MotorWerks Magazine V4 Issue 2

www.MotorWerksMag.com

THE ULTIMATE READING EXPERIENCE!Published by TreeFree PublishingA division of Webtronic Enterprises

VOLUME 4 ISSUE 02 DEC 2014

Why did BMW Leave WTCC? TWINI finishes 25 Hours MTTS MEGA Issue!


From the Editors DeskIt has been one bust year here

at MotorWerks Magazine. lots of

travelling making new friends

and unfortunately loosing old

ones.

Early in 2014 we lost a great

friend of the BMW CCA, Marcia

McClure. I met her at BMW

events at Mid-Ohio, she was a

friend of friends as they say. She had been struggling for

years with cancer but never let that affect how she loved

being at the track with like minded people. She helped out

as much as she could considering she may have recently

undergone treatment. She was FUN to be around and we

miss thar great smile you can see below. R.I.P. Marcia!

Be part of MWM by sending in photos and data about your

car. Wanting to make a point? Send a letter to the Editor

and tell the World what you think! Go to our website, www.

motorworksmag.com and click on Contact to view the

contact info for Readers Rides and Letters to the Editor.

Enjoy Editor, MotorWerks Magazine

MOTORWERKS MAGAZINE (MWM)is The Ultimate Reading Experience and is dedicated

to all BMW and MINI enthusiasts covering their cars and lifestyles.

Volume 4 Issue 02 - DECEMBEL 2014Editor - Ian Rae

E-Mail - [email protected] - (905) 467-5148

CONTRIBUTORSIan Rae, Norman Nelson, David Lewis, Halston Pitman, Chris Knox, Chris Green, John Venditti, Rich Simpson,

Jake Galstad, Lyndon Handy, Adam Isman,Michael J. Deschamps, Ashleigh Morris

CONTRIBUTIONS WELCOMEPhotographic and Editorial contributions to MWM are welcomed.

Photgraphs must be sent in hi-res format and can be .JPEG or .TIFF. Editorial contributions to be in Word format. Contributors must make every effort to ensure there is no infringement of copyright belonging to any other person or persons. MWM is not responsible for any such

misrepresented contributions. Contact the Editor by e-mail to discuss any editorial concepts.

PHOTOGRAPHERSIan Rae, Janis Rae, Melissa Smith, Halston Pitman, David lewis,

John Scroeder, Michael J. Deschamps, Jake Galstad, Norman Nelson,

Dito Milian, www.gotbluemilk.comVarious BMW & MINI images courtesy BMW Group Press Club

ADVERTISINGAdvertising Manager - Janis Rae

E-Mail - [email protected]

CREATIVE ADVISORS

Jim Weekes - J.GraphicsScott Brown - Scott Brown Graphic Designs

Mike Goodwin - MG Digital-----------------------------------------------

MOTORWERKS MAGAZINE (MWM) is published four times a year by TreeFree Publishing, a division of Webtronic Enterprises. Contents

may not be reprinted without express written permission of the Editor. The publishers do not accept any responsibility for the use of copyrighted

material from unsolicited sources. The publishers also cannot be held responsible for any errors or ommisions in articles published by MWM. All brand names and logos are trademarks of their respective owners. The BMW and MINI names and logos are registered trademarks of BMW AG and their subsidaries. MWM is not directly affiliated with BMW, any of its

distributors or dealers.-----------------------------------------------

MotorWerks Magazine - Online at www.motorwerksmag.com - 1

THE ULTIMATE READING EXPERIENCE!Published by TreeFree PublishingA division of Webtronic Enterprises

VOLUME 3 ISSUE 01 APRIL 2013

. TECH - THE INITIAL COOPER RSR UPGRADES. GREAT GRAND-AM PICTORIALS!. FEATURED PHOTOGRAPHER - JOHN SCHROEDER

James Reas

BIGGun

4FEATURES

24 Thru Kellis eyes

62 Is this why BMW left the WTCC

70 The Revolution is coming

78 And the winner is!

96 MINI Invasion

62 Is this why BMW left the WTCC

100 The Brits take Buffalo

Contents

78

164

HOT STUFF

32 Knox Up For The Challenge66 Badge Engineering with the Smokeys Group94 Every picture tells a story140 Image Master


6670

100

REGULAR COLUMNS

4 On The Grid12 Product News23 Ashleighs News Desk148 Cooper RSR - Whats New?160 Cooper RSR Installs162 Performance Directory164 Featured Photographer

RACING

44 One Year On - BMW and WTCC at Sonoma58 Power Maxed MINI Challenge Awards124 Canadian Time Attack150 Affordable Road Racing

6 On The GridAmesbury, MA. October 20th, 2014 Turner Motorsport moves to Pirelli World Challenge Turner Motorsport looks to 2015 with the announcement of a two car program in the Pirelli World Challenge GT category. Turner will campaign two BMW Z4 GT3s for the full 10-race season kicking off in March at the Circuit of the Americas. The finalized Pirelli World Challenge schedule for 2015, announced just last Friday includes premier North American race venues such as Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Barber Motorsports Park, Mid-Ohio, Road America and the Streets of Long Beach among others.The decision comes shortly after Turner Motorsport captured their seventh professional sports car racing championship since 2003 in the inaugural season of the IMSA sanctioned Tudor United SportCar Championship. Using the success in the BMW Z4 from the 2014 season with four wins, six podiums and ten top-ten finishes, the team hopes to springboard into the PWC for 2015 carrying momentum. I am really looking forward to getting back into Pirelli World Challenge for 2015. For me, its where it all started. In 1998 I competed in my first professional race and in 2003 we won our first championship in World Challenge. This does not mean its the only racing we will do in 2015 but I am happy that we can confirm this program so early I expect to announce the drivers in a few weeks with the cars shipping from Germany any day now, explained Will Turner. Pirelli World Challenge was established in 1990 and is one of the most successful sports car racing series in North America. The series has seen huge increases in

participation over the years with 50 car fields for most of the 2014 season. The series structure and rules are proven and stable, allowing FIA GT3 homologated cars to run as originally designed by manufacturers.I really like the fact that we can race the BMW Z4 GT3 as it was intended, with traction control, ABS and the proper aero for the car. Unlike the GTD rules in IMSA , PWC allows the car to run as it engineered by BMW Motorsport, explained Will Turner. Beginning in 1998, Turner Motorsport campaigned their iconic blue and yellow BMWs in World Challenge, winning the 2003 and 2004 World Challenge Touring Car Championships. From 98 to 04 Turner Motorsport captured ten race wins, forty top-five finishes and seven poles.

