released this morning in Europe, reveal a less confronting design than the previous model. That edition of the 7 Series was the first to bear the mark of style-meister Chris Bangle, whose design gambits appear to be present mainly about the car’s rear. The latest generation appears to have acquired a more streamlined shape, if not quite so “sporty” as some pundits had forecast.

This is crucial in reducing drag _ a central tenet in BMW’s much-touted efficient dynamics philosophy, which in the past decade has seen the German marque reduce emissions and fuel consumption by up to 20 per cent across its passenger vehicle line-up.

Most important is the latest range of engines, of which the bi-turbo 4.4-litre V8 is the star with its 300kW and 600Nm.

Yet for all its output, BMW claim consumption in combined conditions of 11.4litres of premium unleaded petrol per 100km and emission of 266 grams of CO2 per kilometre _ figures that compare favourably with locally-produced six-cylinder family cars and make an Aussie bent eight seem Jurassic.

The sedan version of the 7 Series accelerates from 0-100km/h in a claimed 5.2 seconds and the bigger limo wouldn’t be far behind.

The other engine available from launch is an enhanced version of the award-winning bi-turbo 3.0-litre inline six, boosted to 240kW and 450Nm. This engine moves the 740i from 0-100km/h in 5.9 seconds, uses 9.9L/100km on the European combined cycle while emitting 232g/km of CO2.

All engines are Euro V compliant - appreciably greener than any Australian government requirements. The others in the 7 Series are designated 740i and 750i, with the 140mm longer wheelbase versions called 740Li and 750Li.

All models have a six-speed automatic transmission with an electronic gear selector and power going through the rear wheels. Lately BMW’s steering, with and without active steering, has been criticised. The integral active steering system makes its debut as an option on the hydraulic rack-and-pinion set-up of the 7 Series.

BMW says that this applies active steering on the front axle and speed-related rear-wheel steering. Dynamic damping control and dynamic driving control are standard. The dampers, gearshift dynamics, as well as the throttle and steering assistance map, are varied by the dynamic driving control button on the centre console. This offers comfort, normal and sports settings. A special traction mode and sports+ setting with reduced or deactivated DSC control is available for owners and chaffeurs who fancy pushing on a bit.

The 7 Series is the most driver orientated car in its class and the newcomer is likely to continue in this vein, despite the continued handicap of run-flat tyres. Against the harsh riding boots there is an updated air suspension system.

BMW makes much of the weight-saving measures. The roof, doors, bonnet and side panels are made of aluminium, while aluminium pressure-cast suspension supports at the front, and a final drive with an aluminium housing, work towards keeping overall weight as low as possible. The engines are also aluminium.

The Bavarians have persisted with the iDrive multimedia system, known even to the more polite critics as “bloody iDrive”. The mildly revised system is here given a larger display with high-resolution graphics and a better menu structure. Like more recent Bimmers it gets direct selection buttons.

The latest 7 Series makes its international debut later this year and arrives locally in 2009. Further pricing, specification and information for Australia will follow closer to launch, although prices should start from about $185,000.

Despite our wide brown land having millions of empty hectares – more than enough to swing a camera crew, you’d think – Ford Performance Vehicles turned to the computer to create both landscape and vehicles for their new ad.

FPV employed the use of computer-generated Imagery (CGI) to create the sparse landscape featured in the powerful commercial, with all vehicles developed in CGI from CAD data.

FPV decribes the ad as “the epitome of the ultimate driving environment, one that is stark and graphic, but also represents freedom and escape from the everyday.”

“Such an environment with no roads and plenty of wide open space enabled clean graphic imagery and angles that would be difficult to achieve elsewhere,” the press release says.

“To manage such a production with eight cars and a production crew would be an extremely consuming and costly exercise and besides, the vehicles were in production at the time,” FPV general manager Rod Barrett says.

“We rarely use television to advertise our brand and to be able to use this technology in the way we have is extremely advantageous,” Barrett says.

“The result was a more flexible shoot, no large crew, no weather contingency, and the freedom to choreograph the shots, choose our own weather conditions, rehearse the shots and then produce the finished television commercial.”

