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Well, I don't think I have any further updates at this point, but when I see the people at several BMW locations weekly (I have to test drive the X3 3.0sd this coming week), I might be hearing something new, and if it sounds sensible, I will post it. I will also ask around the people who are in the know (that is, at the BMW locations), more about the weight and the details of the SMG IV, as those are issues that I have the least amount of detailed information about. The only thing I have heard about the light weight (I forgot to adress this above when I was facing the spanish inquisition) is that there will be a CF roof - which of course won't guarantee anything since the M6 had it too, and it's still a tank, but besides the CF roof, supposedly the manufacturing process will use several new materials and technologies that have never been used before in serial automotive construction, and that since the engine is a V8, the car will automatically be lighter because the engine can be placed further back, which removes the need for counterbalance weight (heavy metal) in the back of the car - usually BMWs are built with a very lightweight front end with a straight six, V10 or V12 engine and heavier metals in the back to counterbalance the weight on the back side to achieve the 50:50 weight distro which can't and won't be compromised on, ever. The results you can see on the current M5 and M6 - very heavy cars in total weight, because they had to counterbalance the heavy, long engines with loads of heavy materials in the back of the vehicle as well to have 50:50.
Best regards,
Jussi
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