The sprint race format strays from the endurance format of the TUSCC that the team has become accustomed to since running their last full PWC season back in 2004. PWC race weekends include two 45-minute sprint races which allowing the team to run two entries with conceivably less

operating cost. Pirelli World Challenge has also developed a strong relationship with NBC Sports Network which has covered the series in past years, providing great coverage for the series and making it more attractive for partners and sponsors.

Munich (DE), 5th December 2014.Emotional end to the BMW Motorsport season BMW Sports Trophy awards recognise the years main protagonists.BMW Motorsport hosted an entertaining programme on Friday as it looked back on a successful racing season at the traditional season review in Maisach (DE). The years main protagonists assembled at the BMW Driving Experience training site on the outskirts of Munich (DE)


to spend an exciting evening with the rest of the BMW Motorsport family and to honour the drivers and teams that made history and made the headlines in 2014.For the first time, BMW Motorsport Director Jens Marquardt handed over more than just the trophies for the most successful privateer BMW drivers and teams this year. BMW Sports Trophy awards were also presented in many other categories. When drawing up the programme for our BMW Motorsport Season Review, we took inspiration from the kind of award ceremonies we are familiar with from the entertainment industry, said Marquardt, who hosted the evening alongside TV presenter Maren Braun (DE). We have always placed great emphasis on paying special attention to our privateer BMW Sports Trophy drivers and teams at this event, and on thanking them for their commitment. At the same time, it was obviously also nice to be able to look back at the success we enjoyed with our works programme. The trophies for the most successful driver and the most successful team in the 2014 BMW Sports Trophy went to Markus Palttala (FI) and the Adrenalin Motorsport team. Its team principal, Matthias Unger (DE), also celebrated a second award, which it received for winning

the new BMW M235i Racing Cup class. Adrenalin drivers Daniel Zils (DE), Norbert Fischer (DE) and Uwe Ebertz (DE) were the top drivers in this category. DTM champion Marco Wittmann (DE), Rookie of the Year Maxime Martin (BE) and BMW Team RMG Team Principal Stefan Reinhold (DE) also received trophies from Marquardt for their title wins in the DTM. This has been a fantastic end to a dream season, said Wittmann after the award ceremony. Some busy weeks are behind me; but I have thoroughly enjoyed every day as the DTM champion. Now we must focus on 2015. I can hardly wait until we get going again. Wittmanns fellow DTM drivers Martin Tomczyk (DE) and Timo Glock (DE) also left the event with awards in their hands for their spectacular synchronised drift, which they pulled off in the BMW M4 Coup in Portimo (PT). Jens Klingmann (DE) received the trophy for the Sporting Gesture of the Year: the German driver immediately leapt out of his car and rushed to help other drivers out of their cockpits after a mass collision during the ADAC GT Masters race in Oschersleben (DE). Jesse Krohn (FI) ended the inaugural season of the new BMW Motorsport Junior programme as the top driver. Marquardt had the honour of presenting

8two special BMW Sports Trophy awards as the BMW Motorsport Season Review reached its grand finale: Franz Engstler (DE), who bid farewell to the FIA World Touring Car Championship, received the BMW Sports Trophy Honorary Reward in recognition of his performances for BMW in this and many other series. There were also standing ovations when BMW works driver Alessandro Zanardi (IT) entered the stage to receive the trophy for Comeback of the Year. Zanardi returned to motorsport with BMW in the 2014 Blancpain Sprint Series and also caused quite a stir away from the track with more record-breaking performances, such as taking part in his first triathlon in Hawaii (US). Zanardi said: This is a truly special award for me. It just shows how much my friends at BMW Motorsport who have supported over the years believe in me. On the track my comeback season could have gone better. But thats exactly why I will compete again in 2015. An overview of the winners of the 2014 BMW Sports Trophy awards.BMW Sports Trophy Driver of the Year:Markus Palttala (FI)

BMW Sports Trophy Team of the Year:Adrenalin Motorsport

DTM Driver of the Year:Marco Wittmann (DE)

DTM Team of the Year:BMW Team RMG

DTM Rookie of the Year:Maxime Martin (BE)

Best Team in the BMW M235i Racing Cup:Adrenalin MotorsportBest Driver in the BMW M235i Racing Cup:Daniel Zils (DE), Norbert Fischer (DE), Uwe Ebertz (DE)

BMW Motorsport Junior of the Year:Jesse Krohn (F

Drift of the

Year:Martin Tomczyk (DE), Timo Glock (DE)

Sporting Gesture of the Year:Jens Klingmann (DE)

BMW Sports Trophy Honorary Award:Franz Engstler (DE)

Comeback of the Year:Alessandro Zanardi (IT)


Joey Hand tweets end of BMW careerJoey Hand was in Munich for the BMW Motorsport Season Review when this somewhat surprising tweet came out.

Joey Hand @JoeyHandRacingThx for concerns, tough decision to leave BMW, been a great run with awesome teams but really excited about my new program and the future!

Hand has had a tough few years in the DTM series even with a BMW that has won the championship twice since BMWs return to the series. We will miss him at the wheel of a BMW and wish him well as he joins Ganassi racing in the Tudor series.