The TVC, produced by advertising agency Magnum Opus and CGI specialists Airbag Productions, will be mounted here at midday tomorrow and will premiere on pay television on Sunday July 6 on Fox Sports, Sky News, Fox Sports News, Discovery and the History Channel, with airplay during the free-to-air coverage of the V8 Supercar Series.

Fuel prices and economic uncertainty have not stopped Mercedes-Benz from rolling out a new set of sports stars at the top of its line-up. It has just tweaked the droptop SLK and SL, as well as the four-door CLS coupe, as it applies showroom pressure on BMW, Audi and Lexus rivals.

The changes are mainly minor, although the latest SL looks far more aggressive in the nose (and is also $4000 to $8000 more expensive) but Benz is looking closely at the potential for turbodiesel power in the trio.

According to president and CEO, Wolfgang Schrempp, the company has shown off such engines in Europe and these are now being evaluated for Australia. The company already delivers more than 20 per cent of its Australian vehicles with turbodiesels.

In 2005 it unveiled an SLK 320 CDI tri-turbo concept at the Geneva Motor Show with 213kW and 630Nm and economy of 7.5 litres per 100km. At the same show it displayed a twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8 diesel SL that could charge to 100km/h in 5.8 seconds.

In Europe, Mercedes also sells a CLS 320 CDI with a 165kW/540Nm V6 turbodiesel that delivers 7.6 to 8.1 litres per 100km.

The newcomers arrive at a time when the luxury car business is tightening, but Mercedes-Benz Australia managing director Horst vonSanden remains bullish. He hopes the Federal Government will give some ground on the planned hike in the luxury car tax but admits it isn’t easy.

“There’s no denying it’s giving us some grief,” he says. But von Sanden, like Schrempp, is looking to turbodiesels to give Benz an edge.

“We’re very happy with our turbodiesel line-up, from the BClass upwards,” he says.

Later this year it will introduce a 2.0-litre turbodiesel A180CDI that uses as little as 5.0 litres per 100km. The engine is already fitted to the BClass. For the time being though, the company is focused on the new petrol-engined trio.

The three-model SLK range kicks off at $86,780 for the 1.8-litre SLK200 Kompressor, $112,380 for the 3.5-litre V6 SLK 350 and $164,900 for the 5.5-litre V8 SLK 55 AMG.

A new six-speed manual transmission is now available in the SLK200K and Mercedes expects the take-up to be about 25per cent with the SLK 350 being the volume seller.

Visually, the SLK gains a modest nip and tuck, with four different frontal treatments, tail-lights and improved interior trim.

Five distinct SL models are now available. They start at $223,000 for the 232kW/360Nm V6SL 350, which rises to $468,000 for the 450kW/1000Nm V12 SL65 AMG.

The three-model CLS range starts at $143,900 for the 200kW/350Nm V6 CLS 350, $182,400 for the 285kW/530Nm V8 CLS 500 and $257,800 for the 378kW/630NmV8 CLS 63 AMG.

The three updates are planned to give a worthwhile sales improvement, as last year Mercedes-Benz Australia sold 570 SLKs, 501 CLSs and 104 SLs.

Ageing designs and even older platforms have seen many prestige car buyers cross Saab off the shopping list before leaving home. The 9-3 sits on eight-year-old underpinnings, while the 9-5 is even older with its Epsilon platform approaching 12, a true geriatric in prestige automotive terms.

“There is no doubt we have suffered because we spent a lot of time telling people what the price of the car was rather than what the brand was about,” says Saab Australia boss Parveen Batish.

“That approach has a negative impact as far as your residual values are concerned and it takes a while to dig yourself out of that hole … and we’re not out of that hole yet.”

Batish was on hand at the launch of the limited edition Turbo X and Aero fettle for the TTiD diesels. Saab hopes these will turn things around. Despite sales evidence to the contrary, Batish says the brand is heading in the right direction.

To the end of May, Saab sales have dropped almost 27per cent over the same period last year, with just 592 cars registered.

