September 2014 - Badger Bimmers

• Brew City Cruise Night • Race Weekend at the Bimmers’ Car Corral
• Ladies’ Tech Session
...and more!
Inside. . .
at the
Highland
House
Bimmer Night
bimmerimmer
September 2014
bimmer immer
• Badger Bimmers Board of Directors •
President
Erik Ivarson • [email protected]
Vice-President
Ron Pace • [email protected]
Treasurer
Mike Clemens • [email protected]
Secretary
David Thuerk • [email protected]
Board Members
Bill Nicoud • Dave Tatem • Cindy Ansay • Jeff Fait
Past President
Michael Loos • [email protected]
Fox Valley Liaison
Dale Kressin • [email protected]
Madison Liaison
Larry O’Brien • [email protected]
Driving Events Coordinator
Mike Clemens • [email protected]
Editor
Don Gawronski • [email protected]
Membership Chairman
Tim Jason • [email protected]
Chief DE Instructors
Mary Medo and John Morgan
Webmaster
Mike Clemens • [email protected]
Technical Service Advisor
Jenny Morgan • [email protected]
Legal Stuff
bimmer immer is the publication of the Badger Bimmers chapter of the BMW Car Club of America, Inc. Neither is connected in any way with
BMW AG or with BMW North America. Opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the policy or the opinions
of the Chapter or the Club. Suggestions and recommendations set forth herein for modifications to BMWs or other vehicles are not authorized
by the manufacturer unless expressly stated, and they may actually void new and used car warranties. The Chapter and the Club assume no
responsibility for any such modifications, or their subsequent results, attempted or completed by vehicle owners, their friends or enemies, their
mechanics or people who think they’re mechanics until something goes wrong. bimmer immer is published in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. All content
is Copyright © 2014 Badger Bimmers CCA. Correspondence, articles, advertising, and comments should be addressed to:
Editor • [email protected]
Cover Photo: A V8 BMW 503 (circa 1959) at Brew City Cruise Night at the Highland House
Photo by Jeff Fait
2
www.badgerbimmers.org
2014
September 11
Monthly Board Meeting @ Concours Motors, Glendale
September 20
Ladies’ Tech Session at European Auto House
September 26-28
OktoberFAST at Road America
October TBD
Monthly Board Meeting @ Enterprise BMW, Appleton
November 13
Monthly Board Meeting @ Concours Motors, Glendale
December 11
Monthly Board Meeting @ Concours Motors, Glendale
BMW Car Club
of
America Foundation Seeks Early bimmer immers
The BMW CCA Foundation is trying to build a complete archive of newsletters from all
chapters in the country. Does anyone out there have any issues from 1999 and before? If
you do and are willing to allow the Club to photocopy some, please contact Erik Ivarson at
[email protected].
Board meetings generally are held on the second Thursday of each month.
They start promptly at 6:30 pm.
Board meetings are open to all members. The Board encourages members to attend.
Monthly Board meetings will convene at 6:30 pm in the Board Room at
Concours Motors • 5990 N. Green Bay Ave. • Glendale, WI.
Please consult the monthly Calendar (above) for exact locations and dates.
september 2014
3
News of Note...
Attention:
Ladies of Any Age!
Members and Associate Members
Come have breakfast and bond with your Bimmer!
O
n Saturday, September 20, European Auto House, located at 11020 Buntrock Ave. in
Mequon, will host a Ladies-only Tech Session for our Club.
The tech session will begin at 9:00 a.m.
This event will be a wonderful opportunity to talk one-on-one with Nathaniel Sumner, a
factory-trained BMW technician and owner of European Auto House. A grouping of different
models of BMWs will be on hand to help us go through the basics of car care. He will also
cover more specific details about your own particular vehicles. So bring your questions.
Please RSVP to Cindy Ansay at (262) 388-3740. Kindly leave your name, and the year and
series of the vehicle that you will be bringing to the event.
BMW i3 Makes EPA
Top-Ten List
Reprinted from Roundel WEEKLY, August 26, 2014
T
he 2014 BMW i3 electric vehicle has made another top-ten list. This time, the list was generated
by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office
of Transportation and Air Quality and is posted on
its website at fueleconomy.gov. The list is called —
cutely enough —
the Top Ten
EPA-Rated Fuel
Sippers (2014),
and the BMW i3
is number one.
All-electric
and plug-in-hybrid model-year
2014 vehicles were eligible. Contestants were ranked
using a combined rating of city and highway mileage or equivalent mileage. The ranking was weighted
using 55% city driving and 45% highway driving.
Electric vehicles were measured using a miles-per-gallon equivalent (MPGe) in which 33.7 kilowatt-hours
equals one gallon of gasoline.
bi
4
Driving School Insurance
M
any automobile insurance policies now exclude
coverage for events that take place on a race
track. The only way to know if your policy still covers driving schools is to read your policy. If you find
that your policy does not cover our driving schools
you can purchase event insurance from Lockton Affinity Motorsports (http://locktonmotorsports.com/
product/track-insurance/). BMW CCA members
get a discount on the purchase of both single- and
multiple-event driving school insurance.
bi
OktoberFAST 2014
T
his year, OktoberFAST is scheduled for the end of
September: Friday, September 26th through Sunday,
September 28th, at Road America, Elkhart Lake, WI.
