Schnitzer is a name very closely linked with the history of the BMW brand in international motorsport. For more than half a century Schnitzer Motorsport and BMW were in action on racetracks of the world together and celebrated superb successes in a variety of categories. This collaboration also played a significant role in shaping the sports performance and momentum of the BMW brand. Now this long, successful shared journey is coming to an end. A review of victories, titles and triumphs from the 1960s to today.
The success story of the original racing team founded by Josef and Herbert Schnitzer Senior and managed by his half-brother Karl ‘Charly’ Lamm started in the mid 1960s. Lamm’s twin brother Dieter Lamm was also given an important role; he was responsible for the team’s technical processes and logistics until his death in 2014. In the beginning, Schnitzer Motorsport celebrated titles in the German Circuit Championship and the European Hill Climb Championship with BMW racing cars. In 1975, Jacques Laffite won the Formula 2 European Championship in a formula racing car with a BMW engine.
And so it went on: sports cars, touring cars, prototypes, GT racing – the list of triumphs that Schnitzer Motorsport and BMW have celebrated together in international racing is long and impressive. Schnitzer was European touring car champion three times in the 1980s. That was also when the streak of nine wins in the touring car races at the ‘Guia Circuit’ in Macau (MAC) started. Between 1989 and 2010, Schnitzer enjoyed victory at the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring five times and made a significant contribution to BMW being the record winner to date in this endurance classic. The same is true of the 24-hour race at Spa-Francorchamps (BEL), which Schnitzer also won five times starting in 1985. On top of that were the titles with Roberto Ravaglia (ITA) in the World Touring Car Championship in 1987 and in the DTM in 1989, as well as with Joachim Winkelhock (GER / 1995) and Johnny Cecotto (ITA / 1998) in the German Super Touring Car Championship.
Hands down, the major highlights of the partnership also include the overall win at the 24 Hours of Le Mans (FRA) in 1999 with the legendary BMW V12 LMR. It was with that prototype that Schnitzer also won the 12-hour race at Sebring (USA) in the same year. The team claimed the title in the GT standings of the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) in 2001. Between 2005 and 2009, Schnitzer competed as a BMW works team in the FIA World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) and celebrated a sensational 25 wins as well as a total of 57 podiums.
2012 saw Schnitzer return to the DTM as a works team with BMW – and together they celebrated a triumphant comeback year, with the driver’s title for Bruno Spengler (CAN), the team title for BMW Team Schnitzer and the manufacturer’s title for BMW. BMW Team Schnitzer was active in the DTM until 2016, with a successful record of 25 wins and 88 podiums.
In recent years, Schnitzer continued their activities in GT racing, contesting the International GT Challenge (IGTC) among other series. The win with Augusto Farfus (BRA) at the GT World Cup in Macau is unforgettable. It was Charly Lamm’s final race as team principal before he handed over management of the team to Herbert Schnitzer junior. Lamm passed away unexpectedly just a few weeks later.
In the 2020 season just finished, BMW Team Schnitzer returned to the podium of the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring under new management, finishing in third place with the BMW M6 GT3. As a result of the required realignment of the works-based team structure, the partnership with BMW Team Schnitzer will not continue.
“We are very proud of having played a significant role in shaping international motorsport with BMW for more than half a century and of the respect given to Schnitzer Motorsport throughout the world,” said Herbert Schnitzer junior. “We are also very proud of the successes and titles that we celebrated together over the decades, in touring car racing, in GT racing, at Le Mans, in Macau and at the Nürburgring-Nordschleife. We would like to thank BMW for the partnership spanning decades, and for the trust that was always placed in us. We really enjoy looking back on everything we have achieved with BMW. I think that collaboration as long-lasting and as successful as ours was with BMW is unique in motorsport. BMW was our life and our passion.”
BMW Motorsport extends heartfelt gratitude to the Schnitzer family and the whole team for all the decades of successful collaboration.
BMW PRESS
Event date: 6 December 2020
The launch of the new M3 and M4 at Mornington BMW was a wonderful day out and a pleasure to attend for any BMW enthusiast.
Both Mornington BMW and BMW Drivers Club Melbourne put on a spectacular event and display of M cars. Of course the G80 series M3/M4 were the stars of the show and it was a real treat especially as an M3 owner myself to see up close where the new generation of cars is headed.
Thanks again to the club who as usual make every event fun and make it a joy to be considered a member.
Andrew Bonaddio | Member #565 BMW Drivers Club Melbourne
We had a great day at Phillip Island on Sunday for our last club track day for the year. It was supposed to be Round 10 of our Traction Tyres/Yokohama Drivers Championship but thanks to COVID we cancelled the championship this year and just had some fun.
The weather was thank typical of Melbourne, beautiful sunshine one minute then rain coming in sideways on the wind the next.
It doesn't matter, any time at Phillip Island is a good time! We can't wait to share with you our 2021 motorsport calendar!
