Well,it sure was a HOT one here at Laurel BMW! But what a fantastic way to start the holiday weekend; outside driving the new BMW 3 series models to support our USA Olympic and Paralympic teams. We couldn't have asked for a better turn out and we thank everyone who was able to attend Friday! LET'S GO USA!
When do you wait to fill up your gas tank? Do you constantly keep it full, half empty, riding close to 'E'? One blogger writes about what she thinks the advantages and disadvantages are of different fuel levels.
Kristy Welsh writes:
There has recently been a lot of talk on how you can get better gas mileage by driving when your tank is half full to empty or making sure you fill up when your tank is half full. Which is correct – or does either method hold any water?
The fill ‘er up when it’s half full foks proclaim that if you leave the gas tank empty, the gas will be evaporating in the empty space of the tank. Gas tanks are designed to force out all those gas fumes from the tank into the atmosphere and this gas is wasted. Yes, it’s true, but how much gas are you actually losing? To tackle this one, I woke up the engineering part of my brain (I used to be one) and looked at a paper published by the Environmental Protection Agency and their analysis of gasoline storage tanks and the evaporation rates.
At 60 degrees Fahrenheit, a gallon of vehicular gasoline weighs about 6.15 pounds. In the above paper on page 87 (if you want to chew through it), they go over what the gasoline vapor losses are for large storage tanks. For a 8400 gallon tank the total loss is 48 lbs (or about 8 gallons) a year.
Read more: http://www.creditinfocenter.com/wordpress/2008/07/24/increase-mileage-gas-tank-full-or-half-empty/
With Thunder in the Valley currently running check out these tips on how to avoid an accident with a motorcycle:
Five good habits to keep include:
- Always look twice – It’s easy to miss a motorcycle with a quick glance to your blind spot. Always make sure to look twice when changing lanes and turning to avoid pulling out in front of or changing lanes into one.
- Signal lane changes and turns – To hedge your bets with crash avoidance, be sure to always signal your movements at least a few seconds before making them. This gives the motorcyclist a heads up so that they can avoid your car.
- Avoid letting motorcycles stay in your blind spot – While any motorcycle rider should know better than to stay in a car’s blind spot, if you find one hovering in yours, try to speed up or slow down to get them into a more visible location. It can be easy to forget that they’re there when you’re changing lanes.
- Leave room – When you’re behind a motorcycle on the road, always leave extra room between your car and their vehicle. Motorcycles are much more agile than cars, and you will want to be sure that you have enough time to stop.
- Be aware of potential “danger zones” – Some roads make it more difficult to drive with motorcycles, but if you note these areas ahead of time and take extra precautions, you can reduce risk.
Information courtesy of: http://barbaslaw.com
Do You Have The Ugliest Car in America? You could win an all-expenses-paid trip to the year’s most exclusive automotive event, the Monterey Classic Car Week in California’s tony Pebble Beach!
We’ve all seen the rusted out, dinged up lemons, paint peeling, bumpers missing and bumpers hanging on with a bungee cord. But which of these is really America’s ugliest automobile? That’s what the folks from Hagerty Insurance want to find out – and the winner among those losers could be in for a sweet surprise as part of the second annual “Search for America’s Sweetest Lemons.”
The winning car will come along for the ride, there to be celebrated alongside rarities like a Bugatti Royale and some equally rare gems. Appropriately, the winner of the Sweetest Lemons contest
“We believe all cars are beautiful and deserve to be celebrated,” said McKeel Hagerty, CEO of Hagerty. “This is an opportunity to showcase these eccentric, quirky and weird vehicles. Many cars that were once viewed as hopeless now enjoy an enthusiastic, cult-like following.”
Whether the winners of the contest will develop their own cult – complete with car groupies or not – remains to be seen, but there’s a growing counter-culture following for truly awful automobiles, as demonstrated by the growing success of what is now the Tour of Lemons.
will serve as Grand Marshal of the Concours d’LeMons, now being renamed Hagerty’s Tour of Lemons.
The event is a mock race that requires entrants to come up with the cheapest, rudest and crudest junkers they can find. Simply having the car survive the race is generally considered a certain degree of victory.
Anyone who wants to risk going up against America’s other great lemons can submit a photo of their car and a brief description of why it deserves to be christened “America’s Sweetest Lemon.” Submissions can be sent to SweetestLemon@Hagerty.com by Sunday, July 8. The top ten candidates will be posted for public voting from July 11 – 20 at the Hagerty website.
Join us for the BMW Drive for Team USA event at Laurel BMW on June 29th beginning at 11 AM.
