The first event for BMW Club Queensland after the easing of Covid restrictions was a Skid Pan session held at the RACQ Mobility Centre of Excellence at Mt Cotton on Saturday 13th June 2020.
To maintain the safety of all participants, we were limited with numbers, so we ran two session of only seven vehicles.
Thanks to Denis Weisz, our motorsport director for organising the day and our host Joel Neilsen, from Sports Driver Training for running the event.
A special thank you to Maclaren Lamont for sharing his drone vision with us.
Watch the Video HERE
Who is....
As you all would be aware, our normal has been thrown out the window which was evident by the cancellation of last Fridays meeting. We had planned to have John Tetley, Queensland Raceways CEO there as our guest for the evening.
So, to keep the communication and information happening, we have decided to create a number of interview style videos with people who are significent to our club.
The first of which is John Tetley, hosted by Greg Tymms. We hope you enjoy the first of our series.
BTW, we will be looking for people to talk to so if you have any suggestions, please let us know.
Please click HERE to view the video.
If you missed our FaceBook Live meeting replacement, HERE it is.
And Februarys Bimmer Monthly HERE..
More updates to come regarding future events etc...
Every year, BMW Car Club America holds one of the biggest parties for BMW Enthusiasts. For its 50th anniversary, it was held in Greenville, South Carolina where there were car giveaways, cars and coffee, time distance rallies, track day at the BMW Performance Centre, BBQ, and so much more.
There were a group of six members of BMWCQ who travelled to the USA to help celebrate their 50th. We were made very welcome and were invited to be guest judges at their Show of Excellence..Check out our recap of the entire week!
On Monday this week, we took two special cars into the Brisbane BMW showroom in Fortitude Valley to support an event they are promoting. Flashback February is designed to highlight the heritage and history of the marque. There are all sorts of magnificent new cars on display there, but the whole showroom stopped and grabbed their phones to take photos when the Isetta drove in, followed by the E9 Alpina replica..
These two cars will be on show until next Monday 24th, when we will change them over to two early ///Ms, a very special E24 M6 and ///My E36 M3. That week will obviously be based around BMW Motorsport.. If you get a chance, drop in and have a look and promote the club.
From Our Aussie Abroad - Ian Branston:
Most, if not all of us, will have attended some form of sporting event. It may have been tennis, soccer, football, cricket or all of the above, but at the end of the day there was usually a winner and a loser. In the moment of the event you can leave with a feeling of bitter defeat or the elation of success. However, over time these feelings get buried in our day to day lives and what we are often left with is not “the result” but the memory of being there. In other words – the experience.
I have been fortunate enough to have participated in, or been a spectator, at numerous motorsport events all over the world – Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Europe and the US. What sticks in my mind as I recall these events always relates to my experience and not necessarily involves who won. Perhaps a reflection of the number of brain cells I have killed but let’s continue.
The experience angle is perhaps why I am such a fan of long distance racing. The spectacle of being riveted to my seat for a sprint race or an F1 battle is certainly enjoyable, but my memories more often than not always defer to what I did or who I met rather than who won. In addition, longer races give me the chance to do more than just watch the cars on track. It gives me the chance to wander the pits, change viewing points, meet friends and go to other behind the scenes activities on offer.
And so to the Rolex 24 hour at Daytona in 2020. Not only a back to back win for BMW Team RLL, but this was a race that was a battle for hour after hour with the last laps just as exciting as the first and a whole lot of stuff in between. The result was unmistakably fantastic but my long term takeaways or impressions go well beyond the on track activity.
The late night and early morning sights and sounds are my favourite. Obviously the sound of the cars ripping down the log straights get my attention but a late night stroll through the infield provides sights and sounds all of their own. Wood smoke from all the fire pits, the sound of numerous parties among the sea of RVs combined with the back drop of the cars creates an incredible atmosphere.
Watching the sunrise across the infield is always special, especially when you realize the race is far from over and there is still plenty of time to swap stories and meet with friends. Another thing that never ceases to amaze me is the generosity and approachability of the teams, drivers and owners during the pre race garage visits. It’s always great to hear from the drivers themselves about their expectations, for the race and the season. With the Bathurst 12 hour following soon after the Daytona race several drivers are always very keen to chat about Mt Panorama or their previous experiences at Bathurst. If they have not raced there its very apparent they all want to!!
