Event date: 18 September 2022

Well, the day didn’t get off to a good start with the Donnybrook service station suffering a power failure and as such no fuel pumps were working.  Then there were late arrivals due to Donnybrook Road being closed and let’s not even mention the overcast weather.  Due to all the issues Lawrence had to do some quick recalculations and decided that we would go to the Wallan Road Stop for fuel. 

After a pep talk from Jo, the 20 attending vehicles started towards our destination and only a few kms down the road, someone asked if we should take the Northern HWY. After hearing a yes, half of us went off track.  Once some of these stragglers got fuel, we set off again determined to get back with the main group.

I took the lead and promptly took the group down the wrong road and was immediately relinquished of the lead duties.  The stragglers eventually joined the main group at the Wallan Truck Stop and after another pep talk from Jo we headed off on the Hume Fwy to get back on our scheduled drive. 

Along the Hume Jo pointed out the rooster tree (that you can see past the second Clonbinane exit sign) and it sure does look like a rooster up on the hill, so look out for it next time you’re on the Hume. 

We got off the Hume Hwy at Broadford, many of us wanted to turn right to have a few laps of the track, but left we went to continue to drive to Shepparton.  The roads were wet and it rained occasionally but the back roads were an absolute delight to drive on.  The scenery and the sea of green was breathtaking, well for any passengers, as the drivers were concentrating on the curves and avoiding the fallen trees and debris.  Whilst driving we learnt what a caveat was with another dictionary lesson from Jo.  When we reached the Caveat sign it delighted Jo immensely but by this stage we were all in driving mode and we continued on our journey. 

We had a short stop at Seymour for a toilet break and stretch of the legs.  Then off again towards Shepparton.  After a wonderful two hours of driving we arrived at the most magnificent Shepparton BWM dealership.  Awaiting us was a wonderful paella lunch and complimentary coffee.  The renovations and new look of the dealership are the first of its kind in Australia and third in the world, in line with BMWs goal of being carbon neutral by 2050. 

The dealer principal Aaron Brain advised us they are going all in on sustainability and this dealership proved that that as they have 100kw of solar power on the roof and 45,000l water tank.  We got to look around the dealership and the magnificently clean workshop which has taken the capability of the Shepparton BWM dealership from being able to service 10 cars a day to 35 a day!  Several of us sat in the new iX M60 and M40 and we marvelled at the build quality and beautiful seats.

After an hour of so of enjoying Shepparton BMW's hospitality we moved on to the MOVE museum.  MOVE museum has an amazing array of vehicles, including motor-cycles, trucks and cycles.  My favourite was the 2007 Aston Martin Vantage such a classic Bond vehicle.  If you’re ever in Shepparton, MOVE museum is a great place to stop.  After we walked around and took it all in we made our separate ways back home, with some of us adjourning to local accommodation to make a night of it.  Thanks again to Jo, Lawrence and the club for a great drive.  

Luke Devlin | Member #738
BMW Drivers Club Melbourne

Car-boy. That's what my girlfriend, Sarah, calls me. I hate it, but thing is, she's correct. I love cars, and all sorts of them. German cars, American muscle cars, pompous British cars, Japanese cars, and of course, BMWs. I have a number of old BMWs and over the past couple of years I’ve added a 1964 Mercedes-Benz 230SL, a 1994 Dodge Viper, a 2010 Jaguar XKR and a 1990 Honda Prelude 4ws to the garage. 

In the 5 years I’ve been a BMWDCM member, I’ve met lots of fellow club members who like me, have a diverse car collection. The sad thing is that we rarely get to see them. It made me think: how can I gather all my Club friends in one place with their "other" lovely machines? The answer was obvious: Cars & Coffee. I've always wanted to host an event for the club, and I figured why not do something a little different and break the mould, why not host a BMW Drivers Club Melbourne event and ask members to bring a non-BMW car or bike.  

