BMW might have shown off its ActiveHybrid 7-Series at the recent Frankfurt Motor Show, but our spies confirm the cars are much further advanced than even the car maker cares to admit.
Our Italian correspondent spied a fleet of four hybrid 7-Series BMWs crossing from Munich into Austria past Garmisch at the end of September, then caught up with the same collection of cars again travelling in convoy down the Brenner Pass in northern Italy.
The four cars, clearly marked as BMW test department vehicles, may be even more advanced than the ActiveHybrid BMW showed at Frankurt, with all four featuring a tell-tale plug on the right rear side of the rear bumper bar, which looks like it could be used to charge the battery packs of the big limousines when they are parked in offices or at home.
The ActiveHybrid cars all combined a TwinPower, 4.4-litre V8 petrol engine and an electric motor, all run through the all-new eight-speed automatic transmission. The gearbox unit, which debuted in the 760Li just months ago, was pre-engineered for Hybrid work and also features Start-Stop technology.
The twin-scroll turbo-charger and the electric motor help the direct-injection V8 to 342kW/465hp and 700Nm/516lb-ft of torque. Like Mercedes-Benz's S400 Hybrid, its electric motor sits between the engine and the transmission, and runs on a lithium-ion battery. BMW already claims the ActiveHybrid 7 will punch to 100kph in a very M3-like 4.9 seconds while keeping its average EU fuel consumption cycle numbers down to 9.4 litres/100km.
The ActiveHybrid 7 runs a 120-volt on-board network and it claims one of its big advantages is that it allows full air conditioning even when the engine is switched off in stop-start traffic. It uses a 35-cell battery with its own computer, generating 400 watts per hour and weighing only 27kg. Not only that, but it takes up no additional space, fitting into the curious box area usually dedicated to the rear-seat air conditioning compressor in the middle of the boot.
The disc-like motor weighs 23kg and slots neatly into the transmission housing, adding another 15kW/20hp of power or 20kW/27hp in its "generator" mode when it charges the battery. It can reach a torque peak of 210Nm (155lb-ft).
motoring@thenational.ae
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Third Test
Day 3, stumps
India 443-7 (d) & 54-5 (27 ov)
Australia 151
India lead by 346 runs with 5 wickets remaining
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
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10 tips for entry-level job seekers
- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
- Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
- Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
- Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
- Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
- Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
- Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
- Prepare for online interviews using mock interview tools. Even before landing interviews, it can be useful to start practising.
- Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz
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