This year, during our visit to the Turner Motorsport garage, we were given an intriguing insight into the strategic planning side of the race from Don Salama. Add this to some very excited drivers (Bill Auberlen, Augusto Farfus and John Edwards spring to mind) who were all eager to get racing but still had the time to chat and share stories and the garage visits remain a favourite and provide lasting memories. In fact this year, I was so interested in listening to stories (and getting models signed) I totally forgot to take the obligatory selfies!! No worries, I’ll catch most of them at the season finale at Road Atlanta.
In the meantime, if you are eager for another long distance race, not quite as long as Daytona, there is always Sebring in mid March. And that provides to a 4 hour race along with a 10 hour and a 12 hour. One day I to get the chance to experience this 3 race marathon.
Today, there are over 300,000 BMWs assembled more than 20 years ago that are still on the road in the US. Across the country and around the world, BMW in America has established a network of select BMW Certified Classic Centres. A Certified Classic Centre uses only 100% Original BMW Parts and BMW approved equipment. All parts come with a two-year, unlimited mileage limited warranty. Senior Technicians bring unparalleled knowledge and expertise, having received special factory training for BMW Classic vehicles. Technical and archival support from BMW Group headquarters in Germany assures that your Classic will always get the very best care available.
There are over 40,000 Original BMW Parts for models dating back from the rare 1955 Isetta through all vehicles out of production for the past 20 years. Each BMW Original Part is created to the highest standards and quality, using original tools and production machines, and then undergoing testing before leaving the factory.
To qualify as a BMW Certified Classic Centre, our parts specialists and technicians complete specialized factory training, and use only BMW approved tools and equipment to ensure your Classic gets authentic and expert care. For an additional fee, a BMW expert will travel from Germany to perform an analysis of your vehicle. You’ll receive a BMW Certified Classic vehicle report with your BMW’s condition and individual history to confirm its originality, making it easier for you to determine its market value.
Electric cars today are already somewhat a mainstay of the roads on countries such as China, USA, Japan and much of Europe. The trend today is that automakers are making electric vehicles that soon will no longer be just a trend, Electric Vehicles or EV’s will be only cars, like Gas Powered or Internal Combustion Engine cars are today. The electric effect is now in full force, with established brands committing to offering a wider range of pure electric vehicles in the future, while those who depend heavily on diesel are seeing sales falter.
BMW Electric Vehicles
As for electric vehicles on BMW, first to be launched according to plans would be the EV Mini Cooper this year, SUV type BMW iX3 will launch in 2020, then in 2021 the BMW iNEXT and BMW i4. By that time, they already have released their four core electric vehicle models that emphasize their commitment to future mobility.
BMW i4 looks a lot like a 4 Series Grand Coupe
The i4 looks a lot like a standard 4-series Gran Coupe, according to the design director the BMW EV’s will look closer to the cars we have already in the market today. With i4 it looks a conventional sedan type of vehicle only that it is fully electric powered, it is a four-door coupe belonging to the premium mid-range class.
BMW i4 Tech Specs
It has a two electric motors, all-wheel drive and torque vectoring also has the Fifth-generation BMW eDrive technology which means this model will rely on the so-called Generation 5 battery pack, which is significantly smaller than its predecessors. The modular architecture of the model will be shared with other upcoming EVs from BMW, offering front-, rear-, and all-wheel-drive layout, depending on the vehicle type. Which means the electric motor, transmission, and electronics will sit on the front or rear axles, or both in AWD configurations. There will be an 80kWh battery that will charge at 150kW and give a range up to 370 miles. The motors will produce 530bhp, giving a 0-62mph time of 4 seconds and a top speed of 125mph.
The consensus on electric vehicles is that the buyers/customers don’t seem to care much about futuristic or out of this world design, they prefer the conventional-looking car electric version that combines a dynamic design with inspiring performance and a high level of ride comfort. BMW will begin building the i4 in its hometown of Munich, Germany, in 2021, meaning the model might not arrive in American showrooms until the 2022 model year.
We are pleased to announce that www.bmwcq.com.au is back up and running. Thanks to some hard work by club member Duane Thompson, Membership Officer Michael Blankenberg and Club Captain Dave Ross, we have now transitioned over to Wild Apricot Membership Software.
The guys have worked hard behind the scenes for the last three weeks getting this together, and it appears they’ve done a good job.
It’s early days yet, so we haven’t got all events loaded, but feel free to check it out.
I’d like to take this opportunity to also thank Will Hackett and Firelabs for their ongoing support over the last two and a half years. Although the MyClub base ultimately did not work for us, they tried hard to address our issues and assisted us with the transition to make it relatively painless.
Kind regards
Ian Solomon
President
BMW Club Qld.
Read the full article here
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