I asked our members, what else is in your garage? Come bring something different and join me for a coffee and a chat. And the BMWDCM "What else is in your garage cars, bikes & coffee" was born. 

This was my first official club hosting event and I wanted to make sure it worked for members. I needed to find somewhere with plenty of parking, preferably undercover, easily accessible with lots of foot traffic and most importantly, close to a caffeine source. I searched far and wide for venues, but the ideal spot was just around the corner from my house (shamefully convenient). 

I was walking my girlfriend’s dog, Raffy, one evening and still racking my brain about where to host the Cars & Coffee event. As I was walking towards Murrumbeena train station, I suddenly found it. This is the spot! It ticked all the boxes: it was easy to access (many of our club members live within 10kms), there was plenty of parking and undercover area, a busy thoroughfare nearby with people jogging, walking, biking and scooting, and most crucially, multiple amazing cafes within 50m of the spot. 

So, I had my event and location decided. Now I thought, ‘how am I going to attract members to this event?’ This is the hardest part. Social media is such a strong advertising tool, and I figured if I continuously promote the event (without being annoying) on our Facebook page then I have a strong chance of a great turn out.

My plan was simple: a single weekly post in the month prior and then in the week of the event, I upped the promoting. I received an email from Vice-President Jo Mawson advising me that 50 people had registered to attend, so I was confident that we would have a good showing. 

Then it was showtime. It’s not often that I can bring more than one car to a BMWDCM event without the help of a friend or family member to drive the second car, but in this instance, I didn't need one. The venue was so close to my house that I could literally walk home and drive over another car.

Just as I was walking back to collect my second car, my phone began to ring - "Where are you? We're here". It was only 8:45am and there was still 45 minutes to go until the scheduled start time.

I knew then that it was going to be a great event for club members.

9:30am came around very quickly, and by then we had 20-or so cars in the car park. And for the first time, BMWs were outnumbered by 5-to-1. I was completely gobsmacked at the variety of cars and bikes our members own. From a F100 Pickup with 500Hp, to a stunningly maintained Datsun Bluebird station wagon to exotic McLaren and Aston Martins. In total, we had 54 cars turn up - from marques including Honda, Dodge, Jaguar, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Alfa Romeo, Ford, Subaru, VW, Peugeot, MINI, Holden, Audi, and bikes from Vepsa, KTM. and Yamaha. 

Who knew our members would have such a vast array of cars tucked away? When I sat back and reflected on it, we all love cars in different marques, in different shapes, sizes and cylinders. We just happen to be a member of a BMW affiliated Club. We're car-people.

This is what I love about our club: it doesn't matter what you drive, be it BMW or otherwise, we all love and respect all cars. 

People are already asking me when the next one will be happening. This has been so encouraging to hear. I must admit I was quite nervous about throwing myself into hosting duties, but it has been so worth it. I encourage anyone who wants to host an event, to just go for it. 

Thank you to all the Members who turned out for our first ever "What else is in your garage" cars, bikes & coffee event. Stay tuned for the next one!

Mark McDermott | Member #50
BMW Drivers Club Melbourne

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As always - thanks for reading, we look forward to seeing you at an event soon!

President | Graeme Bell 0407 186 296
Vice President | Jo Mawson 0412 661 900
Secretary | Lawrence Glynn 0414 563 290 
Treasurer | Shaaron Glynn

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Dear members, 

August was a slower month but still lots of great events happening along the way.

9 August we started with our members meeting track Information night at Shannons Insurance.  It was great to be back in the club rooms and equally nice to have such a huge attendance from club members.   Jo put on a great powerpoint presentation and each member went home with an information booklet which I am sure will be very helpful for future track events.   Lots of questions were asked on the night and this will definitely be a bi-yearly event for new and existing members to learn more about driving and officiating.