Graeme Bell | Member #1 BMW Drivers Club Melbourne
Association Of Motoring Clubs Inc. Minutes of the 2020 Association Annual General meeting Held on Monday November 23rd via zoom There were 75 participants representing 67 clubs
The meeting was chaired by President Iain Ross. Iain welcomed all delegates who have signed into the meeting. Apologies: Administrative Officer Howard Billing reported the following apologies have been received:- Bill Allen Rover Car Club of Aust & Rover P4 Guild of Aust Geoff Meehan Morris Car Club (Vic) Bill Ballard Ford Owners, Restorers & Drivers Club Arthur Byron Grampians Vintage Vehicle Club Peter Welten Triumph Car Club Guests / Visitors: Harry Duynhoven (NZ Federation of Motoring Clubs) The minutes of the 2019 Annual general Meeting (as circulated via email and published in the February 2020 AOMC Newsletter) were accepted as a true and accurate record on a motion moved Colin Jenkins (Triumph CC), seconded Rick Cove (EGHVC) and carried. Presidents Report: Iain Ross noted that this has been a very different and difficult year for all. AOMC and club activities have been severely curtailed. We were lucky to be able to run the British and European Show in February before restrictions came into force, and the only face to face delegates meeting able to be held was way back in February. The AOMC have been unable to hold the usual seminars, National Motoring Heritage Day event or face to face delegates or committee meetings since. The Engine Number Records service has been curtailed and Howard Billing (AOMC Office Administrator) is currently working from home. We are looking forward to being able to hold meetings and run our shows and seminars again when the situation allows. Covid has bought some interesting things to the movement, and clubs have responded well, holding virtual meetings and garage sessions. The worldwide environmental movement, which is seeing countries introduce bans on the sale of new fossil fuelled vehicles from as early as 2030, may mean our vehicles and our use of them may be in danger. Five of our current committee members are retiring from their roles tonight, Martyn Bishop, Colin Jenkins, Bryan Langton, David Andreassen and Steve Young. Iain thanked them for the work they have put into the Association over the years they have been involved. Treasurers Report: Angelo D’Ambrosio noted that this has been a challenging year for the AOMC and clubs. AOMC has returned a small surplus of $20,000 for the financial year ending June 30, 2020. The AOMC cash balance as at 30.6.20 was $190,000. The balance sheet has looked OK due to cost cutting measures. The accounts have been fully audited and a copy of the full final accounts are available for viewing if requested. The treasurer’s report was accepted on a motion moved by Angelo D’Ambrosio (Torana CC), seconded Colin Jenkins (Triumph CC) and carried. Subscription Fees for 2021/22. Angelo reported that invoices for the 2020/21 year were held back and have only recently been sent out with a discount. He proposed that the fees for 2021/22 remain the same as the pre discounted 2020/21 fees.
It was moved Iain Ross (VDC), seconded Andrew McDougall (Alvis CC) that the membership subscription fees be maintained at the pre discount amounts for 2020/21. Motion was carried. Auditor: It was moved Angelo D’Ambrosio (Torana CC), seconded David Smallcombe (Morris Register) that the current auditor, Stephen Barker be reappointed for 2020/21. Motion was carried. Election of Office Bearers for 2020/21. Daryl Meek (Veteran CC) took the chair to conduct the elections.
On behalf of the clubs and the movement in general, Daryl thanked Iain and his team for all of their work during the difficult Covid times. Also great thanks to Howard Billing for his work in the AOMC office.
Daryl also noted that he has been surprised to have seen some of the more traditional, older clubs taking to zoom and other electronic formats during the Covid lockdown. Daryl referred to the recent FBHVC survey of the historic movement in the UK. In 2015 the results were an estimated worth to the UK economy of £5.5 billion. Daryl used this data at the time to compare to the Victorian movement and estimated a net worth in Victoria of approximately $860million.
The 2020 FBHVC survey showed an increased value of £7.2 billion to the UK economy, and using the same comparison as 2015, Daryl surmised that the value of the movement to the Victorian economy to be approximately $1.2 billion. This highlights the need for effective peak body representation to reflect the importance of the movement to Victoria.
As per the rules of the Association, all committee positions are declared vacant and nominations were called from the floor. Members can nominate themselves or be nominated by another delegate. The rules allow for 4 executive positions, President, Vice President, Treasurer and Secretary. They also allow for a range of 7 to 9 general committee members in addition to these executive positions to be determined at the Annual General Meeting..
It was moved Keith Mortimer (Jaguar CC) seconded Andrew McDougal (Alvis CC) that the general committee consist of up to 9 members for 2020/21.