Munich, Germany December 5th, 2014 TURNER CHAMPIONSHIP DRIVERS WIN BMW SPORT TROPHY AWARDS BMW names Turner Motorsport drivers as two of the worlds most successful privateer BMW race drivers of 2014. Besting more than 283 BMW racing drivers across the world Turner Motorsport driver Markus

Palttala was awarded the 2014 BMW Sports Trophy . The 37 year old Finland native accepted a check in the amount of 30,000 euro Friday from the BMW Motorsport Director Jens Marquardt at the annual award ceremony,

held at the new BMW Driving Academy location in Maisach, Germany. To a certain degree, the BMW Sports Trophy epitomises the DNA of BMW in motorsport, said Jens Marquardt, BMW Motorsport Director. For over 50 years these competitions have allowed us to acknowledge the most successful privateer teams and drivers, who enjoy success around the world with BMW racing cars, thus making them excellent ambassadors for our brand. In 2014, our team monitored and recorded the results of the BMW drivers and teams in a total of 60 racing series and events. This amounted to an incredible 6,000 individual results from 1,400 drivers. It is impressive how many drivers and teams around the world put their faith in BMW cars. It is an amazing honor to win the BMW Sport Trophy. This is definitely one of the highlights of my racing career thus far and it has been extra special to do it with Turner Motorsport. With the Championship Win fresh in our minds, 2014 has really been an amazing season, commented Markus Palttala, who just completed his German DTM testing in Spain earlier this


week. Turner driver Dane Cameron, crowned GTD driver Champion in the 2014 Tudor United SportsCar Championship was also honored at the BMW Sport Trophy Ceremony as one of the worlds most successful privateer BMW race drivers. Cameron was awarded 20,000 euro for second place in the 2014 BMW Sport Trophy points standings. Driving a BMW for Turner Motorsport this season has truly been a year to remember. Between our wins at Laguna Seca, Watkins Glen, Road America and VIR as well as several podiums and of course the Championship there is not much out there that could top it. Now finishing second in the BMW Sport Trophy it is that much more special, commented Dane Cameron. Palttala and Cameron captured the Team Championship in the Tudor United SportsCar Championship GTD class with four wins, six podiums and 10 top-ten finishes in the No. 94 BMW Z4 GTD. A fourth place finish in the 10 hour Petit Le Mans allowed

the duo to clinch the Championship for BMW and Turner Motorsport in the teams 302 professional race with BMW and final race of the 2014 season. Just three years ago, Turner driver Paul Dalla Lana was awarded the 2011 BMW Sports Trophy in the 50th awards ceremony for his incredible performances in both the Continental Tire GS class and Rolex Series GT class. Prior to 2011, team owner Will Turner earned third place in the 2006 BMW Sport Trophy rankings, marking a major highlight in Turners racing career. First I want to congratulate both Dane and Markus for their performances this past season, they were honestly the dream team together in the BMW Z4 GTD. It is great to see that BMW recognizes both of our drivers for all the hard work and dedication they put in this year. The awards ceremony and party is always an excellent experience and I am happy we can be here again, said Will Turner.

12

Rochester, NY RUMOR HAS IT Rochester based Ken DArcy who made his professional racing debut at Watkins Glen in 2014 with the ex Automatic Racing M3 in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge will again be seen at some Conti events. As the stories go, DArcy will have a new co-driver for the series and the car will be run by newly created The Little Speed Shop Motorsports team. more details will be available soon as we are having a meeting with DArcy over the holiday period.

Roxton Pond, QC FINALLY, SALLENBACH TAKES THE CTCC TITLE 2014 was another good year for our friends at Octane Motorsports with longtime driver finally getting the Canadian Touring Car Championship Touring class title he so richly deserved. Previous years had seen Sallenbach get ever so close to the championship only to lose it due to various situations beyond his control. Originally planning to run the new R58 MINI Coupe Sallenbach told us about his season. I was so disapointed, and started the season in the good old R53, which I still love. At each of the six first double headers, we won one race and were second three times, one third, one fourth, by not taking to many risks, and only one DNF at ICAR (Throttlebody in 1st lap) So we started to think it would be possible to win the Championship after four

weekends. The highlight was again GP3R, by not going out for practice (it was rainy and I had no interest in taking risks ). I put the car on pole after only four laps and parked the car to save it. Then during the night race a broken belt tensioner at the end of race looked like a DNF but we saved tthird place thanks the pacecar. A second pole for race two delivered another a win and the championship was secured at this point. We were so happy, Marc-Andre my crew-chief and the entire team. This allowed us to bring the Coupe out for Mosport, but again issues intervened that we were unable to point out, was it electrical? safe mode?...we finished 4th and 6th. not getting the right answers, meant we had to go to the Fall Classic at Mt. Tremblant where we solved our problems on Friday night and the car was just awesome on Saturday and Sunday.

Now we know which details to work on this winter and are confident for 2015, and would like it to be low key without the pressure, just like this year. Myself and the team have worked harder and not won the championship. Im also proud to win the Championship a couple of months before turning sixty.

I am still ready to go to fight with younger drivers, they will see there is still life in the old dog yet. I could not have done this without an amazing team behind me, Alain Lauziere and the Octane Motorsport team and our great sponsors deserve this championship for giving me the tools to do it. Roll on 2015!


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As of a converstion we had with Michel on December 19th the plan is for him to defend his Canadian Touring Car Championship title in the R58 Coupe with the R53 acting as a backup.

Thanks to John R. Walker for coming to the rescue with the Coupe photo.

Good luck from everyone here at MotorWerks

14

Product NewsSanta is coming, what is he bringing?

With Christmas coming soon how about we look at a few things that would be great gifts for racers.

SIMPSON HELMET DRYERThis one I can vouch for myself. I used it in the heat of the summer and instead of putting back on a wet smelly helmet it feels as if you are putting on a new helmet every time. It is easy to use, set the helmet over the vent and set the timer and walk away. Our friends at Team DI have them on for $109.95 USD.www.teamdi.com

REPLAY XD PRIME XIve been a fan of the RePlay XD cameras since they arrived on the scene. I am a strong believer in the Built for Racers by a Racer philosophy and John Spar knows what is needed to get quality race footage. The Prime X brings WiFi to the RePlay XD line-up for the first time as well as a state of the art Hyperion CinePrime X lens. Battery life is extended now to 3.5 hours on a single charge. It also has the ability to charge twice as quick as previous models.

