CVC Announcements
May 18th Saratoga Springs Auto Museum Fun Run
New Country BMW is organizing a 'fun run' up to the Saratoga Springs Auto
Museum for their 'Spring Invitational featuring BMW' in the State Park.
There will be several unique BMW cars, a 'Concours Event' and a 'General Gathering'.
The agenda for the day is quite simple... meet at New Country for breakfast at 8am, depart to drive up to the show at 830am, hang around and take pictures, then drive back at will.
For details of the show, please check out http://saratogaautomuseum.org/autoshow/
If you want to join the fun run, please email Tim Parker, GM of New Country BMW at tparker@newcountry.com
Come along, run with us and have some fun!!
Genesse Valley Chapter is hosting a BMW car corral and hospitality tent
at this year’s Sahlen’s Six Hours at The Glen
Request for DZ Submissions
The DZ is always looking for member contributions. We can all find the latest BMW press releases or racing news in the Roundel or on the internet… ho hum. But you can’t learn about the interesting tid-bits of information specific to our personal BMW relationships and adventures there. Have you taken a particularly scenic drive or stopped at an especially noteworthy café or destination? We would like to know about it. Please submit your articles and high resolution photographs to DZ@ctvalley.org or mail to BMWCCA-CVC Newsletter, P.O. Box 432, Hartford CT, 06141. Your fellow Chapter members will love you for it.
Use of images statement:
Chapter events may be photographed or recorded and subsequent images published in the Chapter newsletter or other BMW CCA publications. Attendance at Chapter events constitutes permission by all participants for public release of images from the event.
RLR Wins Road America!
So much of the weekend was a surreal experience. Arriving at the track Saturday morning during ALMS practice, we had no idea what to expect. After a slightly disappointing qualifying session, cut short by a red-flag just as the car’s were coming into their own, the team certainly felt they had pace to come, but were concerned about their grid position for the start of the race. So far a frustrating winless season full of promise with podiums at every race, the pressure on the team to win was immense. They know they’re fast, they know they’re reliable, with BMW Motorsport Director Dr. Mario Theissen present, today is the day to strike.
Luck, they say, is the result of preparation coinciding with opportunity. Certainly the time was right for the Rahal Letterman BMW M3’s this weekend. With advances in fueling from the Rahal team’s Indy Car experience applied to the BMW’s delivery system cutting substantial pit time, a consequence of which directly impacting the race result. A close working partnership with Dunlop developing a tire that works optimally with the M3’s chassis, paired with one of the most technically advanced traction control systems available on a Le Mans GT car, courtesy of BMW’s Formula 1 engineering talent. Finally, cool headed and aggressive driving guided by the peerless expertise of Rahal on the wall. With success at Road America last season, was there any doubt in the eventual result?
Starting from 4th on the grid, like a man possessed Joey Hand was immediately hounding the lead cars improving to second before the third lap of the race. By lap 8 Joey had taken the lead, while teammate Bill Auberlen had improved his position to 6th from 8th. With the race clearly falling to the RLR BMW team’s hands and another potential double podium on the horizon tragedy struck. Checking up behind a slower LMPC car at the kink, Auberlen was caught from behind by the No. 45 Flying Lizard Porsche driven by Jörg Bergmeister sending the 92 car into the No. 55 Level5 Motorsports car, taking it out and putting the No. 92 BMW M3 hard into the wall. Unrecoverable, the Auberlen was forced to retire the car. Ever the sportsmen Bergmeister and Auberlen shared some cordial conversation on pit-wall a short time after, where Jorg reportedly apologized to Auberlen. Great to see in a sport when the unexpected happens at triple-digit speeds.
After the disappointment of seeing the 92 car leave early the RLR BMW team’s attention shifted to the remaining 90 car commanded by Joey Hand. A stop under caution on lap 11 saw the team fall to third, undeterred Joey brought the team back to second before pitting for Dirk Muller, that saw the team fall further to 5th. Ever encouraging his drivers Rahal seems to give them only what they need, continually advising them of passing yellows and complimentary of skillful driving.