12-14 August quite a few of our club members competed in the VSCRC E30 Racing Round 4 at Sandown and it was great to see so many E30s out there.  We had a field of 17, two members out on flags on Saturday, several members joining the Bell Motorsport camp to help prepare the cars ready for the races.   Thank you to all who came along, having so many helpers enabled me to get out and race after one of our members woke up sick on Sunday and offered his car to me, to join in the fun.  Going from 17^th to 3^rd in the first race on Sunday and then 3^rd to 1^st for a few laps to finally concede the lead to the current champion and also one of my customers Alex Jory.  Great racing by all who attended a massive thank you to everyone who came along and supported this event.  Great to see I can still do it.

18-21 August was the Penrite Oil Sandown Supercars Super Sprints, which had quite a few of our club members attending as officials.  Jo and I were there as well, and we had a few newbies in pit lane loving getting up close and personal to the cars and the drivers.  Another great event and this is why Jo pushes so hard about becoming an official, you get to do cool stuff like this and attend for free and get lots of special goodies given to you as a thank you.  We picked up a few new members at this event, welcome Emma and Brock who were part of Jo’s team and just loved the whole experience. Great to see these two have already registered for the Bathurst 1000 as officials too.   We look forward to seeing you both track side at more events.  With each official who attends these events you get a guest pass, which enabled at least 10 of our members free entry over the weekend which is also brilliant.

23 August was our drop in donuts night, this is always a great relaxed night with members dropping in and out to enjoy each other’s cars, chat about life and just catch up.  Thank you to Lawrence who runs these nights and always enjoys a chat, coffee and a donut or two.  

Sunday, 28 August saw over 50 cars and bikes turn up at our “what else is in our garage coffee and cars” event.  While Jo, Jess and I headed up to Armidale for Jess’s graduation ceremony, I’d like to thank Mark McDermott for organising and supervising this event.  Great to have new blood helping out our very busy event organising team. The photos looked amazing and great having so many cars come out of the shed for everyone to see. Of course, we are very passionate BMW lovers, but we are also car lovers, and it is great to see there are lots of members with the same passion for other cars as well.

Mark did a fantastic job co-ordinating all the cars and what a great turn out of exotic and rare vehicles.  We even had bikes along which was terrific, thank you again Mark for volunteering to run this event, it allowed us time to get away but still offer the members something great to attend.

September will hopefully bring us some warmer weather, as Spring arrives and we have some great events lined up for you to enjoy.

3 September is round 6 of our Traction Tyres/Yokohama Drivers Championship at Sandown.  If you have entered, Jo has reserved 10 garages under BMWDCM so we can all be parked together, so if you are booking a garage, ask Brendan to use one of those reserved, if there are any left.  These days are not racing, it is sprints which is a timed event which you need to just try to better your own time each session.   If you have done the come and try days, these are very similar, but with a timing device in your car. It is the next step up for those that want a little friendly competition mixed with their track days. Talk to Jo or I if you want to know more or aren’t sure what to do. Spectators are welcome to join us and watch from pit lane and have a chat with all those driving.

6 September is our club’s AGM. We encourage as many members to attend on this night please, as we will need a quorum for any new items to be voted on and passed.   It will be held at the German Tivoli Club again this year and if you want to join in the fun, come dressed in your Dirndl or Lederhosen and have some fun on the night with a German theme.   Your committee will be dressed up, so why not come and join us.  Come early and enjoy the great food and drinks (at members own cost).  After the formalities we will be going through a few positions which we are wanting help with.  These are not full-time roles and not roles which need to be voted on, just roles which we need a hand with to make our lives easier moving forward.  If you are interested in helping our club grow and become even better than it already is, then please come along and enjoy the evening.

17 September is the next event, we are touring up to Shepparton to our new sponsors Shepparton BMW for a private tour and lunch at their new dealership, which is the first in the country to be built to the new BMW Corporate model and only the third in the world.  It's a fantastic dealership and we look forward to holding more events with them in 2023.   After lunch we all head off to MOVE (Museum of Vehicle Evolution) which I have been told is just amazing. There will be a couple of special surprises there too, so you’ll have to come along and see what they are.