Get behind the wheel of the all-new 3 Series Sedan. Then compare it against competitive models from automotive brands like Mercedes Benz, Audi, or Lexus. You'll see for yourself that BMW comes out on top. In addition, BMW will also make a donation to the U.S. Olympic team for every participant who test drives a vehicle at the event. And, after registering and attending, you'll be eligible for an exclusive sales incentive.
To reserve your spot visit www.bmwusa.com/driveforteamusa or call 1-800-956-4BMW
Check out the Top 8 BMW M division cars from the last 40 years, courtesy of Motor Trend.
BMW 3.0 CSL – Not long after its establishment, the M division quickly began work on its first model, the iconic BMW 3.0 CSL. Based on BMW’s E9-chassis 3.0 CS, the CSL was lighter, and featured the brand’s first-ever four-valve-per-cylinder inline-six engine. By 1974, it also featured a prototype antilock braking system. The car went on to win the European Touring Car Championship six times between 1973 and 1979 and, in racing trim, produced as much as 800 hp with the help of twin turbochargers. The limited-production road-going version, on the other hand, sported a naturally aspirated 3.0-liter I-6, and had its doors, trunk lid, and hood constructed of aluminum like the race car.
BMW M1 – The M1 was the first car to wear the M badge, and also the first to not be based on an existing BMW model. Though its body was originally planned to be built by Lamborghini, delays forced the M division to consider other options. Two Modena-based companies supplied the space frame and fiberglass-reinforced plastic body shell, while ItalDesign assembled the cars and furnished the interiors. The bodies were then sent off to Germany where they received their M-developed drivetrains. The result was a potent sports car that produced 277 hp from its 3.5-liter, 24-valve I-6 engine. Just 456 road-going M1s were built between 1978 and 1981, mostly to satisfy production car racing requirements.
BMW E28 M5 – Though BMW Motorsport tinkered with the 5 Series as early as 1974, helping to create such hot-rodded models as the 530, 533i, and 535i, the first M5 didn’t arrive on the scene until 1984. The first-gen M5 packed the same 3.5-liter I-6 of the M1, but was tuned to 286 hp to help motivate the heavier sedan. The car was a genuine sleeper, looking nearly identical to a standard 5 Series but with a manufacturer-estimated top speed of 152 mph.
BMW E30 M3 – This car hardly needs any introduction, as its name is practically legendary among enthusiasts. The original M3 was a homologation special built to qualify the model for Group-A touring car competition. The production car was equipped with a 195-hp, 16-valve 2.3-liter I-4, and received an M-tuned suspension and unique bodywork. Today, the car is still a benchmark for sports car performance, often used to draw comparisons against more modern machines.
BMW M Coupe/Roadster – You could argue that the Z3-based M Coupe and Roadster were the Shelby Cobras of their day, as the M division stuffed the biggest engine they could into BMW’s smallest offering. In North America, early models received the E36 M3’s 240-hp 3.2-liter I-6 engine, while later models got the higher-spec 321-hp 3.2-liter unit from the E46 M3. While both body styles of the M-tuned Z3 deserve a page in the M division’s history book, the coupe earns extra cool points with enthusiasts for its quirky, shoe-like styling and fixed-roof driving experience.
BMW E36 M3 – As a follow-up to what BMW calls “the most successful touring car ever,” the second-generation M3 was still a solid performer, but arguably less of a purist’s sports car compared to the original. Heading in this direction, BMW Motorsport brought the M3 nameplate to a wider audience. The M3 could now be had in three body styles, including a coupe, convertible, and four-door sedan. A more comfortable interior and available automatic transmission appealed to a new customer base, while the car’s U.S.-spec 240-hp 3.0-liter (and later 3.2-liter) I-6 still checked all the boxes for the enthusiast customer.
BMW E39 M5 – Having shown what it can do with I-4s and I-6s, the M division moved to larger engines with the E39 M5 in 1998. The M5 debuted with a 4.9-liter V-8 producing 400 hp and around 369 lb-ft of torque. The car was only available with a six-speed manual transmission, while its large wheels, unique bodywork, and M-tuned suspension practically guaranteed it an enthusiast following.
BMW E90 M3 – The outgoing M3 might be one of the best M cars yet, with its high-revving 414-hp 4.0-liter V-8 engine and sharp-handling chassis. The car routinely sweeps comparison tests and, even five years after the car’s launch in 2007, still edges out other competent driver’s cars. With the next-gen M3 rumored to ditch the V-8 for a twin-turbo six-cylinder powerplant, it’s difficult to imagine the M division topping its last creation. But in its 40-year history, the tuner has rarely disappointed us.
What is your favorite M series model from the last 40 years?