Nominations have already been received for the following positions: President Iain Ross (Vintage Drivers Club) Vice President: Keith Mortimer (Jaguar CC) Treasurer: Angelo D’Ambrosio (Torana CC) Secretary: Robbie Mihelcic (Torana CC) General Committee: Philip Johnstone (Triumph Sports Owners) Peter Welten (Triumph CC) Geoff Meehan (Morris CC) John Ferguson (Motto Guzzi Motorcycle Club) Andrew McDougal (Alvis CC & Veteran CC) Allan Fabry (MG CC) Lawrence Glynn (BMW DC)
As well as these 7 nominations for committee, there is another delegate who has agreed to be co-opted for committee roles when required: Daryl Meek (Veteran CC)
As there were no further nominations, Daryl announced that the above be duly elected for the year 2020/21.
Iain Ross resumed the chair and then produced a presentation plaque from the AOMC and Clubs to be presented to Daryl Meek in recognition of his untiring work for the movement when with the RACV as Motoring Interests manager.
Daryl responded that it is a shame that a program that has been 20 years in the making has suddenly come to a halt. RACV have indicated that they will still provide support to the movement.
Iain reported that he has had discussions with the RACV and pointed out to them that the new system of grants will disadvantage clubs.
Iain also noted that AOMC is still looking for representation from the American Vehicle field on the committee.
Iain also reported that he has been approached by the Dept of Transport regarding starting discussions on a revision of the CPS. Conferencing to begin later this week. He also noted that the U.K. government have announced that they are barring the sales of new internal combustion engine vehicles from 2030. Events: Clubs are looking patiently to organising events and meetings in the near future. All reliant on levels of restrictions, but we seem to be heading in the right direction. The AOMC has at present cancelled the British and European Show scheduled for February 2021, but will look at the situation after Christmas and maybe run it late in February. Chairman Iain Ross announced that the AGM for 2020 closed, and that the next AGM of the Association will take place on Monday November 22nd, 2021.
He then asked for Delegates to give any reports or updates. Delegates Reports. Len Kerwood (Austin 7): Len announced a change of date for next year’s Winton event. The V8 supercars have again taken the traditional date that Historic Winton is held, so it has been changed to the weekend of 22 and 23 May 2021.
Len also asked if we had any links with heritage groups or the National Trust so that our vehicles can be properly recognised as historic. Daryl Meek responded that there are currently some semi formal links.
Andrew McDougal (Alvis CC & Veteran CC): FIVA have recently circulated 2 surveys. One is based around individual members and this survey has closed. The second one is based on clubs and is open for responses until December 15th. Andrew stressed that it is extremely important that clubs respond to the survey. All information gathered in Australia will be available for use in Australia, which would be very useful when lobbying government bodies. There will also be a third survey which will be based on money spent on service / parts / rallies / accommodation / etc.
The Alvis National rally has been planned to take place in Victoria in April 2021 and to be based in Hamilton. They are still hoping to be able to run it in April.
Keith Taylor (Chev CC): If the Dept of Transport change the CPS eligibility from 25 years to 30 years, can we push them for a rolling change.
Rick Cove (EGHVC): announced that the Maffra Shed is open again.
Harry Duynhoven (NZ Federation of Motoring Clubs): In New Zealand, allclubs were asked to put on spontaneous events in the weekend after lockdown finished and raised money for charities.
John Johnson (Volvo CC): asked if there is any news on the Berwick Swap, is it going ahead?. There were several conflicting responses, with some delegates having heard it was cancelled and some that it was going ahead. Howard Billing checked the website which states it is still taking place.
Philip Johnstone (Triumph Sports Owners): The Engine Number Records service is almost back to full service. Philip has been busy clearing the backlog of requests received during Covid lockdown, which could not be processed as he could not attend the storage facility as it meant travelling more than the 5km allowed. There have been plenty of searches for Monaro’s, Torana’s, GT Falcons, Honda motorbikes and Land Rovers.
The AOMC has the Springs Specification records now stored with the Engine Number Records. Philip has been sorting through them, and they are now ordered and he is starting to list them. The records run from 1923 to the 1970s and cover all imaginable vehicles.
Iain Ross thanked Philip for all his work on this service.
Tony Hall (Nissan Datsun Sports Owners): Club events did not decrease this year, as they held virtual cars and coffee events with up to 40 attendees. They have been so successful that the club plans to continue with these virtual events post Covid.
Wandy McIntyre-Leak (Sun Country Historical Vehicle and Machinery Club): Club has been holding small events since October based on the numbers allowed. Being regional they had less restrictions than Melbourne based clubs. At present, hospitality venues can host more people than an outdoor event. Need to record attendee’s for any contact tracing that may be required.
Keith Mortimer (Jaguar CC): All clubs should have a Covid safe plan, including recording names for contact tracing.
John Johnson (Volvo CC): No more news on an American car Show? Iain Ross responded that AOMC are still searching for an appropriate venue that Shannon’s the major sponsor are happy with.
Len Kerwood (Austin 7): noted that his club is classed as a sporting club so they need to draft their Covid plan differently. Iain Ross thanked all for taking the effort of attending this evening and declared the meeting closed at 8.40pm.
