RECENT ARTICLES
Hagerty Garage + Social, M Chapter F1 Watch Event in Chicago

Please join us at Hagerty Garage + Social in Chicago for a M Chapter F1 French Grand Prix watch event on Sunday, July 24 at 8:00 a.m. Park your favorite car outside in the Hagerty lot and come inside for a fun F1 watch event. Coffee and breakfast provided....
Paint Without Petroleum: BMW and BASF Make Waste Biomass Pretty

In pursuit of sustainability, BMW Group and BASF have developed matt paints made from biomass instead of crude oil. It’s also created innovative forms of corrosion protection that don’t use fossil fuels. The new innovations reduce fossil fuel resources needed and lower C02 emissions by 40 percent, according to...
Enough Teasing! The BMW M4 CSL Debuts Friday, May 20

If you follow BMW M’s Instagram feed, you may have noticed several close up teaser shots of the M4 CSL. Starting with a quite blurry photo of the new model speeding across the frame, to a close up of the front BMW M Roundel that shows red accents in...
BMW XM Prototype Test Drives: New Flagship M

BMW gave reviewers a chance to test drive the new plug-in hybrid XM prototype recently near Austria. Still covered in camouflage, the new M SAV received plenty of praise for its handling, though we’ll have to wait for detailed comments about design and style. We got our first glimpse...
BMW Charity Pro-Am To Welcome Celebrities In June

BMW’s 2022 edition of their charity golf tournament will welcome a long list of celebrities and musicians to benefit multiple charities. The tournament will take place in Upstate South Carolina June 9-12 at Thornblade Club in Greer and The Carolina Country Club in Spartanburg. Officially named The BMW Charity...
The Power of M Opens At The Ultimate Driving Museum

By Michael Mitchell, Museum Curator, and Len Rayburn. Photos by Mike Ura. The Ultimate Driving Museum launched The Power of M: Celebrating 50 Years exhibition on Friday, May 13. This is the first exhibition under the new museum name, but the sixth overall for the BMW CCA Foundation. Starting...
BMW Goes 1-2 At Mid-Ohio!

The IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship (IWSC) traveled to the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio for the fifth round of the championship and it was a great weekend for BMW, as M4 GT3s finished one-two in the GTD class, with Turner Motorsport getting their first win with the...
Registration Open For M Intensive At Indy

The M Chapter and the National Capital Chapter of the BMW CCA are once again going to the world-famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway for an exciting opportunity to drive M cars at Indy! The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is one of the most famous tracks in the country, and now you can experience...
BMW Wins In BTCC At Brands Hatch

The British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) race weekend at Brands Hatch couldn’t have started any better for BMW. Colin Turkington led a BMW one-two-three in qualifying with his 330e M Sport and it was the first time in the 41-year history of the BTCC that a manufacturer had locked...
What Does This Button Do? BMW Remote “Genius” To The Rescue

If you’ve bought a new BMW in the last few years, you have likely looked at the myriad buttons and iDrive options and found a few that you aren’t quite sure what they do. The technology in vehicles has evolved rapidly, and mastering the increasingly complex options can require...
What Does This Button Do? BMW Remote “Genius” To The Rescue

If you’ve bought a new BMW in the last few years, you have likely looked at the myriad buttons and iDrive options and found a few that you aren’t quite sure what they do. The technology in vehicles has evolved rapidly, and mastering the increasingly complex options can require...
“The Power of M: Celebrating 50 Years” Opens May 16 At The Ultimate Driving Museum

The BMW CCA Foundation’s newest exhibit, “The Power of M: Celebrating 50 Years,” will roar into the Ultimate Driving Museum in May 2022. You’re invited to be one of the first to see this exceptional collection of BMW M cars (and the first M motorcycle), celebrating 50 years of...
BMWs Temporarily Shipping Without Apple CarPlay, Android Auto

Buyers will need a software update for the smartphone services. Thanks to the ongoing computer chip shortages, BMW had to change chip suppliers for some of its infotainment services. The new chips are compatible with Apple and Google’s smartphone offerings, but will require an over-the-air software update to get...
BMW Offers “7 for 7” Flagship Swap To Eager South Korean Buyers

BMW enthusiasts in South Korea who can’t wait to get their hands on the new luxury 7-Series G70 can lease a current model and “swap” it for a new one later. While not quite a luxury-car “subscription,” the “7 for 7” program seeks to satisfy those eager for that...
Registration For M Chapter Day At BMW Performance Center West Opens May 10

After attending O’Fest Forever, the M Chapter is headed to the BMW Performance Center in Thermal, California on October 2 for our M Chapter Day event. BMW’s Performance Center West provides current model M cars, instructors, gas, tires, lunch, and a first-class facility for a fun-filled day at the track. Just...
Registration Opens May 16 For Legends Of The Autobahn Presented By Michelin!

