RECENT ARTICLES
First Digital-Only Issue Of BMW Car Club Magazine: Roundel Now Online!
BMW News, Community, Lifestyle
The May 2024 issue of BMW Car Club Magazine: Roundel is now available for all BMW CCA members to read online. This is the first full issue of Roundel to be exclusively available in digital formats. BMW CCA members can read the May 2024 issue by using their BMW...
Choose BMW For The Perfect Drift
BMW News, Community, Featured, Motorsport
BMW has competed at the highest level in everything from Formula 1 to endurance racing, touring cars, World Superbikes, and more, but there’s a new frontier where the blue and white roundel has made a major impact. Starting as a niche sport born in Japan, drift has become a...
The Epic Tale of the Olympus Rally
Community, Events, Lifestyle, Motorsport
The Olympic National Forest is so stunningly beautiful it’s said it could be home to the Gods. At the feet of the Olympic Mountain range sits Shelton, Washington, with miles and miles of perilous gravel roads that wind through the forest. Myth suggests that a hero is born when...
Strong Start For BMW In BTCC Opener
The British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) opened its 2024 season at the Donington Circuit in the UK this past weekend. The BTCC series is unique in that the BMWs raced in the series are based on the G20-generation 3 Series sedan, rather than the M2 and M4-based racers we...
Up & Down Weekend For BMW In DTM
The opening two rounds of the DTM (German Touring Car Masters) series took place this past weekend at the Oschersleben circuit in Germany, and the BMW entries fought hard but came away with a best finish of fourth between the two races. The 2024 season is the 40th anniversary...
Exercising The Fleet
Last week, I wrote about driving the clownshoe out to the warehouse in Monson on the MA/CT border to retrieve the Lotus Europa which had been sitting there since September. Unfortunately I found that the Lotus had a fuel leak from bad o-rings at the bottoms of the Stromberg’s...
Samantha Tan Racing Featured On BimmerLife Podcast
BMW News, Community, Motorsport
It’s here! The third episode of the new BimmerLife Podcast features Samantha Tan Racing! Samantha Tan, owner and race car driver of Samantha Tan Racing, and Neil Verhagen, BMW factory driver for Samantha Tan Racing, join host James Crivellone to talk all about their experiences in the professional racing...
MINI Shows Its Cards With New Aceman
BMW News, Community, Lifestyle, MINI
Munich, Germany, April 24, 2024 – Creative use of space – reinterpreted: MINI celebrates the premiere of the first crossover model for the premium small car segment. The new MINI Aceman combines compact exterior dimensions with as much room as possible for occupants and an all-electric drive. The result is...
BMW Reveals Updated 2025 i4 and 4 Series Gran Coupe
BMW News, Community, Lifestyle
The current class is still in session for those wanting an all-electric or “mild-hybrid” 4 series from BMW. BMW just released the official information and photos for the refreshed BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe and BMW i4. While still featuring the large-grille design, the new 4s have been updated...
The Ultimate Driving Museum Announces MINIs To The Max Exhibit
Runs from May 1, 2024 till January 18, 2025 30+ rare and significant MINIs on display Located in Greer, SC. The Ultimate Driving Museum is a division of the nonprofit BMW CCA Foundation Presenting Sponsor- MINI USA Associate Sponsors – The Tire Rack, and Continental Tire Partner Sponsors –...
MINI Shows Its Cards With New Aceman
BMW News, Community, Lifestyle, MINI
Munich, Germany, April 24, 2024 – Creative use of space – reinterpreted: MINI celebrates the premiere of the first crossover model for the premium small car segment. The new MINI Aceman combines compact exterior dimensions with as much room as possible for occupants and an all-electric drive. The result is...
BMW Reveals Updated 2025 i4 and 4 Series Gran Coupe
BMW News, Community, Lifestyle
The current class is still in session for those wanting an all-electric or “mild-hybrid” 4 series from BMW. BMW just released the official information and photos for the refreshed BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe and BMW i4. While still featuring the large-grille design, the new 4s have been updated...
The Ultimate Driving Museum Announces MINIs To The Max Exhibit
Runs from May 1, 2024 till January 18, 2025 30+ rare and significant MINIs on display Located in Greer, SC. The Ultimate Driving Museum is a division of the nonprofit BMW CCA Foundation Presenting Sponsor- MINI USA Associate Sponsors – The Tire Rack, and Continental Tire Partner Sponsors –...
A Very Fast Beach Party in Long Beach
BMW News, Community, Events, Motorsport
Outside of the Turner Motorsport truck, a young fan, clutching some team memorabilia, stands with his father, both peering in at the BMW M4GT3. Will Turner comes out to say hello and returns with drivers Patrick Gallagher and Robby Foley. They talk while the drivers sign the LIQUI MOLY...
BMW M Team WRT Goes 1-2 At Imola
BMW News, Community, Motorsport
The FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) held its second race of 2024 in Italy with a six-hour race on the Imola circuit. It was a fantastic day for the BMW M Team WRT entries in the LMGT3 class, while the team also showed they can be competitive with the...
