Daily Car News: A Cargo Jet Stops Inches From Parked Cybercabs, BMW's Neue Klasse Goes Gas, And More

A wild 24 hours for the automotive world: a runaway cargo jet nearly mowed down a robotaxi fleet, BMW quietly gave its electric rival a serious inline-six, and Mercedes is patenting an SUV that can literally float. Here's what's moving in the car industry today.

Amazon Cargo Jet Skids Off Runway, Stops Feet From Parked Tesla Cybercabs

The story of the day. An Amazon cargo jet skidded off a Miami runway in a fatal overrun and stopped just feet from a row of Tesla Cybercabs staged beside the tarmac. The robotaxis avoided damage, but the incident is raising sharp questions about robotaxi depot and staging placement near active airport environments. If your autonomous fleet's staging lot is a runway overruns' default skid path, that's a problem no amount of sensor coverage fixes. (Motor1)

2027 BMW 3 Series Gets a More Powerful Six-Cylinder

The new G-series 3 Series looks a lot like its fully electric i3 sibling, but the M350 packs a beefier inline-six and a quad exhaust — and Car and Driver's prototype drive says the Neue Klasse "is a gas." It treads closer to full M status than any 3-series model in years, which is music to the ears of enthusiasts watching the segment go electric. (Motor1, Car and Driver)

BMW Turns iX3 Owners Into Real-World Safety Testers

Opt-in BMW iX3 models in EU markets are now capturing near-miss footage and sensor data to refine driver-assistance behavior, with privacy-by-design safeguards. Fleet learning at this scale could make adaptive driver assistance dramatically safer — and sets the template for how automakers mine real-world near-miss data without trampling user privacy. (Motor1)

Mercedes' Next Off-Roader Could Literally Float

A new Mercedes-Benz patent describes a two-axle SUV that can float using inflatable wheel-arch inserts, wheel-based propulsion, and software-controlled stability. Patents aren't products, but it's a fun glimpse into where hardcore SUV engineering may head. (Motor1)

XPeng Starts Humanoid Robot Production as Optimus Stalls

XPeng switched on what it calls the world's first automated production line for advanced humanoid robots, with its IRON unit walking off the line under its own power. As automakers chase post-vehicle revenue, the robotics race is clearly heating up. (Electrek)

Takeaway

The Cybercab near-miss is the one to watch: as robotaxi fleets multiply, infrastructure placement and airport adjacency will matter as much as the software. Meanwhile, the M350 prototype drive suggests the combustion BMW enthusiast segment isn't dead — just getting better right up until it's gone.

Sources: Motor1, Car and Driver, Electrek. What's your take — should robotaxi staging be banned from runway-adjacent zones? Comment below.