The unit comes with a tilt adjustable mount, a LowBoy fixed mount, tripod 1/4-20 SnapTray, Flat VHB SnapTray, Curved VHB SnapTray, a SnapTray 3M VHB, 4GB UHS microSDHC Card, Mini USB Cable, a Nylon Ballistic Case, a Silk Camera Bag, Windbreaker Decal Kit, two Replay XD Decals and a User Guide. Price is $299 USD You can check them out on www.replayxd.com

SPEED SECRETS WEEKLYRoss Bentley was a good racer and has become an even better driver coach. His Speed Secrets books are available from his website and are great stocking stuffers for Xmas but it is his Speed Secrets Weekly that I think is the best bargain he has going. Speed Secrets Weekly delivers information in a simple-to-use, entertaining way. All business with no fun is no way to learn. Thats been a key to Ross Bentleys success in delivering driver and instructor training for decades. Its why his Speed Secrets books are the best selling series of driving books of all time; its why he is so in-demand as a both a coach and presenter (seminars, workshops, keynote talks). And its one of the main reasons Speed Secrets Weekly subscribers just cant wait for each issue to arrive on Tuesday mornings. Best of all you cant beat the price! All 52 issues for only $12.00 USD a year ($0.23/issue)Details at http://speedsecretsweekly.com

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For immediate release, Dayton, OH, 1 Nov, 2014

New Wheels From Forgeline

The annual SEMA (Speciality Equipment Manufacturing Association) Show ran from November 3-7 in Las Vegas. The world leader in custom made-to-order forged competition wheels, Forgeline Motorsports used this years show to unveil six new wheels. Three of the designs are included in the brand-new Heritage series that Forgeline brings to the market in 2015. Two of the wheels, the RS3 and LS3 pay homage to some of Forgelines initial designs but reborn as three-piece wheels with updated engineering and manufacturing technology. A fourth three-piece wheel is the new GT 3C Concave. The GT 3C combines race-bred styling of the GTD 1 monoblock race wheel with fitment flexibility and deep-dish appearance on a three piece modular wheel.Forgeline has also adds two new wheels to the their one-piece forged Monoblock series. The AR1 is an exciting evolution in Forgeline Monoblock styling. It features a very angular split spoke, extra deep concave and radically angled outer edge. The GA1R Open Lug Cap Edition is very similar to Forgelines race proven GA1R Open Lug with all its lightweight features but includes a center cap, making it perfect as a fully styled road wheel for prestige vehicles.Forgeline Motorsports is very proud to unveil these wheels at the 2014 SEMA show and remains committed to creating fresh designs, leveraging new technology and responding quickly to dynamic market opportunities.

Forgeline Motorsports manufactures the worlds finest custom forged aluminum street and racing performance wheels for the most discerning enthusiasts and the most demanding applications. The wheels are built right here in the USA.

Forgeline RS3

Forgeline AR1

For more information visit our website at www.forgeline.com.


Forgeline LS3

Forgeline LGT3C Concave

Forgeline CR3

Forgeline GA1R Open LugCap Edition

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Corsa expands BMW line Systems Now Available for 2012-2014 BMW 335i F30 BEREA, Ohio - CORSA(r) Performance is expanding its exhaust product line for BMWs with a dual rear exit, cat-back system for the 2012-2014 BMW 335i F30. BMW owners can enhance their driving experience with a CORSA exhaust system, which is engineered to maximize engine performance with a straight-through design to reduce back pressure. The companys patented Reflective Sound Cancellation(r) (RSC(r)) technology creates a unique acoustic combination of high-performance sound under acceleration and a drone-free experience during cruise. CORSA exhaust systems for the BMW 335i F30 are available in a Touring sound level, which enhances throttle sound while being quiet during idle and mellow under acceleration. Made in the USA, CORSAs high-quality exhaust systems are made with premium 304L stainless steel and feature double-wall construction, 3-inch diameter pipes and dual rear exit Pro-Series 3.5-inch tips laser etched with the CORSA logo. Systems are available for both the rear wheel drive (part number #14937) and all-wheel drive (part number #14938) 2012-2014 BMW 335i F30 with either polished or black PVD coated stainless steel tips. When comparing the CORSA exhaust system with the stock 335i system, flow bench testing shows the CORSA exhaust system flows 3.36 percent better with the stock valve open and 35 percent better with the valve closed. A limited lifetime warranty protects CORSA Performance exhaust systems for as long as you own the vehicle. Available through select retailers and distributors nationwide, systems come complete with top-quality installation

hardware and detailed instructions. Listen to the CORSA BMW 335i F30 exhaust system under acceleration in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCAqvW_TzK8. Additionally, CORSA makes exhaust systems for the BMW 1 Series dating back to the 2008 model year, 3 Series dating back to the 1992 model year, M3 Series dating back to the 1992 model year and the M5 Series dating back to the 1998 model year.About CORSA Performance CORSA Performance, a TMG Performance Products, LLC brand headquartered in Berea, Ohio, is a leading manufacturer of premium performance exhaust systems for cars, trucks,

SUVs and marine applications. Through its patented Reflective Sound Cancellation(r) (RSC) technology, CORSA Performance Exhausts provides the industrys only guaranteed drone-free driving experience backed by premium performance and superior customer service.

For more information, call 800.486.0999 or visit www.corsaperformance.com.


Oakville, ON. 24th November, 2014.For immediate release

Ian Rae the publisher and editor of MotorWerks Magazine, the Internets premier digital magazine focusing on BMWs and Minis is happy to announce another addition to the editorial department. David Lewis a MINI owner and enthusiast of Lyons, Illinois is joining Motorwerks Magazine as a freelance writer in the coming months. Davids brief is to write product evaluation and installation articles for MINI Coopers, specifically the R53 model. He is also going to function as our Mid-West correspondent, writing articles on the amazing cars and activities that are found in the area!His articles have been featured in other magazines and he has a large following in the Facebook group League of Extraordinary MINIacs. Daves rides at present include a 2005 R53 MINI Cooper and a 1976 Corvette. You can find him driving the MINI Cooper at the local track, and the Corvette at local shows. David can be contacted at [email protected].