Website: www.aomc.asn.auEmail: secretary@aomc.asn.auPhone: (03) 9558 4829 Copyright © 2020 AOMC, All rights reserved.You are receiving this email because your Club is a member of the Association of Motoring Clubs and it may be relevant to your members.
Our mailing address is: AOMC 21 Rosalie Street Springvale, Vic 3171 Australia
“Welcome to M Town”: With a new film, the BMW M GmbH is continuing its successful campaign focusing on the global BMW M Community’s virtual Eldorado. The “The Drop” attracts horsepower enthusiasts and petrolheads once again to “M Town”, where, since 2018, everything has revolved around the most powerful letter in the world and the passion for high performance. This time, director Micky Sülzer, who was already responsible for the iconic videos about the special life attitude in “M Town” two years ago, is presenting the broad spectrum of current BMW M models, some of which boast extremely eye-catching body colours, whilst incorporating special vehicles from BMW M’s Heritage fleet, including a red BMW E30 M3.
“M Town is the most successful digital campaign from the BMW M GmbH, particularly as the entire BMW M Community throughout the world actively participates and shapes it. This enthusiasm and this identification create that very special something that makes BMW M so unique. Therefore, we are happy to continue this success story with the next film whilst also giving a small glimpse into the future,” says Lothar Schupet, Director Global Sales and Marketing BMW M.
Since 2018, “M Town” has served as the social and digital communication platform for BMW M fans all over the world. They register with bmw-m.com as citizens of “M Town” and create their own individual digital BMW M pass. “M Town” stands for unique storytelling, original online videos, numerous creative products in the BMW M Town merchandising shop and a large number of events around the globe. Visitors to BMW Welt in Munich gain a very realistic impression of “M Town” on a specially designed 180 square metre exhibition area.
As we are familiar with from the previous online videos, numerous BMW M vehicles also play the leading role in the new film “The Drop”. A total of 18 various models from BMW M’s latest range make shorter or longer appearances in “The Drop”. The spectrum of exceptional high-performance vehicles ranges from the BMW M2 CS (combined fuel consumption: 10.4 l/100 km; combined CO2 emissions: 238 g/km*) to the BMW M8 Gran Coupe (combined fuel consumption: 10.7 l/100 km; combined CO2 emissions: 244 g/km*). In addition to some hidden highlights, special one-offs such as the BMW M2 by FUTURA 2000 and the BMW M3 Pickup from the year 2011, which delivers a charging station, are also featured. So, for the first time in an “M Town” film, the BMW M GmbH is offering a small glimpse into an electrifying future and blending “Utopia” with the real future. 2021 will already witness the first electrified model from BMW M as a performance variant based on the new BMW i4, and further models – including high-performance vehicles – are to follow.
The protagonist of the film, in which notable influencers from the automotive scene were also involved, drives a red BMW E30 M3 from the BMW M Heritage fleet. Moreover, BMW M GmbH classics are represented by a M3 GTS, a BMW M3 CRT, a BMW M4 GTS and a BMW 1 Series M Coupe.
Totally in line with the Community concept, the new film showcases not only vehicles from the BMW M GmbH fundus but also from “M Town” citizens. For this purpose, members of the BMW M Community provided their own vehicles for the shooting of the film. These special places had been previously raffled off in an online campaign.
MONTH IN REVIEW
Dear Members
And so the countdown to Christmas begins, welcome to December! Before we get too excited about Christmas (or is that just this editor?) let's recap our November.
We began our month still in lockdown, with our first event a virtual trivia night. Our members enjoyed some general knowledge questions and some funny questions about our committee members. Prizes were given to the top 3! Congratulations to you all.
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By mid-month we had finally received the OK to get back out and about with our members. On 14 November we hosted a "Welcome Back Cars & Coffee" at Albert Park. It was so good to see so many members and also be joined by the Audi Club.
On 15 November we were then invited to AROCA's sprint day at Winton. A large group of members made the trip to Winton for some much-needed fun on track. Thank you to the Alfa Club for inviting us to come along, we look forward to sharing more events with you in 2021!
On 22 November we enjoyed our first drive event our of lockdown. We began our trip in Templestowe, stopping at Yan Yean for a picnic and morning tea before taking some fun driving roads to Yarra Glen and finishing up at Warrandyte. It was fantastic to welcome some new members to their first event.
On 26 November we held our first mid-week Twilight Drive in Geelong. Keep an eye out for these events because we plan to do more over summer, with our next one being on the Mornington Peninsula (keep an eye on your emails for the invite!).
We finished November with our Annual Show & Shine at the Park Hyatt, Melbourne. There was rain on and off over the day, but thankfully no one was deterred from attending. We even had some members join us from BMW Drivers Club NSW.