“We have been talking about the brand a lot more over the past 18 months. We’ve got to tell people what Saab’s about if we’re going to be sustainable in the future. We can’t just go on price … people are willing to pay as long as they know they are getting the performance and value they expect from the brand that they are buying.”

The poster car for Batish’s vision of a brave new future is one that will do little to improve the bottom line in raw figures but will provide a point of reference for what Saab is going to become.

The Turbo X (just 30 examples will make their way to Australia) is a showcase of technology for future models. The all-wheel-drive (cross-wheel-drive in Saab speak) 2.8-litre V6 with active limited-slip rear differential is a clear signpost on the road to the all-new 9-5 due by early next year.

“To have a hero car we can point to is hugely important for a couple of reasons,” Batish says. “Firstly it gives everyone a boost, a lift, and that will show in the marketing. More importantly it allows us to talk to the people we want. We can finally say to those people who have been scared to drive a front-wheel-drive car because [they say], `You can’t put that much power through the front wheels’, try this.

“It is true that 30 cars is not a lot of conquests, but from here AWD will flow to other models, at least as an option, in the very, very near future. That is what I mean about giving those people confidence. We can do one job at the moment in terms of lifting the brand with the Turbo-X and then with cross-wheel drive in the future we can bring those conquests to us.”

Even before the flow down of the AWD and LSD technology, Saab is working to get its cars back on the consideration list.

“The conversion rate when we get people into the cars is fantastic, something like 50 per cent,” Batish says. “That tells me we have a product people like but we have to get them into contact with it.”

To that end Saab will be pushing what Batish believes is the brand’s unique selling point.

“As a brand what we’re going to focus on is responsible performance. The fact we have excellent diesel engines with an Aero diesel, the fact we have enviro-power-flexible vehicles with E85, the fact we have four-cylinder engines with great performance and fuel economy. All of this leads to responsible performance.

“Everyone wants performance. When people buy a premium car that’s what they want.

“We think we have great cars with great packages, especially the TTiD.”

However, for all the “responsible” banter it is going to be, initially at least, the performance of the Turbo X that will grab buyers by the throttle.

Saab has opened its AWD strategy with a car of which it has built only 2000

Blueblood Dick Johnson was tossed on the tip yesterday by Ford.

After more than 30 years as a blue oval battler, often fighting single-handed against a horde of Holdens, he was left behind in a dash for cash.

Craig Lowndes will also be caught in the crossfire from a decision by Ford to centralise its cash commitment with just two V8 Supercar teams, Ford Performance Racing and Stone Brothers Racing.

Lowndes’ team, Triple Eight, was dumped by management at Broadmeadows in a money move which also affects former Bathurst winner Jason Bright’s team. The decision is likely to save Ford around $3 million, a significant sum as it battles falling sales of its flagship Falcon.

“This is a weird one,” a stunned Johnson said yesterday.

“It’s a bit disappointing. We always knew things were up for negotiation, but . . .

“I’m 63 but right now I feel more like 190. It’s already been a tough year.”

Roland Dane, the head of Triple Eight, was also not happy.

“I’m surprised, given our record,” Dane said.

“Team Vodafone has won 16 rounds of the V8 championship in the past three years. FPR has won four, Stones have won two and Dickie Johnson’s team has won one. We’ve also won four of the six enduros in that time, including two Bathursts.

“Ford have clearly got some issues they have to deal with. I wish all the employees at Ford all the best, because the company has obviously got a few challenges at the moment.”

The Ford cutback comes as the company looks for more bang from its V8 Supercar buck, although it says motorsport its still its single biggest sporting spend and well ahead of cricket. It has only just completed its all-new FG Falcon racer, which is set to race from the start of the 2009 season.

Full details of Ford’s future will not be revealed for some time, with FPR believed to be working on a three-car program for next year with James Courtney moving from Stone Brothers to take the extra wheel. But FPR and SBR will form a technical liaison, with the Melbourne team building cars and the Queensland outfit responsible for engines.

