BMW 3-Series That Can TALK To The Road Blog Post at Automotive.com

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BMW 3-Series That Can TALK To The Road

Posted March 28 2007 04:53 AM by staff
Filed under: Miscellaneous, BMW 3-Series, Sedans, Sports

The engineers at BMW, apparently, hate traffic as much as you do. So they have developed a traffic control system that gives the car the ability to talk back.

Here's how it works. The system, called TALK, picks a specific route from a central computer that gets taffic information from as many as 10,000 detectors monitoring traffic conditions on German motorways. The system then picks up information that is pertinent to that route and can offer an alternative route if necessary.

The TALK System, which is also a European wide research project, is said to be faster than radio traffic information because it can also be transmitted over the car's cell phone.

The system was exhibited on a BMW 3-Series convertible at the Cebit in Hanover, Germany. (Pictured is the sedan.)

Our take? We've read on similar projects from other automakers. Personally, we can't wait for such a system here in the States so we can find the nearest empty road to just..."test" our Bimmer's braking system. Yeah, that's it. Testing.

Via Mangalorean

COMMUNITY COMMENTS

bruceedmonds (May 24 2007 05:45 AM)

I have a 2007 BMW 335i that is (3) months old. All (4) wheel hubs are rusted very badly. Dealer tells me this is normal. This is my first BMW. I find it difficut to accept this unsightly condition is normal. Have others had this issue?

Balboa455 (May 29 2007 02:48 PM)

As someone who used to work in the Service department at a car dealership, let me allay some of your fears. If there is "rust" on the actual wheel itself the dealer should warranty that problem. If there is some rust discoloration on the brake rotor, that will not affect your braking ability in any way. Most manufacturers will not warranty a part like that for merely cosmetic reasons. If you are still not satisfied, call BMW customer service and have them put pressure on the dealer you visited. You would be amazed how often you can get anything authorized by going that route.