Graeme and Jo also had a 430i Coupe for the weekend from Melbourne BMW, which was definitely a fan favourite over the weekend! Many other people at the Park Hyatt over the weekend stopped by to check it out! Thanks very much to Melbourne BMW for lending it to us!
MEMBERSHIP UPDATE: 494 MEMBERS
Welcome to our new members, we look forward to seeing you at an event soon!
Don't forget to catch up with this month's update from our President, Graeme Bell here.
THE MONTH AHEAD
Here's what we've got planned in December:
Sunday, 6 December2020 Yokohama/Traction Tyres Drivers Championship | Round 10One last day on track before Christmas! Only limited entries remaining, be sure to get in quick! Sunday, 6 DecemberMornington BMW car display with a little twistAn invitation only event, we have a very special event at Mornington BMW on Sunday. Entries are already at capacity but be sure to sign up to the wait list in case someone else cancels! Tuesday, 8 December Christmas Theme Members Meeting via ZoomOur last virtual event of the year - join us virtually in your best Christmas outfit for some Christmas fun. Saturday, 12 DecemberGeelong Revival Motoring Festival Shannons City Cruise With the cancellation of the 2020 Geelong Revival, Shannons and the Revival team are running the famous city cruise, which usually marks the start of the Revival. You can join us on the drive or join in from home via the live stream of the event. Sunday, 13 December Christmas lunch and drive to the Great Ocean Road Chocolaterie & Ice Creamery Join us for a fun, last event of the year. We'll start at Geelong McDonalds and drive through Deans Marsh and Lorne along the Great Ocean Road, finishing at the Chocolaterie for lunch.
Sunday, 6 December2020 Yokohama/Traction Tyres Drivers Championship | Round 10One last day on track before Christmas! Only limited entries remaining, be sure to get in quick!
Sunday, 6 DecemberMornington BMW car display with a little twistAn invitation only event, we have a very special event at Mornington BMW on Sunday. Entries are already at capacity but be sure to sign up to the wait list in case someone else cancels!
Tuesday, 8 December
Christmas Theme Members Meeting via ZoomOur last virtual event of the year - join us virtually in your best Christmas outfit for some Christmas fun. Saturday, 12 DecemberGeelong Revival Motoring Festival Shannons City Cruise With the cancellation of the 2020 Geelong Revival, Shannons and the Revival team are running the famous city cruise, which usually marks the start of the Revival. You can join us on the drive or join in from home via the live stream of the event.
Sunday, 13 December Christmas lunch and drive to the Great Ocean Road Chocolaterie & Ice Creamery Join us for a fun, last event of the year. We'll start at Geelong McDonalds and drive through Deans Marsh and Lorne along the Great Ocean Road, finishing at the Chocolaterie for lunch.
Be sure to keep an eye on our calendar for more events.
NEWS & BLOG
Our Blog page on the website is constantly being updated with not just club news, but everything BMW from all around the world! We welcome you to submit any articles of your own!
Club blog.
BMW around the globe.
MEMBER CAR OF THE MONTH
To submit your own car, or motorbike for next month, click here.
CLASSIFIEDS
Did you know we have a classifieds page?
Want to sell something? Email us today to list your car/parts/anything BMW related!
idrive magazine
Everyone has their own BMW story - we'd love to share yours.
Email us to feature in our very own idrive magazine.
CLUB PARTNERS
Members are welcome to submit their business to be shared on the Club Partners page on our website and idrive magazine. We believe in supporting those who support us. If you would like your business listed, email us with your details!
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
Proudly supported by: All Residential/All Commercial Creative Custom Cars Melbourne BMW Mornington BMW Shannons Insurance Southern BM Traction Tyres Waverley BMW Zagame Autobody
Dear Members,
In this ever-changing world of COVID, we started November still in lockdown, not really knowing when we would be able to get out and start our events. We had so many events set up ready to go, so as soon as we could we opened the flood gates! How wonderful it is to get back to some kind of normal, you just don’t realise how much we love seeing all our friends and sharing our love of our cars and driving together.
Our first event for November was a Virtual Trivia night, which had some great general knowledge questions and some even funnier questions about the clubs’ committee members. Prizes were given out to the top 3 and I think all who logged in, had a really fun night.
Once we finally got the all clear from Premier Andrews that we were able to get back out again and this sparked off a stream of event emails, with events being released at a very fierce pace.
On 14 November was our ‘Welcome Back to Melbourne’ Cars and Coffee day at the Carousel, Albert Park. Like the last time we did this, we had an amazing turnout of cars and people! With lots of our members and friends turning up, all following the new COVID guidelines, and enjoying the cars on show, having a coffee and a much missed chat. The Audi Club also turned up with a bunch of cars to join us for some friendly inter-club-inter-brand-interaction. Lovely to meet up with them too.