23-25 September has a large group of us again racing down at Phillip Island for round 5 of the E30 Racing Championship.  Come down and help out the crew or just join in the fun on the day. This is a State Championship race meeting, so always lots of different categories to see, as well as the E30s. Jo will be Assistant Secretary at this event, so will be at the base of the tower if you need any help with anything or just want to pop in and say hi.

Events to put in your diaries are:

• 25 October - 2 November // Tasmania trip
• 11 December // Christmas Picnic and Show & Shine at Cruden Farm

• 26 January // Australia Day Drive
• 17 - 20 March // BMW Clubs Australia Nationals, Gold Coast
• 29 March - 2 April // Australian F1 Grand Prix
• 22-25 April // Anzac Long weekend Away (TBC)

Our new merchandise is flying off the shelves, so put in your orders now, so as to not miss out on your sizing.   We now have editions 1, 2 and 3 of idrive for sale if you are wanting to collect them and have every edition in your collection. There is limited stock of these so order now to not miss out.

For all those attending Challenge Bathurst, we have a team shirt which does need to be pre ordered.  Orders need to be in and fully paid before the end of September.

Membership is still growing strong, and we are very proud of how many new members that join up each month. Welcome to all those new members, I look forward to meeting you at an event somewhere, if we haven’t already met.

As a reward for existing members, we are starting a new initiative.  All renewals and new memberships for each quarter will go into the draw for a prize.  This will be done each quarter and drawn at the end.  We are also encouraging all our members to refer a friend family member or work colleague to join, just remember when your friend sings up, ask them to put your name down as a referral and your name will also go in the draw for the quarterly draw.  Your name can go in multiple times, if you refer 10 friends in a quarter you get 10 entries.  This will start at the first of October.

I am very proud of how our little club has grown into one of the best clubs in the world, put mainly I am proud of our members who make this club as good as it is.  When we attend events as see families with little ones joining in on the fun and parents bringing their learner drivers out on our drive days, this shows me that we are doing it right.  

Please remember without you, we are only four people and we need your help, so join us at events, put your hand up to help, even if it is just taking photos or helping pack up at the end of the day.  Every little bit makes it easter for us all.

Take care out there and I look forward to seeing you at an event soon.

Graeme Bell | President
BMW Drivers Club Melbourne Inc.

PO Box 81, Tyabb VIC 3913
Incorporated in Victoria #A0102695G
BMW Drivers Club Melbourne Inc is a member of: BMW Clubs Australia and the BMW Clubs International Council
Motorsport Australia Affiliated Motorsport Club

Event date: 28 August 2022

The “cars and coffee” meet that Mark McDermott organised at Murrumbeena Station could have been called “What haven’t you got in your garage”!

The array of different vehicles – not all were cars – was fantastic and made for a very interesting morning.

The turn out was larger than expected (which is good) and the adjoining parking area was also utilised.

With some foot traffic or just curious passers-by pulling in for a look the event proved very popular.

Being a casual event everyone just walked around and looked and chatted, learning about vehicles we have not really seem before. There was a lot of laughter and some downright amazement – you get 20 hp from that 190cc scooter engine?

Altogether a brilliant day – more than a morning as plenty were still there well past the 11:30 end time.

Big thank you to Mark for having the idea, finding a location and organising a discount on coffee from Daniel Son and setting up in the morning.

Lawrence Glynn | Member #3
BMW Drivers Club Melbourne

As a part of my journey into motorsport with my E30 over the last 18 months, I have enjoyed racing at all sorts of tracks, in all sorts of conditions.  Blisteringly hot and windy days at Sandown, through to blizzard like conditions at Phillip Island.

And whilst the conditions at each track often vary, one thing is of course constant- the volunteers that make the day happen.  These people get out there in all kinds of conditions to allow people like me (and maybe you) to enjoy my day out on the track safely.

Sure, I showed my appreciation to these people wherever I could- a wave to the flaggies at the end of the day, shaking hands with the pit officials, and expressing my thanks to people in admin.  But the reality was that until a few weeks ago, I didn’t realise the amazing joy that volunteering at a motorsport event actually brings.

