BMW presses charges over spy photos of new MPV
FRANKFURT -- BMW AG is pressing charges against unknown individuals responsible for leaking internal pictures and technical data to a German motor magazine, it said on Friday.
"Internal information became public that wasn’t supposed to be seen," a spokeswoman for BMW said.
The first photographs of BMW’s multi-purpose-vehicle, which have been kept secret ahead of its planned debut in 2008, were published in a July issue of Auto Motor und Sport.
The company claims the model defies traditional descriptions -- neither minivan nor estate nor even offroader -- preferring to call it a "space functional concept".
But in the pictures it looked like a grand sports tourer very similar in concept to Mercedes’ new Vision R, which premiered at the Paris car show in September.
Information on three other planned models, including the next 7-series sedan and a cabrio version of its new 3-series sedan, were also published.
The magazine reported that BMW was planning to equip the upcoming 3-series cabrio with a hard-top retractable roof -- the first ever for BMW, which has obstinately stuck to soft tops for sports cars such as the Z4 roadster despite the sudden wave of demand for coupe-cabrios.
It also showed pictures of the high-performance M6 version of its luxury 6-series coupe and a 1-series wagon.
RAIDS
Immediately after the report was published, BMW took legal action and involved the state prosecutor’s office in the southwestern German city of Stuttgart, where the magazine is located and which is home to rival luxury carmakers Mercedes Car Group and Porsche.
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FRANKFURT -- BMW AG is pressing charges against unknown individuals responsible for leaking internal pictures and technical data to a German motor magazine, it said on Friday.
"Internal information became public that wasn’t supposed to be seen," a spokeswoman for BMW said.
The first photographs of BMW’s multi-purpose-vehicle, which have been kept secret ahead of its planned debut in 2008, were published in a July issue of Auto Motor und Sport.
The company claims the model defies traditional descriptions -- neither minivan nor estate nor even offroader -- preferring to call it a "space functional concept".
But in the pictures it looked like a grand sports tourer very similar in concept to Mercedes’ new Vision R, which premiered at the Paris car show in September.
Information on three other planned models, including the next 7-series sedan and a cabrio version of its new 3-series sedan, were also published.
The magazine reported that BMW was planning to equip the upcoming 3-series cabrio with a hard-top retractable roof -- the first ever for BMW, which has obstinately stuck to soft tops for sports cars such as the Z4 roadster despite the sudden wave of demand for coupe-cabrios.
It also showed pictures of the high-performance M6 version of its luxury 6-series coupe and a 1-series wagon.
RAIDS
Immediately after the report was published, BMW took legal action and involved the state prosecutor’s office in the southwestern German city of Stuttgart, where the magazine is located and which is home to rival luxury carmakers Mercedes Car Group and Porsche.
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