Jo and I were lucky to have been given a new X7 for the weekend from Mornington BMW, and this was a really interesting ride. It is a very spacious vehicle, so much room for all the stuff we cart to events and yet still loads of room for passengers. Looking in the mirror, the rear window is a long way back and you can feel how big it is, yet it is very easy and light to drive. For me, possibly too light in the steering and you notice the long wheelbase, but if you had a few kids and need the room, it would be the perfect car. Of course, it has all the tech and gadgets to aid driving and safety and is a very, very comfortable car to drive. Would be perfect on a long trip. Thank you Mornington BMW, we loved driving it and if it weren’t just the two of us now, it could be on the short list to replace our trusty X5 one day.
On 15 November we had our long-awaited return to the track, with an invite to an AROCA Sprint at Winton. A large group of members made the trip up there to have some much-needed fun on the track. The weather was very hot and sunny but all who were there had an awesome day, running the long track in the morning and then the short track in the afternoon just for a change. Thanks again to the Alfa Club for inviting us to enjoy their sprint days again this year. We will be sharing a lot of their days again next year for our 2021 Traction Tyres/Yokohama Drivers Championship. It's great to have Traction Tyres/Yokohama back on board again next year as our major sponsor for the Drivers Championship for a third year. If you need tyres, give Andrew and the team a call and mention you are a club member and they will look after you.
On 22 November we went on our first drive day out of COVID. We again had a fantastic attendance, starting in Templestowe and stopping at Yan Yean and enjoying a lovely picnic morning tea, then heading off along some fantastic driving roads to Yarra Glen and then finishing in Warrandyte, where some enjoyed a stroll along the river to the tunnel and others enjoyed their lunch before heading home after a fantastic day out again. Thanks again Peter, another amazing meander through roads seldom driven, but lots of fun.
On 26 November we ran our first mid-week Twilight Drive. This will become a new ‘thing’ through summer, as it proved quite popular. With the longer summer days and plenty of lovely places quite close to Melbourne, watch out for these popping up in the event emails through January and February. A great turn out for this one with some amazing cars and all enjoyed a very nice dinner at the end of the drive. It's great to see some new members attending too. This one was out west for our west-side members, the next one will be out South-East or down the Peninsula.
We finished November with a big bang with our Annual Show & Shine at the Park Hyatt Melbourne. Some of us chose to stay at the Park Hyatt for the weekend, which made it even more special. Thank you Melbourne BMW for the loan of the wonderful, just launched, 430i Coupe which really did look impressive in the foyer of the hotel and it attracted a lot of attention. We also had Lawrence Glynn’s little 700 on display inside too and it really made a great display, having the old and the new for everyone to check out. We didn’t even get it set up inside before a group of people, at the Hyatt for a wedding, came to have a look at the Coupe and wanting to know all about it. The tech and drive of these new cars is amazing, I love the coupe body style and the 430i feels great on the road. It definitely gets the looks from the public, driving through Melbourne, and you know what, I don’t even mind the grille! All the press photos taken from down low seem to over emphasise it. From normal eye level and looking at it more and more, yes, it’s not that bad.
After a week of wonderful weather, we awoke to a soggy Sunday, but it didn’t turn out too bad with some very large breaks in the weather allowing the cars to be set up into class groups, without us getting too wet. And wow did they all look amazing. The hotel guests checking out on the day really loved all our cars and some also purchased goods from Jay Leno Garage Products who sponsored the event, thank you. We were a little worried how it would all work, but the staff of the Hyatt had done it all before and nothing was too much trouble and it went off without a hitch.
After judging was completed, we all headed inside to the Trilogy Lounge to hear the announcement of the winners, it was very close in each of the classes and I think we were all happy with the winning cars. I would like to thank Josh and Edward from BMWDCNSW for driving down from Sydney for the weekend to be part of our event. We always welcome members from all of the other BMW Clubs around Australia. They did an amazing job of cleaning the car too, when it arrived the night before it was absolutely covered in bugs, so well done to win the class prize indeed.
After presentation was finished and thank you’s said, we all enjoyed a lovely lunch which was absolutely delicious. Thank you to all the staff at the Park Hyatt for all your friendly professional help, everyone had a great day.
I am very happy how this event turned out, with all the hard work Jo and Lawrence put into getting this set up, I would like to thank them both for all their effort. Everyone was impressed with the show, the location was superb, the lunch delicious and the accommodation was truly 5 Star. If you want to stay in town for a night, the Park Hyatt is coming on board as a Club Sponsor for 2021, so if you mention you are a BMWDCM Member you will get a special rate. I can highly recommend it!
On the way in to town on Saturday, Jo and I dropped into Essendon BMW to catch up with the team after such a long time in lockdown, it was really nice to see the dealership so busy and everyone enjoying all the beautiful cars. We checked out the new GP3 Special Edition Mini, pretty cool little car - if you get a chance, go and have a look at one.
It was the same at Melbourne BMW, when we dropped in to pick up the beautiful 430i Coupe, the atmosphere was electric with all the staff attending to customers all wanting to test drive some of these amazing cars. Great to see the dealerships all busy and doing well, now they are allowed to have customers back in the door.