Like just about everyone in BMWDCM, my passion is cars. If you give me anything to do with cars or racing, be it a magazine, a television show, televised races, or anything in the driver’s seat or passenger’s seat, I’ll be happier than a pig in… well you know what…

Jo and Graeme had been suggesting for a while that I should consider doing some event officiating as a part of my development as a competitor.  So when the opportunity came to learn the art of Flag Marshalling at Sandown for Round 4 of the Victorian State Racing Series (along with fellow BMWDCM member Jessie Keogh) and as a Pit and Grid Official for the Penrite Supersprint V8 event - I jumped at both of them.

And now that both events are finished- I can tell you something you all should know- it’s the big secret truth about volunteering that you won’t know unless you have done it.

Are you ready for it?

OK…

So the one, big, secret truth about volunteering at motorsports events is this: it gets you closer.

It gets you closer to the action.

It gets you closer to the drivers and teams.

It gets you closer to the cars.

It gets you special access and special permissions. You’re an official. You’re there to do a job, so you do it. If that job happens to be marshalling cars in pitlane - as mine was for Supercars- you can get closer the frenetic pit action. If your job is flag marshalling at Turn 6 (like Jessie and I did for the VSRC), the only people closer to the track than you are the drivers.  If you are a grid marshal- something else I did for the supercars, it’s only you and the drivers on the starting grid with two minutes to green.  You are so close that the V8 rumble vibrates through you like some sort of six-pointer on the Richter scale.  Or, maybe you can get the opportunity to chat with your favourite driver or TV personality- cause you are close to them too.

It get’s you closer.  That’s the thing about being a volunteer official.

And standing at Turn 6 at Sandown as a Flag Marshals, Jessie and I were close enough to the cars as the passed the fastest point on that track that we could see the whites of the drivers eyes as they tried to sum up the tricky conditions down into Dandenong Rd.

Jessie and I were schooled in all things Flag Marshalling by Vic Flags Senior Official Simon and Sector Marshall Graeme Darcy.   Although, Simon first instruction to us was  that if he pull’s us towards him and away from the wall, we need to go with him cause it probably means a car is heading straight for us, was probably not as reassuring as he had hoped.  Nor was his “If I yell “get down”, please dot straight away” instruction.  Of course, it’s all in the name of safety- but geez, Simon, you need to find a better way to welcome people!

Standing at the peak of Turn 6 at Sandown, really made me appreciate the work that a Flag Marshall does.  It requires lots of focussed concentration and decisiveness.  And some of those decisions are split second- especially in high-speed sections. 

Being privy to all the track communication throughout the day was fascinating too.  There are lots of moving parts to an event, and the work done by all involved to make sure that the day runs smoothly, safely and on-time is as challenging as predicting Melbourne’s weather.  Especially with the number of accidents and incidents that occurred.  I have even more respect for those making decisions about how to best keep the day moving forward and allowing the competition to be run fairly and safely.

Being as close to the action as we were, it was also great to watch how other drivers and cars approach the track with lines and braking points.  So it will help my driving too (I hope!).

A week later, I rose early again to head back to Sandown for the Penrite Supersprint Supercars event.  Here I was a Pit and Grid Marshal.  My Chief Official for the day was Rhys, and the generosity he showed me was second to none.  He made sure I got to do everything possible throughout the day- or maybe it was less about generosity and just a ploy to get me back!  Either way, Rhys let me roam around the pits ensuring safe and fair competition, marshal the grid into place for the Supercars- where I was able to have a chat with Chaz Mostert and his engineer Adrian deBorre (it was just the three of us in his starting box), and wave the starting grid flags for each competing class.  My feet were damn sore after all the walking.  Worth it though.

Everywhere I went across both days at each event, I met more and more amazing petrol heads, all because I took this leap of faith in deciding to be a volunteer.  I was given lunch, provided with snacks throughout the day, plenty of water, and given a full uniform to keep for the Supercars event.   

