RECENT ARTICLES
Sharkie is Spared the Axe
As I wrote last week, Maire Anne and I had a great weekend in Vermont with Sharkie, the ’79 Euro 635CSi. We only used Sharkie for the drive because the weather forecast was too rainy to take the rust-prone E9, and because the big guy was at the house...
Schubert Motorsport Wins DTM Team Championship
The DTM season closed out its 2024 season with a pair of races at the Hockenheimring in Germany this past weekend, with Rene Rast getting a podium finish in the final race and Schubert Motorsport winning the team championship. BMW has been inconsistent in the DTM championship this season....
BMW Teams Win GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Silver & Bronze Class Championships
The Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe series closed out its Sprint championship on the weekend of October 11th-13th. While one BMW pairing went away empty-handed after leading a class championship coming into the weekend, two other BMW teams won championships in other classes. The BMW M Team WRT pairing...
New MINI JCW Electric and New MINI JCW Aceman Debut at 2024 Paris Motor Show
Just in time for the Paris Motor Show from 14 October to 20 October, MINI is presenting two new top models. Both the MINI John Cooper Works Electric with up to 190 kW / 258 hp and the MINI John Cooper Works Aceman with also up to 190 kW...
BMW Neue Klasse Vision Vehicles Featured at the Mondial de l’Auto Paris 2024
Parallel to the market launch of the new BMW 1 Series, the new BMW X3 and the new BMW M5, the BMW Group will present the next steps in its unchanged product strategy at the Mondial de l’Auto Paris 2024. The focus is on the world premieres of the...
BMW Skytop – Limited-Run Model for Enthusiasts and Collectors
BMW is poised to set pulses racing among fans of exclusive driving pleasure and collectors of automotive masterpieces once again with a strictly limited-run small-series model. Following in the tyre tracks of the BMW 3.0 CSL – revealed in 2022 to mark the 50th birthday of BMW M GmbH...
BMW Group Posts Significant BEV Growth in Challenging Market
In a globally challenging market, the BMW Group increased its sales of fully electric vehicles by +19,1% in the first nine months of 2024, with a total of 294,054 BEVs delivered to customers. During this period, BMW brand sales of fully electric models rose by +22.6% to 266,151 vehicles....
Shark Sighted in Vermont!
My wife Maire Anne and I have a history of going up to Vermont on Indigenous People’s Weekend and visiting our friends Jon and Eileen in Manchester. Unfortunately, this is usually the same weekend as Vintage at Saratoga. Some years I’ve done both, shooting out to Saratoga for the...
IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Wraps Up 2024 Season At Petit Le Mans
The IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship (IWSC) wrapped up the 2024 season with the ten-hour Petit Le Mans race at Road Atlanta. It was a challenging race for the BMW teams, but Paul Miller Racing still came away with a championship in the Michelin Endurance Cup. 2024 has been a...
Podium Finishes for BMW Teams in Michelin Challenge, VP Challenge Finales at Road Atlanta
The IMSA Michelin Pilot SportsCar Challenge and VP Racing SportsCar Challenge series wrapped up their 2024 seasons at Road Atlanta this past weekend, with BMWs on the podium in all three races. BMW has had a challenging year in Michelin Challenge, pun intended. Turner Motorsport was the defending champion...
BMW CCA Supports Local Hurricane Helene Relief Efforts
The tragic events of the past few weeks have highlighted how quickly things can change for any of us, and how significantly weather-related events can impact large communities of people. Hurricane Helene has devastated portions of Western North Carolina and the surrounding areas, causing loss of life and property...
FrankenThirty Sunroof Repair (Part II)
Last week, I was insufferably pleased with myself when, at zero cost, I fixed the FrankenThirty’s non-sealed non-functional sunroof by epoxying the broken plastic piece of the mechanism that lifts the rear of the sunroof back into place, and using some leftover McMaster-Carr adhesive-backed foam for a seal instead...
50th BMW BERLIN-MARATHON Hosts Record Number as Milkesa Mengesha and Tigist Ketema Win
From September 17-30, 2024, the 50th BMW BERLIN-MARATHON was celebrated with an entertaining program of events, culminating in Sunday’s highlight under ideal conditions and sunshine. Around one million fans along the 42.195 km route through the German capital witnessed the largest starting field ever in the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON, with...
FrankenThirty Sunroof Repair (Part I)
Last week I wrote about un-seizing the bushing in the FrankenThirty’s passenger-side window motor so I could maximize the flow of this glorious New England fall air into the car. The next task was dealing with the other air-and-rain-related thing that wouldn’t slide—the sunroof. When I bought the car,...
BMW Electric Vehicle Innovations Showcased
BMW has been a major player and innovator in the electric-vehicle market, from early test vehicles to the imagination-capturing BMW i8 and i3 production models. And now, BMW’s pioneering engineering and innovations that helped make electric-vehicles a truly viable and attractive options are being celebrated as part of the...