On our way home from the event on Monday we popped into Waverley BMW and chatted with the team. It is great to hear that they are expanding and have now taken over South Yarra BMW and also to hear that our members discount and benefits will be honoured at South Yarra as well. Thank you for supporting the Club and we look forward to extending our relationship into the new year too.
The new dealership at Berwick, which is also owned by the same group as Waverley and South Yarra BMW, is running ahead of schedule and will be open and trading this side of Christmas. Keep an eye out for some events we will be holding from the new Berwick BMW dealership in the nearly New Year.
December will be busy with some more fun events coming up.
The first weekend will see two events to choose from on Sunday, 6 December, our joint Motorsport event at Philip Island with the Alfa Club and also the Mornington car display which is now sold out. Please remember, this is a closed event, so only those who have registered will be allowed in. Due to the COVID restrictions still in place, we are limited on how many can attend. If you have registered for this event and will be unable to attend, please let us know asap, as there are limited spaces, and we have members on the wait list.
Our December Members Meeting will be via Zoom on 8 December, it will be a chance for us to say thank you for the year and have a bit of fun with a bit of Christmas dress up, without going out in public and making a goose of yourself, so join us for our last member zoom meeting for 2020.
On 12 December some of us will join the Shannons Geelong Revival Drive, a drive around Geelong area, to sort of replace the cancelled Geelong Revival Weekend. Check the calendar for info or watch out for the email about it in the coming days. You need to book with the Geelong Revival group so see the event for the link. Looks like a bit of fun.
13 December will be our last official event for the year, being our Christmas Lunch drive to the Great Ocean Road Chocolaterie. Look on the website for details and come and join us for one last run and meal before Christmas.
Some of our members will be racing at the Shannons Motorsport Australia Festival at Sandown with the E30 Racing Club, over the weekend of the 12/13 December and this will be a great way to end the year. Like everything else, it has been quite a few months since we had a race meeting to go to, so we have not been able to race for a good part of the year. I am even entered for this event and might I say, I am looking forward to getting back out on the track and racing again. I loved getting out and having a drive at Winton and teaching some of our members the correct lines, so I thought I might have a race with them too to end the year.
After this your committee will be taking a very short break and then we will have some great events happening in the new year, including an informal members meeting at Jay Lenos Garage on 5 January, a Sunset drive around the Mornington Peninsula on 13 January, and on 23 January we will be off for a long weekend to Beechworth for the Australia Day weekend.
Keep an eye on your emails as there will be some amazing events coming your way right through summer, we have a lot of events to catch up on and so many ideas to put into operation. The 2021 Motorsport and Driver Training calendars will be out very soon, just finalising a couple of dates with event organisers, as well as a lot of other event dates for you to add to your calendar. So, keep an eye out for an email about what we have coming in 2021, it will be a fantastic year!
Now we are back, there will be no letting up, you just never know what the new year will bring, so we will make the most of our freedom. As always, if you have an idea for and event, or somewhere you think we should go, let us know. Always happy to take inspiration from our members.
I look forward to seeing you at an event soon, until then, drive safe, stay healthy and, if we don’t see you before, have a very Merry Christmas and a Safe and Happy New Year!
Graeme Bell | President BMW Drivers Club Melbourne Inc.
P.O. 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: 29 November 2020
Thanks very much to Paul Holliday for capturing our annual Show & Shine event at the Park Hyatt, Melbourne on video.
We are very lucky, as a Club to have such a great relationship with both BMW Australia and with their dealer network around Melbourne.
When we run events, our friends at the BMW dealerships that support us, lend us cars to take out and show you, our members, and the public at large, and get an idea of what the new models and range of vehicles has to offer. It allows us to get up close and personal to some of these amazing cars BMW are producing, drive them out in the countryside and really get a taste of all they have to offer.
This last weekend we were very fortunate to have the just released 4 Series Coupe to take to the Club’s annual Show and Shine from Melbourne BMW. I was lucky enough to drive it around town and can say I quite like the proper coupe shape and feel. I love 2 door cars, the body is more rigid and you feel it in the handling and driveability. The adaptive M suspension helps too and changes the ride noticeably with the touch of a button. Whilst it isn’t a small car, it feels quite nimble and not too big on the road. The twin power turbo engine is quiet and smooth, yet plenty of go, hard to believe it is only a 2 litre 4 cylinder. I love the all-round cameras and park assist, very handy when trying to get into underground parking bays, or hotel foyers… I would love to get one out in the countryside for a squirt on some fun roads, but we didn’t have time this time.
Of course, the on-board technology is amazing, it has so many gadgets and gizmos it would take more than a weekend to learn to use and enjoy it all. But I do love all the driver aids that are pretty much standard now, some of them take a little getting used to, like steering assist, but I love the driving experience in all the new models. As a driver you appreciate what a great car BMW build and am very that BMW continue to turn out cars that give us that Sheer Driving Pleasure.