Lap 39. The final stop. Under caution, seemingly the entire field came in for fuel and tires. Whether by strategy or luck, or the happy consequence of an engineering partnership between RLR, BMW, and Dunlop, the No. 90 car pitted from fourth. In the fastest stop of the day the M3 was fueled and out. Right in front of the competing Corvette’s and Ferrari’s. The team’s season of work paid off and Dirk was in second, ideally positioned to take advantage of the 45 Flying Lizard Porsche when the yellow fell. Rahal to Muller, “Ready, Set, Ready, Set, , , Green, Green Green.” Dirk grabbed 1st on the restart and never looked back.
In the closing laps the tension in the pit was palpable as the 90 car driven by Dirk Muller was pursued by the Flying Lizard Porsche with the Vette’s closing in 3rd and 4th. Fuel strategy and execution at this stage were critical. Little did we know until after the race just how tight the fuel stop had been. Apparently the M3’s fuel indicator came on during some point on the last lap with real concern whether they’d be able to finish. Of course Dirk held off the pursuit while conserving fuel and pulled out the victory for the RLR BMW M3.
With this victory comes a six point manufacturer championship lead for BMW Rahal Letterman Racing, with Muller and Hand move into a tie for second in the driver’s. Of course this victory is bittersweet with the 92 car out and no drivers points awarded Auberlen and Milner who fall 17 points behind, a tall challenge with only two races remaining in the season.
Hat tip to the Bavarian Motorsport Club LLC for sending the story.
E46 Class Action Settlement
BMW Models 99-06
BMW E46 Settlement
Many owners of 99-06 model year BMW 3 series vehicles have reported failures of the rear-axle supports in the vehicles sub-frame caused by cracking and defects. BMW has steadfastly denied any charges of wrongdoing made against it in the lawsuit but has issued the following statement and owners or leasees can refer to an established website for further information.
BMW NA Official Statement:
BMW has agreed to a proposed settlement of a class action lawsuit concerning the Sub-Frame structures on 3 Series (“E46”) models produced from 1999 through 2006. Under rare conditions the attachment points of the Sub-Frame may develop a fracture or crack. BMW has prepared an inspection, approved repair procedure, and reimbursement policy in keeping with the terms of the proposed class settlement. Details will be forthcoming, pending the court’s final approval of the proposed class settlement. In advance of the final settlement, BMW customers with questions should visit www.E46subframeclassactionsettlement.com.
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July 2009
BMW Leaves Formula One
In a shocking turn of events BMW has decided to end its involvement in F1 racing at the end of the 2009 season. Instead it will turn its focus on creating consumer products and increase its work in the area of sustainability. Undoubtedly cost was also an issue.
While the team wasn’t in top form this year, they have been quite consistent in year pass and quickly moved up the ranks to become one of F1’s top teams. They will be missed not only here at the BF HQ but all across the world. Here’s the official release:
The BMW Group will not continue its Formula One campaign after the end of the 2009 season. Resources freed up as a result are to be dedicated to the development of new drive technologies and projects in the field of sustainability. BMW will continue to be actively involved in other motor sports series. The landmark decision to restructure BMW Motorsport’s activities was made at the Board of Management’s meeting yesterday.
“Of course, this was a difficult decision for us. But it’s a resolute step in view of our company’s strategic realignment,” explained Dr. Norbert Reithofer, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG. “Premium will increasingly be defined in terms of sustainability and environmental compatibility. This is an area in which we want to remain in the lead. In line with our Strategy Number ONE, we are continually reviewing all projects and initiatives to check them for future viability and sustainability. Our Formula One campaign is thus less a key promoter for us. Mario Theissen has been in charge of our motor sports program since 1999. We have scored a large number of successes in this period, including some in Formula One racing. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Mario Theissen and his team for this,” said Reithofer.