The impact is likely to be extensive and could even shake the foundations of V8 Supercar racing, as Holden has also scaled-back its involvement in recent years and new company chief Mark Reuss has recently said he would be happy to see another carmaker in the contest.

“I think it’s probably time to move on from the whole Ford-Holden thing, because it turns off as many people as it turns on. We’ll crack on with life. I work on the basis that there is no point in getting too steamed up if there is no money to be earned or it doesn’t make us go faster.”

Johnson joked that he might even end up driving a Toyota, although his lifetime commitment to Ford is unlikely to change.

“We’ll see where it goes from here. I need a bit of time to think about things. I see no reason to stop being a Ford person.”

“We’re pleased to see that Ford continues to support the sport. How they spend their money is entirely up to them,” is all the CEO of V8 Supercars, Wayne Cattach, said.

Johnson actually began his racing career in Holdens, but had his first start in a Falcon in 1975.

Since then he has raced American Mustangs and British Sierras, and even a production-class Laser, before returning to Falcons in the V8 Supercar era. He also rallies in an Escort.

His ties to the company came in 1980, after he hit a rock while leading at Bathurst and Edsel Ford - then the marketing chief at Ford Australia - offered to a dollar-for-dollar deal to match donations from his fans.

“It went from there. I guess the biggest win for me was getting the first championship in 1981,” Johnson said.

“And Bathurst in the Sierra days was pretty good, before the Bathurst wins in the early 1990s.”

Johnson’s team has been hit hard by money troubles in recent years, with the laconic Queenslander losing more than $2 million of his personal fortune in keeping the operation running. He is now facing a bankruptcy proceeding, although a re-structure and a new partner has kept his team on the track.

Youngster Will Davison even gave Johnson a much-needed win at Eastern Creek in Sydney this year.

“We looked like we were back on track. Now this,” Johnson said.

“It’s not quite seven figures that we’re losing, but Ford was a significant part of our budget because we haven’t had much to work with.”

Dane was less worried about the cash, as his Vodafone deal is the biggest in the V8 Supercar pitlane.

“Ford’s contribution to our budget is not that great. So I’m not particuarly concerned from a commercial standpoint,” he said.

But he is now re-assessing the future of his team, which was founded in the UK and won last year’s British championship, and admits he has been talking to other carmakers.

“Who knows what is going to happen in future? I’ve only ever spoken to other manufacturers, and it’s plural, in the context of understanding their long-term marketing plans in Australia.

“Only a fool would rule out another brand. Never say never.”

V8 SUPERCAR RETHINK

The rising cost of racing and falling returns from Falcon sales have forced Ford’s re-think on its V8 Supercar program.

“The days of winning on Sunday and selling on Monday are well and truly gone,” the vice-president of sales and marketing at Ford Australia, Mark Winslow, told the Herald Sun yesterday.

“And the costs of this sport are getting larger and larger.”

He admitted Ford has cut its Supercar spending but defended the move by saying the company’s overall sponsorship budget was unchanged and V8 racers still got the biggest slice.

“It’s reduced from what it was, but it’s still our largest sponsorship,” Winslow said.

His new strategy is to maximise the Ford force in the sport, both in results and in cars which look more like blue-oval road cars than high-speed billboards for other brands.

“We’ve been very successful but now the time has come to focus and leverage our brand. From our point of view, this will give us the best chance for success,” he said.

“Up to now we haven’t got our true-blue brand out there, which is a problem for us. We want them to look like a Ford car.”

Winslow backs the decision to focus Ford’s spending on FPV and SBR, despite the company’s history with Dick Johnson and the racetrack success of Team Vodafone.

“They have both got the depth. We think it’s a good strategy to go forward.

“How you define success isn’t just about what step you take on the podium. You also have to leverage every dollar you invest.

“Triple Eight is stellar. Clearly Vodafone are a strong sponsor . . . but they are predominantly red and we are blue.”

Winslow also denied the cutback was the start of a withdrawal from V8 Supercar racing or the company’s other motorsport spending in Formula Ford.

“I’ve always said V8 racing is valuable to the brand. We just need to make an investment and get a return on that investment.”