X Drives Ultimate Road Trip Registration Open!
2024 is the 25th Anniversary of the launch of the X5 and the X brand so the X Chapter is celebrating in a big way. To make this celebration extra special, we’ve planned the ultimate road trip in X Drives America. Seeking to connect with all of our members...
Year-end Highlights and Renovations at BMW Welt
BMW News, Community, Lifestyle
As summer ends, BMW Welt has lined up a diverse program of highlights for the coming months before it temporarily closes in January 2025 for refurbishment. From glamorous award ceremonies and impressive concerts to exciting technology updates, there’s something in store for everyone. To enhance the visitor and customer...
BMW Honors Esther Mahlangu as Official Partner of Frieze London 2024
From October 9 to 13, the contemporary art fair Frieze London and Frieze Masters will return to London’s Regent’s Park. As one of Frieze’s long-term global partners since 2004, BMW will honor the artistic oeuvre of Ndebele artist Esther Mahlangu, who was the first woman to create a BMW...
The Shape of Light, Son of Cobra Style
It was a celebration. It was a reveal. It was a launch. It was a party. As August and summer were winding down, Paul Lefevre and his Son of Cobra brand collaborated with photographer Jake Caminero and Rally Events to celebrate how Son of Cobra is winding up. Many...
E30 Window Motor Repair
As I said last week, having the FrankenThirty reach the point where it’s legal and putting out a fun “drive me” vibe made me want to address a number of non-critical non-reliability non-inspection issues to bring it closer to feeling like a whole intact car. First on the list...
In Memory of Mike Valentine
For many BMW enthusiasts, the Valentine One radar detector is held in the highest esteem, helping many an enthusiast enjoy their Ultimate Driving Machines more than they would otherwise. It is with considerable sadness that we report the passing of the innovator and creator of the Valentine One, Michael...
Detailer’s Domain G87 M2 – Test Drive
Community, Featured, Lifestyle, Reviews
A retailer and resource to the BMW and European automotive enthusiast community for decades, Phil Yiu of Detailer’s Domain, exercises restraint and finds the perfect balance of streetable, motorsport-inspired style with his latest fixation, a 2023 BMW M2 (G87). Mike Maravilla of Pit+Paddock borrows Phil’s M2 for a week...
BMW Group and University of Zagreb Optimize Battery Cell Production With AI
Innovations arise when experts from different areas and organizations come together. This is what is happening now as part of a research cooperation between the BMW Group’s Battery Cell Competence Center (BCCC) and the University of Zagreb‘s Regional Center of Excellence for Robotic Technology (CRTA). The two partners are...
The FrankenThirty Gets Legal
Last week, I took the FrankenThirty to get inspected, and came back instead with The Scarlet R(ejection) Of Shame due to a worn-out left outer ball joint (the right one also showed a little play). There was zero question that the car could use a full steering-and-suspension refresh, as those...
Winners of BMW Group Award for Social Responsibility 2024 Announced
“The BMW Group Award for Social Responsibility is truly inspiring. It highlights the profound impact individual dedication can have and shows how commitment to others strengthens the entire community. Our associates are driving change by developing practical solutions to social problems. Their projects create a positive impact and serve...
Sharkie is Spared the Axe
As I wrote last week, Maire Anne and I had a great weekend in Vermont with Sharkie, the ’79 Euro 635CSi. We only used Sharkie for the drive because the weather forecast was too rainy to take the rust-prone E9, and because the big guy was at the house...
Shark Sighted in Vermont!
My wife Maire Anne and I have a history of going up to Vermont on Indigenous People’s Weekend and visiting our friends Jon and Eileen in Manchester. Unfortunately, this is usually the same weekend as Vintage at Saratoga. Some years I’ve done both, shooting out to Saratoga for the...
FrankenThirty Sunroof Repair (Part II)
Last week, I was insufferably pleased with myself when, at zero cost, I fixed the FrankenThirty’s non-sealed non-functional sunroof by epoxying the broken plastic piece of the mechanism that lifts the rear of the sunroof back into place, and using some leftover McMaster-Carr adhesive-backed foam for a seal instead...
FrankenThirty Sunroof Repair (Part I)
Last week I wrote about un-seizing the bushing in the FrankenThirty’s passenger-side window motor so I could maximize the flow of this glorious New England fall air into the car. The next task was dealing with the other air-and-rain-related thing that wouldn’t slide—the sunroof. When I bought the car,...
E30 Window Motor Repair
As I said last week, having the FrankenThirty reach the point where it’s legal and putting out a fun “drive me” vibe made me want to address a number of non-critical non-reliability non-inspection issues to bring it closer to feeling like a whole intact car. First on the list...
The FrankenThirty Gets Legal
Last week, I took the FrankenThirty to get inspected, and came back instead with The Scarlet R(ejection) Of Shame due to a worn-out left outer ball joint (the right one also showed a little play). There was zero question that the car could use a full steering-and-suspension refresh, as those...