BMW to offer weather radar in Germany

BMW to offer weather radar in Germany

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By Andrew Ganz

BMW says it will be the first automaker to offer a built-in weather map in its navigation system in Germany. The concept is not new – Ford and Acura, among others, offer such a system in North America, where the information is provided via the satellite radio – but it’s the first time it will show up in Germany.
Called ConnectDrive in BMW-speak, the system should be available on several products for the 2010 model year. It’s unclear if BMW will offer the system in more markets.
The system will show precipitation forecasts that are updated every 15 minutes, as well as distribution of rain, snow or hail. Later, BMW will launch its Precipitation Pattern mode, which will show cloud movement animations for up to the previous 90 minutes.
24 COMMENTS
1. JakeK66433 days ago
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  Yes! Whenever I’m in Germany driving a 7-Series I can see the weather!!! The best news of the day!
  
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2. Go Saab433 days ago
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  Wouldn’t it be better if they offered a design that didn’t make you throw up?
  
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3. iluvamcars433 days ago
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  we won’t even get it, so why createa whole article about it?
  
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4. Madcapp433 days ago
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  Can you track the Luftwaffe with it?
  
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5. johnnycanuck433 days ago
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  Can it find the giant sh*tstorm that currently passes for their design team?
  
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6. yarddog82abn433 days ago
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  I can see the weather any where in the World, from a small plane, a boat, a train, a bus, a bike, even in a car…
  
  My cell phone has unlimited internet access,… HA!, TOP THAT BMW……
  
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7. beatusmongous433 days ago
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  It’s cool, sort of. If it were available everywhere, it would be cooler. Now if I could just hack it to download movies…
  
  I have a really good weather station at my house, although it isn’t portable. It’s a rock hanging from a string, and it tells me everything I need to know about the weather. If the rock is warm, it’s sunny. If the rock is wet, it’s raining. If the rock is white, it’s snowy. If I can’t see the rock, it’s foggy. If the rock is dark, it’s night time. I can’t tell you how many times that weather station has helped me through the day.
  
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8. 6ix433 days ago
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  You trolls just dont’ get it. go ahead and enjoy driving your stupid camaro’s and firebirds.
  
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9. johnnycanuck433 days ago
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  beatus, in BMW-speak your weather station could also be called a LAME device (Lifestyle Automated Monitoring Enhancer). If you see two rocks it’s probably time to call it a night.
  
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10. JakeK66433 days ago
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  @6ix -
  
  I’d be perfectly happy driving a Camaro with it’s standard direct injected V-6 and 306 hp while getting 29 mpg thank you very much. It may not offer an in-dash weather station, but like yarddog said, my phone does all the same, plus you have to goto a Ford or Honda to get it here.
  
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11. spg900433 days ago
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  So who would take advantage of this option other than tornado chasers?
  
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12. California GT432 days ago
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  it would be great for a motorcycle
  
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13. Terrence the Terrific Train No.3432 days ago
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  That’s kind of cool.
  
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14. Mutant@DCX432 days ago
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  Hmmmm, I’m in my car, GPS says it’s raining, I look out my windshield, sure as sh!t… it’s raining. I’d pay for that!
  
  seriously though, nice feature, even if my settings are just @ 100metre grid.
  
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15. leftwingagenda432 days ago
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  i used to drive a lot of long distance runs from college to home, etc…it’d be nice to see what kind of weather was ahead…on really long trips the weather could change while you’re on the road and you could run into something unexpected…or maybe if you knew another route you could avoid some of the heavier weather…i like the idea…all navs should have it as a basic feature, imo…
  
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16. carstuff431 days ago
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  Of course here in the states you would have to pull off the road to see the map.
  
  Would not want to have the driver sidetracked while eating his taco and texting to his boss.
  
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17. mayer_ray_nagin431 days ago
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  So why is this not offered in the USA? Here’s why:
  
  A german is flying down the autobahn in his BMW (Bin Massiver Wichser) and outside its pouring but his shiny new electronic POS that he overpaid for says it’s clear out. Being a dutiful little german, he trusts his car more than his common sense and he whips a 130kmh curve doing 225kmh, slips out, impacts a guardrail, rolls it and end up in the hospital for 4 months.
  
  In Californa this idiot could sue BMW and win. In Germany, he can’t.
  
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18. Pazzo Canguri431 days ago
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  Their is a MUCH MUCH BETTER system than this on the market and it’s Free for all…….
  
  YOU JUST LOOK OUT THE WINDOW…..but dont tell anyone….its surpose to be for freee…shhhhhh
  
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19. Rafa LL431 days ago
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  Now if you’re in your BMW bike you don’t have to pull out your arm to see if it’s raining…
  
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20. GermanCarDriver430 days ago
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  No racism!
  Germans might be a bit strange to you, BMW might not have the best designers but overall there uis no reason for dicriminacion!
  
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21. mayer_ray_nagin430 days ago
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  Germans arent a “race” unless the self=proclaimed Master Race counts.
  
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22. leftwingagenda430 days ago
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  a much better system? looking out the window? you’re on a 600 mile trip and you want to know what the weather is on the other side of the rockies, so you look out the window? riiiight…
  
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23. Get Real430 days ago
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  Now all good Germans can easily point their cars east at the right time for the next invasion.
  
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24. mayer_ray_nagin429 days ago
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  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubSTSICa7y8
  
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