Dr. Klaus Draeger, the member of the Board of Management responsible for development, said: “It only took us three years to establish ourselves as a top team with the BMW Sauber F1 Team. Unfortunately, we were unable to meet expectations in the current season. Nevertheless, our ten years of Formula One experience have had a major impact on our development engineers. We have racing to thank for numerous technological innovations as well as the competitive spirit that drives us to develop mass-produced cars.” Possible redundancies in Munich and Hinwil cannot be quantified at present. Says Draeger: “Since we only made this decision yesterday, we cannot provide any more precise information. We will develop and assess various scenarios and do our best to find a solution for the employees in Hinwil and the staff members involved in the Formula One project in Munich. We are aware of the responsibility we shoulder and will inform the staff as soon as we can make a clear statement.” Says BMW Motorsport director Dr. Mario Theissen: “Of course, we, the employees in Hinwil and Munich, would all have liked to continue this ambitious campaign and show that this season was just a hiccup following three successful years. But I can understand why this decision was made from a corporate perspective. We will now focus sharply on the remaining races and demonstrate our fighting spirit and put in a good result as we bid farewell to Formula One racing.”
BMW will continue its programs in a number of motor sports series: BMW will appear on the starting grid in the touring car series and young driver promotion program in Formula BMW. This will be supplemented by BMW’s participation in ALMS, the American Le Mans Series, endurance races and close-to-production customer sports. Furthermore, BMW Motorrad Motorsport will continue its campaigns, with the super bike world championship leading the way.
BMW looks back on a long track record of success in the field of motor sports:
BMW achieved eight Formula One victories from 1982 to 1985 with Brabham. In 1983, BMW won the driver’s championship with Nelson Piquet (Brabham BMW). The last win with the legendary turbo engine followed with Benetton in 1986. Ten victories were scored during the partnership with Williams (2000-2005). BMW had a total of 19 grand prix wins and 33 pole positions before the BMW Sauber F1 Team era. In its debut season in 2006, the newly established BMW Sauber F1 Team wound up fifth in the constructor’s championship. In 2007, the German-Swiss team came in second after McLaren-Mercedes’ exclusion from the points standings. The 2008 season saw the team in the hunt for the world championship until the end of the season, winding up third. Polish-born Robert Kubica achieved the first and hitherto only GP victory in Canada on June 8, 2008. So far, the BMW Sauber F1 Team has taken one pole position (Kubica in Bahrain in 2008) and 16 podium finishes. The BMW Sauber F1 Team occupies the eighth spot in the manufacturer’s standings in the season presently underway.
Here’s a transcript of the speech given by Dr. Norbert Reithofer, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG at today’s press conference:
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Thank you for joining us at such short notice here today. Yesterday, the Board of Management made the following decision:
We will realign our motor sports activities.
The BMW Group will end its Formula One activities at the end of the 2009 season.
We will remain active in the field of motor sports, focusing on close-to-production motor sports and promoting young drivers.
We will pool our expertise and financial resources in the fields of sustainability and new technology development.
In 2007, we set the foundation for a strategic realignment of the BMW Group by adopting our Strategy Number ONE. Now we are rolling out this strategy in all areas within the BMW Group. In addition, we initiated an internal change process that goes hand in hand with a new mindset throughout our workforce.
All measures and activities aim for the same goal, namely to ensure our company’s future viability. This is the focus to which we are dedicating our resources and capacities, while constantly adjusting them to new requirements.
The BMW Group is the world’s leading premium car company in the automotive industry.
We are of the opinion that the premium segment has to remain a positive role model within our society. By launching our Efficient Dynamics technology program, we began early on to reduce our vehicles’ fuel consumption and emissions significantly. Today, our BMW and MINI fleet in Germany consumes a mere 5.9 liters of fuel on average. This is below the average of Germany’s largest-volume brand. Sportiness and dynamics remain the key attributes of all BMW models, albeit paired with responsibility. At the IAA, we will showcase a concept car as a“CO2 champion” to demonstrate a whole new dimension of driving pleasure with regards to efficiency with performance.
In line with our Strategy Number ONE, we are continually reviewing all projects and initiatives to check them for future viability and sustainability.
We made this clear with the initial announcement of our Strategy Number ONE. And, naturally, this also includes motor sports.
And I have always been clear about my position on making tough decisions that will help ensure the BMW Group’s success over the long run.
As our company places stronger focus on sustainability initiatives, our participation in Formula One becomes less a key promoter of this engagement.
It goes without saying that this step was very difficult for us—as well as for me personally. On behalf of the entire Board of Management, I would like to express our immense gratitude to Mario Theissen for his commitment and successes.