For Immediate release, Oakville, ON Canada

MotorWerks Magazine is happy to announce promising young Scottish racer Ashleigh Morris will be joining our editorial team with a Blog giving some insight into her Scottish BMW Compact Cup campaign.MWM Editor, Ian Rae, a fellow Scot explained, I came

across Ashleigh browsing BMW racing in the UK and it turned out I knew the family well, including both her grandfathers, one of them even sold me my first car. Having raced and hillclimbed in Scotland back in the seventies I have always watched out for young Scottish

With fellow Scot, ex F1 driver Paul Di Resta

talent and followed their careers. Most recently it was newly crowned UK MINI Champion Chris Knox we helped out when he raced in Grand-Am. Ashleigh has done well in the short time she has been racing and if we can help her out with more exposure, that is only good for her career. The powers that be in the Scottish Motor Racing Club seem to think she has what it takes as she was one of five young drivers chosen as their Rising Stars, the others being Sebastian Melrose, Hannah Chapman, Euan McKay, and Brogan Kinsella. We look forward to her blog which she has not come up with a name for yet. I am sure readers will find out racing with a family run team from the North coast of Scotland has many trials and tribulations and is not as easy as you would think. Ashleigh went on, Im delighted to have been given the opportunity to write for MWM. Its the first time Ive done anything like this but I look forward to keeping everyone up to date about the BMW Compact Cup and progress in my racing career. I love being a part of this sport, and hope to be involved for many years to come! (Im not very good at this... Yet! Lol)Her father Cammy added, Myself and her mother Yvonne are proud enough to burst regarding what Ashleigh has achieved this season. She has worked hard

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in every track session and refuses to give up. She will listen to advice and work out what is good for her and what isnt. Her rapport with some of the other racers like Carol Brown and Alan Kirkaldy is tremendous and she is usually the first driver they enquire about after the race once they have got themselves sorted. We can only support her in any way we can and the rest is up to her, we dont doubt her commitment to this. I could go on and on like any proud parent but what we have accomplished in the last fifteen months has been

nothing short of amazing, bring on 2015.

Ashleigh Morris Racing is run by the family team Morris Motorsport competing in the Scottish BMW Compact Cup. As a promising newcomer with little experience, driver Ashleigh Morris has more than impressed and has been selected as one of five SMRC Rising Stars

Photo Eddie Kelly

MotorWerks Magazine now available in print!

That is right, we are now available in print. Using what we call our Print on Demand option any reader can now got to Blurb.com type Motorwerks Magazine into

the search box and you will be broght to our Bookstore. You can also click this link www.blurb.com/user/store/CooperRSR The first thing I have to tell you is this is not a cheap option. We have no intention at this point of getting into the print magazine business. This is purely a means for those that prefer to have the magazine in print form because they are in it or really want to hold it in their hands. We investigated all the options for print and had the three best options printed. Blurb has a premium and economy paper option at two different price points. Both are good in my opinion, with the premium being outstanding quality. If you really want a great keepsake, this is it! The economy paper option is not as vibrant in color and feels more like a magazine, whereas the premium is like a good photo book.

The other option is directly available through ISSUU.com where the magazine is hosted. The paper quality is sort of in between the two Blurb offerings but it looks as if they use the lo-res web pdf as their source to build the magazine which immediately shows up in the form of a jagged MWM logo on the front cover. I would not suggest anyone go this route. Prices will vary dependant on the page count as well as the paper option. We are NOT making money on the printing, the prices are what Blurb charges. At present there are only two magazine in the Bookstore. One is economy, one is premium. Read the magazine description so see which one it is. If you want the other paper option contact me and I can set it up.

Photo Eddie Kelly




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24

Another good PRI show for VAC Motorsports

VAC Motorsports CEO Tony Salloum told us, The 2014 PRI Show went well for us. We had a ton of traffic and plenty of interest in our products. Normally, our engines are the big draw but this year it was our growing line of Samsonas transmissions. Although there is always interest in the Mitsubishi Evo and the Subaru H pattern gearboxes the sequential gearboxes are getting much most interest. The latest sequential gearbox from Samsonas is the URWD-S6 which stands for Universal Rear Wheel Drive 6 Speed Sequential. It

was by far the biggest draw in our booth. The interest is great because we can fit this box to any bell housing and car. The small size, 8 diameter x about 15 length, less bell housing of course is what makes this an attractive option for many. The case is made from billet aluminum and the gears are made from forgings which makes them very strong. We have already sold four gearboxes in the first week after the show.For those interested the $12,995 show special is still good to the end of 2014. Considering the gearbox comes with a shifter and gear display this is a great deal. www.vacmotorsports.com


All of us here at Ashleigh Morris Racing would like to invite our followers and supporters to take part in special opportunity. Firstly, with the 2014 season just finished, I would like to, again, thank all that have supported me and the team and sent words of encouragement and guidance in what was my first full season of racing which resulted in a 17th place finish overall. It was only September 2013 when I started my very first race and have worked, listened and developed over the season to such an extent that it was announced that I was one of the SMRC Rising Stars. With no previous race experience prior to September 2013, this is quite an achievement which everyone associated with the team are rightly proud of. The support from DR Alexander, The Comm Bar Thurso, Thurso Tyre Centre, Sandy Coghill, Evans Waterless Coolants, Dundas Training Brechin and Signright Inverness has been invaluable and will hopefully continue. Thanks go out to all the people who have contributed to 2014. There are loads of you out there but ones that deserve a special mention include Alan Kirkaldy, Si Laing, Carol Brown, Phil Grant, Greg Graham, Steve Emslie, Mark Souter, Billy Campbell and the rest of the North East crew whose encouragement has got me through some of the lows and congratulated me on some of the highs. There any many others within the Compact Cup and the officials at Knockhill who Team Morris would like to thank but cant name them all here. Last but certainly not least to the marshals, a massive thank you because without them there would be no racing. For the 2015 season AMR will again be competing in the Scottish BMW Compact Cup along with competing in selected rounds of the Gaz Shocks Compact Cup in England. This will be following an extensive refresh of BMW Compact #77 over the off season which will see the car back to looking and performing at its best come the start of the season.