It was also a great social activity: I felt welcomed into the volunteering family- and also part of something bigger.

Everyone also really appreciated that a competitor was volunteering- it seemed like a really big deal.  Of course, for me it wasn’t- but it showed that as competitors we value what they do as officials, and want to learn from them. 

So, I am looking forward to my next event, and my next opportunity to learn and grow as a competitor and official within motorsport with the possibility of going interstate or even overseas to participate in other exciting events as an official.

Seriously, volunteering is awesome. So if you haven’t yet done so- hit Meg, GB, Jo (or even me) up and get out there!  It will get you closer to motorsport than you can possibly imagine.

Shannon Cooper | Member #599
BMW Drivers Club Melbourne

Event date: 21 August 2022

What a great day with Jo, Graeme, Tim O & John S. I started out pretty chilly, then sun baked us for a few hours, then it was jackets on to beat the cool breeze.

We got General Admission tickets with paddock passes (I was just there for the Sunday). I didn’t stray from the grandstand/western areas. Mixing it up between watching some great on-track action, checking out the show n shine display (by the Cruiser group), perusing the merch (how well would a BMWDCM stall go? Amongst all that GM & blue oval gear? [Tim’s idea!]), feeding my face. Getting access to the car prep areas was really interesting (Paddock pass), I’ll opt for that again. 

Graeme was madly rushing around on scrutineering duties and Jo was keeping us safe from race cars as they returned to the paddock (lots of whistle blowing).

Lots of great conversations, sharing stories, meeting new members and enjoying our club-stuff.

Martin Taylor | Member #598
BMW Drivers Club Melbourne

When my husband said we were offered tickets to the supercar event at Sandown my first thought was…. Oh how boring! But I went along and wow what a great day we had. 

I was blown away by the production of it all. The set up of each different race category was huge and the technology and equipment to support each car was unbelievable. I even asked questions!

60 cars in one group and they had 14 sets of tyres for each car!!!

They also mentioned they had changed 1160 tires on Friday WOW 

The crowd was buzzing which created an awesome atmosphere.

I couldn’t get close enough to watch the start of the supercars. The sound was deafening but exhilarating. 

Slightly different to our club track days but an event I’d be more than happy to attend again.

Lucy Walsh | Member #834
BMW Drivers Club Melbourne

I recently had the opportunity of a couple of hours with a G42 220i loan car.  Of course, I tried it out on some favourite rural roads as well as around town.

For those unfamiliar, the G42 is based on BMW’s CLAR platform shared by the 3er to 7er cars.  It is unrelated to the 2er Gran Coupe which shares the front drive/AWD FAAR platform with the 1er, MINIs, X1 and X2.  The G42 is offered here in 220i, 230i and M240i versions.  The 220i and 230i use the B48 4-cylinder in 135KW and 190KW versions respectively – basically the same as in the 3er – and are rear-drive only with Msport passive suspension as standard.  The M240i uses the B58 6-cylinder (285KW) and has rear-biased AWD, with adaptive suspension.  Overseas, a rear-drive M240i is available and may come to Australia.

The G42’s dimensions are surprising.  Its overall dimensions match the E90 3er.  It’s actually wider than a current G20 3er – because of the bulged wheel arches, I suspect.  It’s shorter than the G20 by only 17cm with a wheelbase just 11cm shorter.  The difference comes not so much in size, but in being set up more for the enthusiast.

BMW has got the passive Msport suspension right with the G42.  It’s firm but not harsh, as was reportedly the case with previous models.  It’s adequately comfortable around the suburbs, but stays controlled and composed even on lumpy, winding rural roads.  It’s a big step forward from the F22 2er – my former 220i was floaty on lumpy roads even with its adaptive suspension in sports mode.