Everyone knows that the BMW brand embodies sportiness with sheer driving pleasure. Sportiness and fair competition are firmly encoded in our DNA.
This is why we will remain loyal to motor sports. But we will do this in series that enable us to transfer technology more directly and to realize additional synergies, while strengthening our brand values. This is in our customers’ best interest.
As a company, we are making a paradigm shift based on our Strategy Number ONE. We are setting new priorities in an ever-changing environment.
The focus of the BMW Group will be towards sustainable development over the next years and decades to come.
Our vision remains clear: to be the leading provider of premium products and premium services for individual mobility. We will pursue this vision with resolve.
Thank you for your attention.
Finally here’s a transcript of the speech given by Dr. Klaus Draeger, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG:
BMW and motor sports: These two things have a long-standing tradition and simply belong together. Be it in motorcycle, touring car, sports car, rally or Formula One and Formula Two racing, BMW has amassed successes around the globe.
Promoting talent has always been a priority for us. In 1991, Formula sports saw the beginning of a joint talent promotion campaign by BMW and ADAC. Formula One drivers like Sebastian Vettel, Nico Rosberg, Timo Glock, Adrian Sutil, Ralf Schumacher and Christian Klien learned the basics of Formula racing from this program.
BMW is clearly the most successful brand in the 24-hour race around the Nürburgring’s north circuit. In 1980, BMW announced the company’s entry into Formula One racing as an engine supplier. The partnership lasted until 1986.
Then BMW joined WilliamsF1 on the starting grid in the 2000 season. Gerhard Berger was the BMW Motorsport director at the time. Mario Theissen was nominated to assist him soon thereafter. We have scored 10 wins with the BMW WilliamsF1 Team. In the middle of 2005, BMW acquired the Swiss team Sauber and took to the starting grid under its own steam.
Spearheaded by BMW Motorsport Director Mario Theissen, in 2008, the new BMW Sauber F1 Team established itself as one of the top three teams.
These are just a few chapters of BMW’s motor sports history. This goes to show that our decision to end our Formula One campaign was anything but easy.
Formula One racing had always been the perfect platform for BMW to showcase important brand values. We did this for years and transferred Formula One technology to series production more resolutely than any other manufacturer. The most recent findings obtained from Formula One racing to be applied to series production will be our KERS expertise.
However, our planned cost reduction will cause component standardization and homologation to increase, and thus will set certain limits on our engineers’ creativity. This doesn’t necessary correspond to our belief of what’s ideal. In times of economic and societal change, we must remain capable of taking action and being flexible. We have now paid tribute to this fact.
Our ten years of Formula One experience have had a deep impact on our development engineers. We have racing to thank for numerous technological innovations which can be found in our mass-produced vehicles today.
The main reason for this decision was not our current performance in Formula One racing or the general economic situation. It was solely the company’s strategic realignment. Of course, our decision to discontinue our Formula One campaign will have an effect on our employees. Since we only made this decision yesterday, I trust that you will understand that I cannot give you any more precise information on this matter yet.
We will develop and assess various scenarios and do our best to find solutions for our employees in Hinwil and those involved in the Formula One project in Munich and Landshut. Most importantly, we are aware of the responsibility we shoulder and will inform staff as soon as we can make a clear statement. We will continue our touring car and Formula BMW racing campaigns in 2010. This will be supplemented by our participation in ALMS and endurance races as well as our increasing activity in close-to-production customer sports.
As before, these activities will be supervised by Mario Theissen.
I would like to take this opportunity to express my personal thanks to our motor sports director Mario Theissen for his commitment and successes as well.
Furthermore, we will naturally continue our international motorcycle racing program, focusing on the super bike world championship series.
I would like to underscore what Mr. Reithofer just said:
Sustainability is becoming increasingly important. As a responsible premium manufacturer, we want to address this issue even more extensively than before. What this means for our products is that:
They will be developed and built in line with the principle of sustainability across all development stages. Technological innovations will be accelerated even more, in order to constantly make our vehicles more efficient.
You will see a product of sustainable development at the IAA in Frankfurt in a few weeks in the form of a concept car. The BMW Efficient Dynamics Vision will demonstrate how efficient a sports car can be. It will also prove that sustainability does not apply to the drive train alone, but to design and materials as well.