For 2015, the car will be carrying a chequered design on the roof made up of 50 10cmx10cm squares. Each of these squares will be up for sale at 50 each. People can have their names or messages printed in the squares they buy. 50% of the funds will be donated to The

Archie Foundation at Raigmore Hospital in Inverness. Each square will have a unique number which will be entered into a draw for each race meeting and the winner will receive two tickets for entry to an SMRC race meeting at Knockhill of their choice. There will also be a one off draw with the winner receiving one nights accommodation at the Holiday Inn Express, Dunfermline (or alternative HIE) plus two tickets for entry to an SMRC race meeting at Knockhill. The owners of the squares will also get regular updates via email or similar to keep them up to date with the latest AMR news. The funds raised from this will go towards my development as a race driver in the way of driver training, additional testing and track time to advance my skills.

For further information, please contact Ashleigh at [email protected] or through the Ashleigh Morris Racing Facebook page.

I would also like to wish all my friends, family and MIBI and BMW lovers all over the world a great Christmas and happy New Year. If you are at a racetrack in 2015 where we are competing, come on by and say hello.

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If you spend any time at all on the Internet frequenting MINI Facebook pages I can guarantee you have come across Kelli Creighton. It is easy to describe her as a colorful person, one who is a bundle of fun. But Kelli has a thing about zombies, in particular killing them. This role-play seems to be fun for her but when it comes to having a zombie handy as a target, that role falls to her husband Larry. Poor Larry, but he does not seem to complain. Thanks for putting together this article Kelli, it is great to see the trip Thru Kellis Eyes

MINIs On The Dragon..318 Curves in only eleven milesOne thousand people registered for the event in six hundred and ninety-three MINIs.. And an amazing $14,5000 was raised for the Graham County Food Bank thanks to MOTD registrations, donations and from the Mini Skirts booth.

2014 was our fourth time to MINIs On The Dragon (MOTD) and my zombie and I decided to change our trip up a bit. We started the journey on the Monday before MOTD with plans of stopping in Senoia, GA (aka Woodbury from The Walking Dead TV show) to get in some sightseeing and photos for my club, the MINI Cooper Zombie Outbreak Response Team. Also, I was in hopes of running into the stars of the show, Daryl or

Words by Kelli Creighton, photos by Larry the Zombie and Alicyn Drew.


MINIs On The Dragon..318 Curves in only eleven milesOne thousand people registered for the event in six hundred and ninety-three MINIs.. And an amazing $14,5000 was raised for the Graham County Food Bank thanks to MOTD registrations, donations and from the Mini Skirts booth.

Rick, since they had resumed filming that week. On our way to Senoia, we ran into tornados again (it has become a standing joke amongst other MINI peeps that Blaze likes to bring the tornados with him to The Dragon) This year we were chased all the way to Montgomery, AL., where we stayed the night with sirens blaring and I was fearful of Blaze getting pelted by hail. I actually contemplated soaking the hotel bedspread

and using it to cover Blaze for the night! Well, we made it through the night without my baby getting hurt, even though we were told by the news to take cover multiple times throughout the night. On Tuesday we continued to Senoia where we stopped at our favorite place for lunch, the Senoia Coffeehouse & Cafe is definitely a must if you are ever in the area. We went on to visit the new Walking Dead gift shop in town called the Woodbury Shoppe where I took lots of fun pictures in their museum and sat on Daryls motorcycle (dont tell them). We visited a few filming locations in & around Senoia and again took lots of pictures for my troops. When it was time to leave Senoia, we decided against staying the night in Atlanta and drove all the way to our destination for MOTD, Bryson City, NC. We heard that the second wave of storms was making its way to us again and figured we should just out run them. We arrived at West Oak Cabins and Bed & Breakfast on Tuesday evening, one day early, so it was now time to relax. We stay at West Oak every year, the cabins are super cute and quiet and the owner is really nice to us.Wednesday, saw us waking up to a much better day. The weather was nice, in fact perfect Dragon slaying weather! We had our daily super yummy free breakfast at the Everett Street Diner, one of the best places in town for breakfast. Then we made our way to The Road To Nowhere, about ten miles outside of Bryson City, NC. The Road To Nowhere was a name given by the residents of Swain County, the actual name is Lakeside Drive. The road goes to a beautiful tunnel that goes nowhere. The Federal Government was supposed to finish it so the displaced residents from the creation of Fontana Lake could get to old family cemeteries. They never followed through and now the residents have placed a sign at the beginning that says; A Broken Promise. My zombie took some beautiful Victorian style pictures while we were there. Finally we decided to make our way to The Dragon. We just had Blazes ECU tuned & that little MoFo is so fast, we practically burned the tires off on the first run, tires squealing the entire way, going as fast as the zombie could safely go without leaving the pavement & taking flight. There was a strong smell of brake dust wafting in the air. It was the perfect time, since not everyone had arrived and the Dragon was clear of other cars. Blaze was meant to drive The