One of the most talked about features is the new grille. Spending the weekend with the car, it grows on you. The 430i we had was Black Sapphire, so the black grille disappeared to a degree and walking around it or looking at it from a distance, it just looks right. I think the press photos you see must be taken from ground level, to accentuate it, as it doesn’t look as bad as everyone thinks when you see it in the flesh and I don’t mind it at all.
All around, I very much like the new 4 Series. If you can, get into a dealer and check one out.
Spring comes earlier, summer stays longer, and autumn also has its special charm in the South Tyrol region. Italian lifestyle meets Austrian-German culture before a spectacular mountain backdrop. Active holidaymakers will find ideal conditions for cycling and hiking tours between Mediterranean vegetation and spectacular rock formations, especially in the area around the traditional spa town of Merano. And after the fruit and wine harvest, numerous regional folk festivals and culinary specialities turn the trip to South Tyrol into an journey of culinary delights.
Even Empress Elisabeth "Sisi" of Austria took on the rather arduous journey at the time across the Alps to seek relaxation in Merano and enjoy a breath of the South. Today, visitors can reach the Etsch Valley quite quickly and comfortably via the Brenner motorway and an express road called "MeBo", which connects Merano with Bolzano, the capital of South Tyrol. But the fastest route is rarely the most beautiful route to reach your destination. When driving in a car which has been designed for versatile driving fun, such as the MINI Cooper SD Countryman ALL4 (fuel consumption combined: 4.8 – 4.6 l/100 km; combined CO2 emissions: 127 – 121 g/km) the desire to take a more scenic route arises almost automatically.
Delivering a top output of 140 kW/190 hp and a maximum torque of 400 Nm generated by its 2.0-litre 4-cylinder diesel engine with MINI TwinPower Turbo technology, the MINI Cooper SD Countryman ALL4 takes on steep mountain passes in spirited style. Dirty or wet road conditions don’t stand in its way since the electronically controlled ALL4 all-wheel drive system responds to changes in traction conditions within a few milliseconds. It distributes the power precisely between the front and rear wheels and always directs it to where it can be most effectively converted into driving fun. This also applies to sporty cornering on the hairpin bends, where the ALL4 system is backed by Performance Control and Electronic Differential Lock Control (EDLC).
There are a number of high alpine roads which cross the border from Austria to Italy. At a maximum altitude of around 1,500 metres, the Reschen Pass, which is passable in all seasons, is the lowest Alpine crossing in this region. From Landeck, the road leads across the Inn valley and the Nauders plateau to the Reschensee lake. The church tower of Alt-Graun, which juts out of the water, still reminds us of the villages that sank into the waters of the dammed lake after the construction of a storage power station 70 years ago. Anyone leaving the Brenner motorway near Sterzing can reach Merano via the Jaufen Pass, which is located at almost 2.100 metres above sea level. This connection is comparatively short, but with around 20 narrow bends it offers plenty of opportunity to experience hallmark MINI go-kart feeling. Even higher up is the Timmelsjoch, which connects the Ötztal region in Austria with the Italian Passaier valley. Along the route, at up to 2,500 metres, there are magnificent views of snow-capped peaks and a landscape of alpine meadows, forests and barren rock.
Once in Merano, visitors immediately become aware of the Mediterranean climate. This is due to the city's location in a basin into which mainly warm air from the south flows. And this is also why palm trees and other Mediterranean plants thrive, as do the colourful flowers and plants in the public parks in the city centre. Historical buildings such as the municipal theatre and the Kurhaus (spa house) remind us of Merano's boom as a tourist resort in the late19th and early 20th century. The extensive spa promenade on the banks of the river Passer was also built at that time. The centre of the city, which is closed to car traffic, is characterised by its picturesque arcades (Lauben). Beneath magnificent arches, it is home to old-established shops, cafés and restaurants that attract locals and visitors alike.
You can enjoy plenty of sunshine and mild temperatures until well into the autumn in South Tyrol. Not long afterwards, the action shifts from the valley to the mountains. As soon as the first slopes are covered with snow, numerous ski areas attract winter sports enthusiasts. The youngest attraction for skiing enthusiasts is located about 50 kilometres south-east of Merano. In the Carezza ski area, a new cable car is currently being built featuring a mountain station which is integrated into the rocky landscape almost invisibly. The arrival hall is designed in the style of an atmospherically illuminated cave and is thus reminiscent of the crystal palace from the legend of the dwarf king Laurin, which is widespread in South Tyrol. The Carezza ski area covers around 40 km of slopes and is a popular destination for excursions and holidays, not only in winter. The tourist area stretches from the high altitudes of the Dolomites to Lake Carezza, where Empress "Sisi" spent the early summer days more than 120 years ago.
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