Fixing Sharkie’s Broken E-Brake
Five of my cars (the Lotus Europa, Louie the ’72 2002tii, Bertha the heavily-patina’d hot-rod ’75 2002, the Bavaria, and Sharkie the ’79 Euro 635CSi) have been sitting in the space I rent in the warehouse in Monson since October 2023. As I wrote here, when I was out...
BimmerLife MiX Event Attracts BMW Enthusiasts
With over 300 BMW Car Club of America members, hundreds of classic and new BMWs, perfect weather, and a variety of enthusiast-centered events, the 2024 BimmerLife MiX Enthusiast Weekend set the bar for BMW celebration weekends. BimmerLife MiX, presented by Continental Tire, is BMW CCA’s annual event celebrating BMW’s...
Total Transformation: A 1986 325e That Turns Heads
Community, Featured, Lifestyle
A supportive community of automotive enthusiasts is not only a recipe for turning project-car dreams into reality, but also making lasting friendships. Solid wrenching skills certainly don’t hurt either. And when all of these elements combine, just like in the 1990 cartoon Captain Planet, the results are spectacular. Case...
BMW CCA Announces Partnership with Continental Tire
BMW Car Club of America and BMW Car Club of America Foundation Announce PARTNERSHIP WITH Continental Tire IN NEW MULTI-YEAR AGREEMENT GREER, SOUTH CAROLINA – BMW Car Club of America announced a new multi-year partnership agreement with Continental Tire of The Americas, LLC., creating a partnership that extends through...
Support Veterans And Get A Clean BMW
Getting your car detailed at your BMW dealership isn’t just a great way to get your Ultimate Driving Machine squeaky clean, but is also a way to support the 10th anniversary Team Red, White, and Blue’s Old Glory Relay and help U.S. Veterans. BMW dealers will donate $25 to...
E39 Tie Rod Replacement
I’m going to interrupt the story of the $115 Chinese-made Weber clone, as a) I still haven’t figured out the car’s hard-starting issue, and b) something more pressing came up. With winter hopefully behind us, I took an hour and gave my daily driver 2003 E39 530i stick sport...
What’s Neue is Neue Again
BMW News, Community, Events, Featured, Lifestyle
Nostalgia is a strong emotion. Think cover songs, or even cover bands. Think clothes. Think the instant film camera. And think automotive. How many brands have brought back a former model’s name years later? We can add BMW to that long list, but in this case, BMW is not...
BMW On Podium In Nürburgring 24 Hour Qualifier Race
BMW News, Community, Events, Motorsport
BMW teams were racing on the Nürburgring Nordschleife this weekend in Germany in preparation for the Nürburgring 24-hour race that’s coming up on in June 2024. Both ROWE Racing and BMW M Team RMG competed in the 24h Qualifiers over the weekend, which consisted of two four-hour races. The...
Celebrating Our BMW CCA Volunteers
Did you know next week (April 21 – 27) is National Volunteer Week? What a perfect time to shine a light on all the volunteers who give their time and talents to the BMW Car Club of America. Established in 1974 by President Nixon, National Volunteer Week is organized...
What Options Would You Have On Your 1995 M3?
BMW News, Community, Featured, Lifestyle
Unique BMWs have a tendency to show up at the front door of my shop, and last month an Avus Blue M3 found its way to us. Avus was a 1995-only color, and the backstory on this one was touching. The original owner had purchased it in 1995 and...
Exercising The Fleet
Last week, I wrote about driving the clownshoe out to the warehouse in Monson on the MA/CT border to retrieve the Lotus Europa which had been sitting there since September. Unfortunately I found that the Lotus had a fuel leak from bad o-rings at the bottoms of the Stromberg’s...
Fixing Sharkie’s Broken E-Brake
Five of my cars (the Lotus Europa, Louie the ’72 2002tii, Bertha the heavily-patina’d hot-rod ’75 2002, the Bavaria, and Sharkie the ’79 Euro 635CSi) have been sitting in the space I rent in the warehouse in Monson since October 2023. As I wrote here, when I was out...
E39 Tie Rod Replacement
I’m going to interrupt the story of the $115 Chinese-made Weber clone, as a) I still haven’t figured out the car’s hard-starting issue, and b) something more pressing came up. With winter hopefully behind us, I took an hour and gave my daily driver 2003 E39 530i stick sport...
I Installed a $115 Chinese-Made Weber in My 2002 (Part II)
Community, Lifestyle, Resto & Mod
Last week, I described the hard-starting problem in Hampton, my 49,000-mile survivor ’73 2002, that led me to take the surprising step of removing its Weber DGAV (water choke) carburetor and buying and installing one of those inexpensive Chinese-made Weber clones. My logic was that I’d isolated the problem...
I Installed a $115 Chinese-Made Weber in My 2002 (part I)
Hampton, the 49,000-mile survivor ’73 2002 I bought from its original owner in 2019, has had a persistent starting problem. It seems that no matter what I do, the car is difficult to start. It’s worst in a cold garage after the car has been sitting overnight, but can...
The Lesson I Keep Learning
About ten years ago, I had an issue with “Kugel,” my departed ’72 tii. I’d just treated it to a new ignition system—freshly-rebuilt distributor, new points / condenser / cap / rotor, new Bosch red coil and ballast resistor, new plugs and wires. The car ran well for a...