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Dragon, especially now since the upgrades. We took the Dragon twice before deciding to make our way to where all the MINI peeps hang out, Fontana Village. I saw lots of old friends, met new ones and eyeballed lots and lots of MINIs. Its always so much fun hanging out with hundreds of MINIs, I feel like Im in a huge gang! That evening was the MINI Skirts party, they always throw an awesome bash! Lots of great music and people partying, plus a photobooth. I dont drink, but my zombie was loving the free beer!Thursday was a day to take it easy, just hanging with MINI peeps at Fontana Village & Vendor Alley, there was so much cool stuff to buy from great vendors. We also visited the Fontana Dam Visitor Center and the zombie harassed the nice ladies that volunteer there. They were very sad to see him leave. I think that was the most

excitement theyd had in days! We departed for the Zombie Kill & met the troops at the lower dam area. About ten MINIs showed up and we annihilated two zombies. Everyone took pictures with their cars and the zombies (no real firearms are used in the photo shoots). I have a feeling those zombies will live another day to irritate us again....one day soon. Im always ready! That evening I took Blaze on an evening run on The Dragon, its more difficult at night, but equally as fun. There are usually less people out there at night which allows you to go faster.... faster is always more fun! Friday, we decided to take Foothill Parkway over to the town of Townsend for some lunch, shopping and sightseeing. Foothill Parkway has some awesome photo ops of the Smoky Mountains and surrounding areas. That evening I had a nighttime photo shoot booked with Alicyn Drew who is an amazing photographer. It was so much fun, she worked with a fog machine and some really cool lighting. Blaze turned out beautiful! If you ever have the chance to book Glamour Shots on The Dragon with her, do so!Saturday it was all about the Car Show time, we had to hurry up and get Blaze cleaned up for the show. We were one of the first cars to pull in and I had high hopes for winning,

but as soon as I saw Murray Pfaff and Alter Ego pull in, I knew I was beat! That car is awesome! He ended up winning five trophies. I know he won 1st place in my category (Hardtops) and Best In Show (cant remember the other three). Blaze won 2nd place Hardtops division & Jaw-Dropping Interior! I was very happy with that! Luther Shields won 1st in the Coupes class with Joshua Hamman winning in the Convertibles division. Molly Nolte was the winner with her beautiful Morgan in the Other division. There were so many awesome cars in the car show! I cant remember all the winners.Sunday came way too soon, I didnt get to meet everyone that I planned on meeting or do all the things I wanted to do. Next time I will definitely stay longer. If you have not made it to a MOTD event, do so! You will not regret it. Its always our favorite event, great people


The scenery is beathtaking, through in a MINI or two and it becomes stunning!

& beautiful scenery, lots of waterfalls, so much to do, youll never have time to get bored! Im already missing The Dragon & my MINI friends....my second home....till next time....


Our continuing mission is to educate racers on the advantages of high-quality safety equipment.85 Franklin Rd, Suite 5-B Dover, NJ 07801 Tel: 800-275-4667

www.teamdi.com

Glamourshots by Alicyn Drew

www.alicyndrew.com


For those of you that did not know Kelli, has agreed to work with M7 Tuning/Speed as their social media ambassador. This involves posting al sorts of MINI related things to their social media sites and representing the company at some events where it is not possible for staff to attend. if you have any MINI events or M7 related news, contact her on Facebook to get exposure on their Facebook page.

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Another season has finished and it has been a quite a rollercoaster year! We ended up taking the Power Maxed MINI Challenge overall title by eighty points and becoming the first ever repeat winner in the series. So lets go back and recap the 2014 season! It wasnt looking like I was going to be competing this year until a few days before the season started. My manager and the SL Group owner had struck a last minute deal to get me on the grid, with initial backing from shopplay.co.uk. We again ran with

Excelr8 Motorsport who did such a great job when I took the title back in 2011. Arriving at the first round it still wasnt known in the paddock that I was competing, so I think I took a few people by surprise! With little testing I put the car was on pole by a big margin! I hadnt lost my touch! However things didnt stay on a high for long! Races one and two at Donington Park were among the most frustrating I have ever encountered in all my years of racing. Three laps into the race while leading comfortably, the engine power dropped off slightly and I

Words by Chris Knox, photos by Dave Young Photos


up for the CHALLENGE

First ever repeat MINI Challenge Champion

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was forced to drop back to third as I was became a sitting duck on the straights. To cap it all, not far from the end of the race I suddenly found myself in the gravel as the result of a late lunge gone wrong by a fellow competitor who hit me pretty hard. Race two was equally frustrating. I started way down the grid and used my fast starting advantage to climb up the order but was again

hampered by the lack of straightline speed! Finally in race three my prayers were answered! The rain was torrential as we left the starting grid. Having just put on wets, I was in my element, I grabbed the lead at the end of lap one and didnt look back, the power issue made no difference in the wet conditions and I sprinted away to my first win of the year. This Scotsman still had it

when the rain comes down! The next round of the Power Maxed MINI Challenge at Brands Hatch had us welcoming a new backer, Rivervale Leasing, thanks for coming on board guys! The weekend may have started off as another event from hell but it sure finished in euphoric fashion.In qualifying the gear linkage broke and caused me to miss a shift

which resulted in an over-revved engine. Luckily the track was wet so it masked the problem slightly, I was still able to retain my second spot on the grid. The team changed the engine as it wasnt sounding right in the garage. Unfortunately engine number two of the weekend was not up to snuff! The straight-line speed was embarrassing and everytime I made an overtake I

was re-passed on any straight. I came home to a disappointing but hard fought fourth! Another engine change overnight was the only option! With engine number three in the car we took three wins on the Sunday including a reverse grid win at the end of the day! Satisfying? Heck yes! On to weekend three at Snetterton, we had tested a few

weekends prior to the event to make sure everything was ok, however the water pump belt detached and it cooked the engine, was a fourth engine on the cards? Luckily the team managed to get away with putting on a fresh cylinder head on so Im now on engine 3.5 haha! Qualifying was close between my main rival, Luke Caudle and I with Luke just pipping me to pole by a


tenth of a second. Race one was pretty straight forward, Luke took the win and I just followed him home, there was nothing between us. The reverse grid was my opportunity to get in front of Luke and I held the advantage over him on the opening lap as I started to

catch the two guys in front. After dropping the first driver, I set out after Lawrence Davey, I got a great draft on the back straight and went around the outside under braking, unfortunately Lawrence couldnt get his MINI stopped in time and made contact with me spinning me off onto the dirt. I rejoined with a damaged car but still salvaged a points finish. Points make championships, remember! Weekend four had us heading north to Oulton Park where I was able to stretch my points lead in the series. I ran minimum laps in qualifying to preserve tyres and lined up third on the grid for race

one. I shadowed race leader Neil Newstead for 75% of the race, just waiting to seize any opportunity that would come along. This came with a few laps to go when we went side by side into the famous Shell hairpin, I was on the outside and got the undercut on the exit and

never looked back. My title rival Luke had some bad luck and failed to finish. Race two was very straight forward, lights to flag victory, I just love those! Race three was the reverse grid which took me a few laps to fight my way through the field. On the last lap I was behind Neil and he made contact with a back marker, fluid was leaking from his car and it was making it difficult for me to get near him, a yellow flag saved him on the next corner and I thought I would get a better run out the last corner so took a wide line, Lawrence made a massive lunge and got alongside but I had to think of the championship, so took to the

grass to avoid contact and salvaged third! Another great points haul at what is I suppose the closest thing to racing at home for me in the Power Maxed MINI Challenge. From the North we headed to the West Country for weekend five at Castle Combe.