Handling of the G42 is wonderful.  The car is agile, adjustable and playful.  Weight distribution is 51/49 on the 4-cylinder models, and cornering is generally neutral, with mild understeer exiting some corners.  It’s a car you can balance on the throttle quite delightfully, and trail braking works a treat.  It’s much more enthusiast-oriented than the G20 3ers I’ve had as loan cars recently, good though they were.  And all this with the 220i having tyres that were good but definitely not performance tyres.

Brakes were fine even on the 220i.  The 230i and 240i get Msport Brembo 4-pot brakes as standard, which should be excellent.  (I think those are the Brembos on my Clubman JCW, which is heavier than the 230i, and they work very well on that).

Performance was surprisingly good from 135KW, thanks I guess to its broad, flat torque curve.  The 230i should be properly fast and I continue to think it’s the sweet-spot of the range, as it was for the F22.

The ZF 8-speed gearbox is magnificent, as always.  No manual is available on the G42 (the new M2 will offer a manual) but the ZF is super-fast and smooth when driven as a paddle-shift manual.

On the debit side, the steering is almost completely devoid of feel.  Sports mode adds just a little weight but no extra communication.  Nevertheless, steering is precise and doesn’t interfere with enthusiastic driving.  The light weight does make the car very easy to handle around town.  BMW knows how to make feelsome steering (eg my Clubman, M cars) so the lack of feel must be a conscious decision, unfortunately.

Inside, the car is strictly a 2+2, despite its exterior size.  The bonnet is unnecessarily and almost comically long, and the space is removed from the back seat.  I could sit behind my seating position, but it was very snug – really only useful for older children, young teens or short trips for adults.  Up front, though, the car is spacious and it appears identical in every way to a G20 3er.  Very good sports seats are standard and, thankfully, are in Alcantara rather than leather as standard (much better suited to Australia in my opinion) but with leather options of course.  As in the 3er, a few touch points feel a bit cheap, but mostly the interior is up to BMW’s high standards of quality.  Incidentally, the 2er is built in Mexico, doubtless to help a niche model be profitable, but BMW has proven it maintains its standards wherever its cars are built.  The G42 boot is large, but sadly any type of spare wheel is notable by its absence.

I should note that the optional sunroof is remarkably quiet even when open at 100km/h.  It does impinge on headroom of course, although there is a short raised area behind it over the rear seats.

The G42 has a full suite of up-to-date safety features, although it still only manages 4 stars on the increasingly stringent Euro NCAP ratings, mainly due to a low score in cyclist detection (pedestrians are detected OK) and lack of a central airbag between occupants.

In summary, the G42 seems to be an excellent enthusiast’s 2+2 if you don’t want to (or can’t afford to) step up to an M car.  As noted above, I think the 230i is the range’s sweet spot – rear drive, quick and reasonably priced by today’s expensive standards.  The 240i would be faster and more capable, but its high price puts it in reach of some stiff competition.

Many thanks to Andrew Niemann at Waverley BMW for arranging the loan car.

Peter Williams | Member #36
BMW Drivers Club Melbourne

Since 2003, the BMW M Award has been an integral component of the close partnership between BMW M GmbH and MotoGP™ rights owner Dorna Sports. There is a double anniversary to celebrate this year: BMW M GmbH is celebrating its 50th birthday and the prize for the fastest MotoGP™ qualifier is being awarded for the 20th time. To mark the occasion, BMW M is providing an exclusive highlight as the Winner’s Car: the first BMW M3 Competition Touring with xDrive.

Since 2003, the BMW M Award has been an integral component of the close partnership between BMW M GmbH and MotoGP™ rights owner Dorna Sports. There is a double anniversary to celebrate this year: BMW M GmbH is celebrating its 50th birthday and the coveted prize for the fastest MotoGP™ qualifier is being awarded for the 20th time. To mark the occasion, BMW M is providing an exclusive highlight as the Winner’s Car: the first BMW M3 Competition Touring with xDrive (fuel consumption, combined: 10.4 – 10.1 l/100km correspond to WLTP, CO₂ emissions, combined: 235 – 229 g/km correspond to WLTP, NEDC figures: –)*, which celebrated its world premiere just a few weeks ago. The market launch is scheduled for November. The Winner’s Car for the BMW M Awards 2022 will be officially introduced this weekend at the British Grand Prix in Silverstone. The first BMW M3 Touring MotoGP™ Safety Car will also make its race debut there.