Anyone who takes a closer look at this concept car will understand the direction in which we are developing our technology. And it will become evident that we will have to dedicate more human and financial resources to this type of development work. Ladies and Gentlemen,
BMW has always been active in the field of motor sports, and this will not change. We will maintain our outstanding tradition in touring car and Formula BMW racing over the long term. We will promote framework conditions that establish motor sports as the arrowhead of innovations that trickle down to future mass-produced cars. New drive concepts are just one example. BMW will continue to showcase sheer driving pleasure on the racetrack.
Blog with other members at http://www.myspace.com/motorsportseries
http://www.linkedin.com/in/bavarianmotorsportclub
Announcements from John Sullivan, NA RVP BMW CCA
From: Kati.Hockner at partner.bmwgroup dot com
Sent: Thursday, October 02, 2008 9:51 AM
Subject: Council News. Newsletter of the International Council of BMW Clubs. Issue 3/08
Dear BMW Club members,
An eventful summer is drawing to a close. And even if the weather in this part of the world hasn't always been suitable for an extended trip through the countryside, it is certainly true to say that a great deal has happened. To find out exactly what, simply turn to the entertaining articles in the current Newsletter. (PDF)
To celebrate the seventieth anniversary of the Frazer-Nash BMW Rally from Great Britain to Munich, the BMW Historic Motor Club UK organised a rally in May that as far as possible replicated the original route. Turn to page 3 to go back in time.
Many visitors lined the fences to witness the spectacular events of the BMW M1 meeting at the end of June. Many club members responded to the call of the BMW M1 Club e.V. and lined up in front of the BMW Welt with a total of 26 BMW M1 cars. They were rewarded for their efforts with a highly varied and enjoyable programme that catered for all tastes. Turn to page 5 to read more.
In July, the BMW Welt in Munich was once again the destination of a pilgrimage, undertaken this time by the members of the BMW Moto Club France, who took the opportunity while at the BMW Motorrad Days in Garmisch Partenkirchen to make a quick trip to Munich. Find out more about their ride on page 7.
Last but not least, an exclusive book recommendation for all club members: a new book has just been published in the series "BMW Profiles" about the BMW M1. For more information on this rare sports car, fans should turn to page 4.
And now it only remains for us to say that we hope you enjoy reading this edition of the Newsletter.
Your International BMW Club Office Team
P.S.: You can also download the Council News from the following link:
http://www.bmw-clubs-international.com/en/News_%26_Events/Council_News/Council_News/_pdf/BMW-Clubs_CouncilNews_08-03_e.pdf
Responsible for the content of this e-mail:
International BMW Club Office
Schleissheimer Str. 416
80935 Munich
GERMANY
To the Old Timers of the Connecticut Valley Chapter,
As the Curator for the BMW CCA Foundation, I could use your help with the Archives. I would like to add a collection of newsletters from your CVC chapter to our Archives. At some point, one of your long time members donated a bunch of stuff to the Foundation Archives. In that donation were many issues of the DZ. There are several missing issues going back to 1977. I don't have any issues of the DZ before Volume 5 #4 August 1977. Is there a member that has been around for some time with the chapter that might have saved back issues of your newsletter? Would you be willing to donate these issues to the Foundation to complete our set?
Please contact Michael Mitchell at
or 864-329-1919 if you can help. Feel free to contact me if you are also a member of other BMW CCA Chapters with back issues or if you have other automotive / motorcycle items that the Foundation might be interested in. Sorry, but I have all the Roundel magazines that I need, so please don't contact me about those. However, I am looking for other car / motorcycle magazines collections to fill in missing gaps in our collection. Thank you for your help with this project.
Michael Mitchell
BMW CCA Foundation
Michael R. Mitchell
Office Manager/Curator
BMW Car Club of America Foundation
4001 Pelham Rd Suite 291
Greer, SC 29650
(864) 329-1919
www.bmwccafoundation.org
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Tim Healey having a blast at an event...
BMW CCA Connecticut Valley Chapter, Inc., P.O. Box 432, Hartford, CT 06141