The twelfth annual Legends Of The Autobahn West, presented by Michelin, will be held in Pacific Grove, California, on Thursday, August 18, at PG Links. Registration opens Monday, May 16, 2022. Make sure to register early—space is limited, and entries are expected to sell out! ...
The Toyota Supra Is Getting A Manual Transmission—What About BMW?

Toyota recently made a splash when it announced that the six-cylinder Supra will be getting an optional manual transmission starting with the 2023 model year. As we all know, the J29 Toyota Supra was developed in collaboration with the BMW G29 Z4, and the two ride atop the same...
The Ideal Car Is A Hypothetical Ideal

Four cars—a wagon, a sedan, a coupe, and a vintage car—walk into a bar…. No? Okay, how about they drive six hours to Laguna Seca? Actually, this is not really a joke, but a hypothetical situation meant tackle the age-old question, what is the ideal car? (By the way,...
Second-Generation M2 To Be Produced Exclusively In Mexico

The second generation of the BMW M2 will be produced exclusively at BMW Group Plant San Luis Potosí in Mexico. Opened in 2019 after ground was broken in 2016, the plant has quickly realized strong performance and currently produces the G20 3 Series sedan and the second-generation 2 Series...
BMW Explains Engineering Behind The M3 Touring

Even though it’s almost surely not coming to the U.S., the M3 Touring currently in the works at BMW M is one of the most exciting vehicles in the pipeline. We don’t have to extoll the virtues of BMW sport wagon ownership here; BMW CCA members know perhaps better...
BMW’s Ultimate Driving Experience Returns For 2022: Expanded Schedule, New Models

BMW’s Ultimate Driving Experience has returned for 2022 with a broader schedule than ever before and 25 cities on the itinerary. The first two events in Long Island, New York and Washington D.C. have already passed, but nearly two dozen others remain on the calendar, in addition to a...
BMW’s Fifth-Generation eDrive Electric Motors Explained

The i4, iX, and iX3, along with the upcoming i7, all rely on what BMW refers to as fifth-generation eDrive units to move down the road. These eDrive units, more commonly known as electric motors, boast the unique advantage of not requiring any rare-earth metals or magnets in their...
BMW Announces Summer 2022 European M Track Days

BMW has announced its schedule of M Track Days for this summer, and the itinerary includes events at some of the most famous racetracks in Europe, including the Red Bull Ring in Austria, the Hockenheimring, and the Nürburgring Nordschleife in Germany. This is your chance to drive BMW’s cutting-edge...
Mini Survey Indicates Growing Acceptance Of EVs In America

According to a recent survey conducted by Mini USA—one which has been using the same set of questions since 2019—the opinion of American consumers regarding electric vehicles is changing. The results of the survey, conducted during the first week of April, are said to indicate that more Americans, specifically...
Former IIHS Chief Praises His BMW 5 Series For Protecting Him

Last August, Adrian Lund, former president of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, set off from his northern Virginia residence traveling south to Savannah, Georgia in his 2020 BMW 540i, which happens to be a 2020 IIHS Top Safety Pick. Approximately fifteen miles into his journey, Lund was involved...
Get Carter (Part III: The Rod-Bearing Follies)

When last we saw Carter, my hastily-purchased bargain ’76 2002, I was in the “getting to know you ” phase of ownership. I’d eliminated the egregious suspension thunks and clunks by replacing the rear shock bushings and the front strut tower bushing. I also took a whack at the...
MidAmerica 02Fest (Part II)

Last week, I wrote about the preparation of Louie, my ’72 2002tii, and the two-day, 1,500-ish-mile drive southish to MidAmerica 02Fest in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Nothing went wrong, but I left out two bits whose importance wasn’t clear until after I’d arrived. Let’s start with Marta Davies. Marta is...
MidAmerica 02Fest (Part I)

It’s been said that, as far as a balance between a low-stress trip and fodder for interesting articles, the perfect road trip is one in which anything that goes wrong can be repaired safely and quickly. I know; I’m the one who said it. A great example was when...
Get Carter (Part II: Getting To Know You)

Last week, a 1976 2002 I immediately christened Carter (due to the original campaign sticker on the rear bumper) fell into my lap for an asking price that made me drop everything, look at it, and buy it on the spot. On the negative side, it had been sitting...
Get Carter (Part I)

I’ve long said that car-buying, at least for me, is best characterized as a crime of opportunity; I never decide, “I am going to buy X,” then go forth in search ofthe finest example of X and buy it. Rather, I look locally for the affordable example of X...
Buttoning Up The Beasts

I ended last week’s Decapitating Louie series installment by saying, “I have a few more weeks to put more miles on the rebuilt head, adjust the valves again, and beat down any gremlins trying to crawl out from their dark places. But I’m feeling pretty good about MidAmerica...