“2022 is a very special year for us at BMW M, with a host of highlights related to our 50th birthday,” says Franciscus van Meel, CEO of BMW M GmbH. “One of these is the first BMW M3 as Touring model, which generated quite a buzz at its world premiere at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in late June. It is the flagship of our BMW M model range this year, which is why it makes sense to offer the BMW M3 Competition Touring as the prize for the winner of the 20th BMW M Award. We are delighted to be able to mark this year’s special anniversary with our prize for the fastest qualifier in MotoGP this season. This shows the high esteem in which this competition is held in the paddock. We wish the riders all the best and are excited to see who will prevail in the thrilling races to claim the BMW M3 Competition Touring at the end of the season.”

“The 20th BMW M Award in the MotoGP – this sees us reach another milestone in our partnership with BMW M this season,” explains Marc Saurina, Senior Director Global Commercial Partnerships for MotoGP™ rights owner Dorna Sports. “It is brilliant that BMW M GmbH is celebrating its 50th birthday with a range of highlights in the MotoGP. That underlines how important this partnership is. These highlights include the new BMW M3 Touring MotoGP Safety Car, which will appear for the first time in Silverstone, and the BMW M3 Competition Touring as Winner's Car for the BMW M Award. This sees BWM M continue the annual tradition of handing over the newest and most exclusive BMW M automobile to the fastest qualifier. The standings for this year’s BMW M Award are hotly contested and we are looking forward to plenty more exciting qualifying sessions.”

The first-ever BMW M3 Touring combines authentic motorsport feeling with a very distinct character and a broader spread of practical qualities. Its powertrain technology is focused wholly on delivering beguiling performance and brings together the 375 kW/510 hp version of the six-cylinder in-line engine with M TwinPower Turbo technology, the eight-speed M Steptronic transmission with Drivelogic and the M xDrive all-wheel-drive system. The latest addition to the range is therefore available exclusively in BMW M3 Competition Touring with M xDrive form. The variable-use interior of the first BMW M3 Touring provides fresh scope for experiencing M-typical performance in everyday use. In a unique manner, the BMW M3 Touring links the characteristic M combination of dynamism, agility and precision with unrestricted suitability for everyday driving and long-distance capability.

The Frozen Black paint scheme provides the BMW M3 Competition Touring for the winner of the BMW M Award 2022 with a more than impressive appearance. In the interior, the electrically adjustable M sports seats with Merino/Black leather upholstery generate true racing feeling without sacrificing comfort. The M Competition brake system guarantees superior handling on the limit.

The BMW M3 Competition Touring with xDrive also provided the foundation for the first BMW M3 Touring MotoGP™ Safety Car, which was also presented to the public at the Goodwood Festival of Speed and will now be appearing on track in Silverstone as the lead car for the first time. It sports a special 50 Years of BMW M livery and all MotoGP™ Safety Cars from 1999 to the present day will be featured on the car, paying tribute to the long partnership with Dorna Sports.

Since 2003, the BMW M Award has been presented to the MotoGP™ rider with the best qualifying results. At each Grand Prix weekend, riders receive points for their qualifying positions, in the same way as points are awarded in the races. The rider who scores the most points by the end of the season will win the coveted BMW M Award.  The record winner in the BMW M Award is Marc Márquez, who claimed the prize on seven consecutive occasions between 2013 and 2019. Valentino Rossi and Casey Stoner have each won three times. Fabio Quartararo has won the BMW M Award twice, in 2020 and 2021. Jorge Lorenzo also recorded two wins during his career. Sete Gibernau and Nicky Hayden have each been best qualifier once.

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