Friday is reserved for our advanced students and
instructors. We’ll also hold an instructor clinic for
new instructors on Friday. On Saturday and Sunday,
there will be run groups for novice, intermediate and
advanced students as well as instructors.
Registration for OktoberFAST opened June 1st.
Last year OktoberFAST was full by the first of August.
Don’t miss out on OktoberFAST — register early.
bi
www.badgerbimmers.org
From the President
Erik Ivarson
Up to Speed...
Elections coming, exhaust going
G
G
reetings, Badger Bimmers! I hope you’re all enjoying the summer and
giving your favorite vehicle care and exercise. We’ve an election coming
up with several positions available. Telecommuting is allowed. Board
meetings are open, so come check it out. E-mail for the numbers.
I use the wagon to bring the pizza. It gets most of its exercise in the winter,
which produces results as shown in the photo. The sight of rusty fasteners like
these is usually followed by an expletive and alcohol. These decayed remnants
are standing in the way of more maintenance on the trusty e46.
A new shudder accompanies the vibrations at around 25-30mph. There’s
been a little wobbly oscillation from the middle of the car. I figure the driveshaft needs attention and the only real problem is getting to it. BMW has cleverly hidden it above the exhaust, where I’m fairly certain a center support or flex disk has reached
retirement age. Pelican Parts reliably shipped the exhaust gaskets and driveshaft parts. Now I sit
typing with a lump in my throat before I take my drivable car and render it not. I lack the barbaric
nature required to torch, air chisel and/or Sawzall the offensively corroded nuts and bolts off the flanges so I can pull
off the exhaust.
I have yet to get replacement M8 or M10 bolts and
nuts. I can get away with the local hardware store for these
sacrificial bits. I might even use American (ouch) hardware since 5/16 and 3/8 are so close. Having to remove
the exhaust is the hardest and longest part of the job and
where the most can go wrong. That’s why it has to wait for
a Saturday.
It was about time to replace the fuel filter. It had been
on since the second Inspection II. The rusty fuel-filter cover was wire brushed and spray painted. At .0025” smaller,
I used the 5/16” injection hose as more economical and
on-hand. The .0025” difference isn’t noticeable. I don’t reuse the hose after spraying penetrating oil all over. The old
ones were in surprisingly good condition. New 6mm head
clamps would’ve been good as BMW divorced the socket I
had automatically grabbed. The stock clamps (or whatever
the dealer used) are goofy. I used a needle nose vice grip to
get them back on. Take that, Fritz!
Next month the exhaust story will share with RA anticipation. As I write, September is almost
here and with it OctoberFAST! I hope you will come to visit and share stories of your car exploits.
Look for me by the grid. Happy motoring!
bi
september 2014
5
2014 Continental Tire Road Race Showcase
AA
...and...
ugust 9 and 10, 2014 were once again some of the most exciting race-filled days
ever at Road America in Elkhart Lake. The weather was perfect both Saturday and
Sunday, and the BMW teams did a fantastic job of electrifying the crowd in the
Badger Bimmers Car Corral, just past turn 14.
This was the first year of the combined former Rolex Grand Am Series and The American Le Mans Series under IMSA control. In addition to these two feature events, we were
able to see 2 IMSA Prototype Lite and 2 Porsche GT3 Cup races, one each on Saturday and
Sunday.
As in past years, Darcy Yench
arranged paddock tours of Turner
Motorsport (host Will Turner),
Bimmerworld (host James Clay),
and Team RLL on Saturday morning. We had been hoping for
another “hot-pit” experience, and
were very pleased when IMSA was
able to provide a Saturday tour for
the lucky winner of our lunch ticket raffle. Burton Racing provided
an in-person sales pitch for BMW
car care chemicals and a raffle for
two goodie bags of chemicals at
Saturday’s lunch.
Time for Qs&As
The BMW staff was more than accommodating on the RLL paddock
tour, giving us a chance to talk to
#56 BMW Z4 GTE co-driver Dirk
Mueller, while we watched the
crew prepare the car for qualifying
later in the day. Dirk acknowledged that “our cars are not the
fastest on the track” but assured us
that the superior strategy and best
pit crew in the series still gave us a
good shot. We had a very candid
interchange with questions ranging from
what he thinks of the “equalization”
formulas in the series (not a fan!!) to how
much time he spends in the USA vs. his
home in Germany.
The surprise of the day came when
we were told that the pristine M1 parked
in the paddock area belonged to Bobby
6
Photographs by David Tatem
www.badgerbimmers.org
Tudor United SportsCar Championship
Report by David Tatem
Rahal, who had just completed a total restoration, and that
Bobby was able to spend some time with our tour group to
talk about the team and answer any questions
we posed.
As with Dirk, the questions ranged from
technical racing topics (restrictor plates,
weight restrictions etc.), to personal questions
like “Was it difficult making the transition
from a very successful world-class driver to a
team owner and manager?” Answer? “Yes and
no, but racing is in my blood. They will likely
carry me out of the paddock feet first!”
Thanks to Enterprise & Concours
A hearty “Thank You” is due our local sponsors: Enterprise BMW in Appleton, who
supplied box lunches, and Concours BMW
in Glendale, who supplied a great variety of
beverages. As in the past, BMW Car Club of America was
instrumental in underwriting the additional expenses of the event.
Finally the Races
The Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race kicked off at 12:15 on Saturday
and concluded at 2:45, with two classes,
Grand Sport and Street Tuner. All eyes
were glued to the Street Tuner class, as
the #23 BMW 128i of defending IMSA
champions Burton Racing, starting 13th
on the grid, gradually worked up in the
rotation until they crossed the finish line
in first place. Great teamwork!
The Tudor United SportsCar Championship feature event on Sunday afternoon was comprised of
four classes racing together: Prototype, Prototype Challenge,
GT LeMans and GT Daytona. BMW was represented in
both of the GT classes.
In the GT Daytona class, the #94 Turner Northwest
BMW Z4 (showcased in our paddock tour) led every lap of
the 59 lap (238 miles) race to take the checkered flag, giving
co-drivers Dane Cameron and Markus Palttala their third
victory of the 2014 season.
september 2014
The race was not without drama, as the Z4 was
not the fastest car in the class, as evidenced by the
final lap, in which Cameron used traffic
to his advantage building just enough
lead to cross the finish line just two
seconds ahead of the faster #22 Porsche
911 GT America. There are three more
races this season, and the Turner #94 has
fought its way into third place in Championship points, 9 points out of second
and 12 out of first.
A Nail-biting Finish
The GT LeMans class featured the two
BMW Team RLL BMW Z4 GTE’s, numbers 55 and 56. John Edwards qualified
the #56 on the pole, took the first stint
in the driver’s seat, and deftly avoided
an early race accident, but did sustain what could
have been race-ending damage to the front of the
car but for the skill and speed of the pit crew doing
mid-race repairs.
Bill Auberlen qualified the #55 in fourth place,
but fell back in the pack as the crew struggled to
make mid-race adjustments to the car, finishing
eighth in class.
But now, back to #56 (conveniently shown at
Continued on page 10
Photograph courtesy of the Burton web site
7
Brew City (BMW) Cruise Night
Tuesday August 12
by Jeff Fait
Brew City Cruise Night Outstanding Success
T
T
uesday, August 12th, was the third annual Badger
Bimmers BMW & MINI Night at Brew City Cruise
Night in Mequon, WI. This event has really
caught on and has become what may be the largest
recurring BMW gathering in the state.
Brew City Cruise Night is a weekly gathering of car
enthusiasts from around southeast Wisconsin. They
host 22 Tuesday night car shows (from May through
September) at the Highland House Restaurant, with
each week being dedicated to a feature marque, club, or
theme.
For the August 12th Badger Bimmers night, BMWs
and their owners came from far and wide to show off
their cars and socialize with other enthusiasts. Before
the night ended, at least 93 BMWs and MINIs put in an
appearance, along with over 70 other cars that came to
share the BMW love and enjoy the fantastic Wisconsin
summer weather. Club members from all over southeast and central Wisconsin, along with a big group
from northern Illinois, made the trek in an astounding
variety of BMW vehicles. CS, ’02, 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, M,
and X along with MINIs old and new were all well represented — plus a BMW Street Carver skateboard rolled
on through.
The night was topped off by a big door-prize giveaway, with excellent items from Acci-Dent, North
Shore’s Finest Auto Detailing, Tire Rack, Rock Auto,
and Highland House Restaurant finding new homes.
Start making plans for next year’s 4th Annual event,
8
tentatively scheduled for August 4, 2015. I’d like
to thank everyone who attended this year for coming out, and also give a big round of applause for
the Brew City Cruise Night volunteers who helped
make the night a special one.
bi
www.badgerbimmers.org
Photographs by Jeff Fait
september 2014
9
Continued from page 7
Race Weekend
SaturdaySundayTotal
Registered Attendees
70
71
141
Unregistered Attendees
14
24
38
9
9
States Represented
Feeding America Donations
$732
way
Ready for some statistics? Here’s our car corral data:
Simply
FASTEST
to get the
the
our paddock tour) and co-driver Dirk Mueller (also
conveniently part of our paddock tour). It was
clear to those of us at turn 14 that the Ferrari, Viper,
and Porsches had more power headed up the main
straight. I don’t think anybody was able to catch the
#62 Ferrari F458, but Dirk had a tremendous duel
with the much more powerful #93 Viper, leading to
a nail-biting final lap finishing only 1.588 seconds
behind the F458 for a second place podium finish. bi
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