Another new sponsor came onboard, my local bike firm Thomsons Cycles. It was another perfect weekend with pole by a big margin in the wet conditions. Race one was damp but drying so we opted for slick fronts and wet rears. This combo worked perfect for me, I romped to victory number seven on the year and bagged the fastest lap also. The reverse grid was a little chaotic, a red flag on the first start brought a small break before the restart. I was a little cautious on the second restart as I had to keep the championship in mind. I took

a little longer than usual to fight my way through the field but was soon on Lukes bumper challenging for the lead, a brave move on the outside into Quarry, one of the most challenging braking zones in the UK, gave me the lead on exit! I went on to take victory number eight and set another fastest lap. Pretty good considering there was no racing in my future when 2014 started. The Silverstone GP circuit was the venue for weekend six. Qualifying was perfect, I took the pole by 1.8 seconds and backed up my initial pace by taking my ninth race win by a huge margin. Race two got off to a great start and

40

again had a huge lead until my earlier season issues returned, the power dropped off massively and my lead was being eroded by two-seconds a lap. I managed to hold on and bag victory number ten for the year. The reverse grid was going to be very difficult as there was hardly anytime to diagnose the problem. I knew I was going to struggle, but got a great start. As soon as we got on the first straight I was a sitting duck. I had great corner speed but nothing where it counted on the straights. I got on the brakes for an overtake but made contact with Neil which damaged my car, I pitted to make sure there was nothing dragging or cutting into the tyre and continued trying to salvage any points. Post race there was an investigation into the incident with resulted in me keeping my finishing position in race three but would take a grid penalty at the next race at Brands Hatch, This gave me the championship in the office rather than on the track which was a bit frustrating. At the final weekend at Brands Hatch GP we welcomed more new marketing partners, Blackwood Plant Hire, Sweet Buzzards, CCC Events and Projector Lifting Services Ltd. Blackwood Plant Hire owner Tom joined us for the weekend and had a great time at his first MINI Challenge weekend. Qualifying wasnt too important as I had an eight place grid penalty. I lined up second on the road but that meant tenth on the grid for the race. I was a determined man with a point to prove! I had a great start and jumped a couple of rows of cars into turn one. Luke made

contact with the car in front causing him to leak fluid, I lost 7.5 secs to the leaders as the track was like driving on ice! Luke pulled off and it gave me the chance to go after the leaders. Fastest lap after fastest lap followed and I passed Lawrence into third, then disposed of Neil for second but ran out of time to catch Jono Brown. Race two put me on the front row with Jono on fresh rubber, I knew I had to get by on the first lap to have a chance. I did just that with an amazing move around the outside at Stirlings, I built on the lead to win in front of all my sponsors watching from the hospitality suite! Race three was

over before it started. I got a great start from sixth and was up to third in the first lap, until a huge accident caused a red flag and with no daylight to resume, the doors were closed on the 2014 Power Maxed MINI Challenge season. Special thanks go out to all my sponsors for making this season happen, I could not have done it without you. Thanks to my team and to all the MINI fans worldwide that continue to support me! Finally, thanks to Motorwerks Magazine for having faith in the lanky Scot they met at Daytona in 2012 and allowing me to retell my 2014 story on their pages. Till next season!

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Chris Knox2014 Power Maxed MINI Challenge Champion


Photo by Marc Pantony

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ONE YEAR ON!BMW and WTCC at SONOMA


Words by Ian Rae, photos by author, Janis Rae and Norman Nelson

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ver since 2007 when the comedy - drama The Bucket List starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman came to the movie screens portraying

terminally ill hospital patients, the term bucket list has indicated a must do event in a persons life. My bucket list comprises a few things that will probably not happen but one that was achievable and relatively easy to make happen was seeing the World Touring Car Championship run at Sonoma Raceway in 2013. The downside to the trip was this was the last time BMWs would be seen running at the famed north American venue due to rules changes for the 2014 season. The upside was the WTCC and my first ever trip to the track that is formerly known as Sears Point or Infineon Raceway.

E We arrived early on Friday afternoon with enough time to stroll around the paddock and check out the cars in their garages. As most of the garage doors were staring to close we figured that everyone was all prepared and ready for racing. Not strictly true. Some of the crew and drivers were heading to the FIA Media event at a nearby winery. And best of all we were invited! It was not what I expected; instead of being the stuffy, straight laced event I expected it was laid back, drivers and crew were available for the media to talk to in a relaxed atmosphere as the sun went down over a scenic Californian vineyard, in fact a great way to end the day. But imagine my surprise when I caught a glimpse of a well kent face as they say in Scotland. It was not a current driver but one whose career started at the same Scottish hillcimb

Tom CoronelBorn Apr 5th, 1972Naarden, Netherlands2006/2009 WTCC Independents Trophy4 WTCC Wins2013 Team: ROAL MotorsportStarted racing in Citroen AX Cup in 1990Formula 3 Masters Winner 1997Formula Nippon Champion 1999

50

venues as mine. He just went on to be more famous or as he himself even noted it could have been infamous. It was none other than two-time British Touring Car champion John Cleland.

John has surprised to hear a Scottish voice accost him and failed to place me. Heck, after all it had been over 35 years since our paths had crossed. Asking what he was doing here he sort of sniggered and said, Im with the FIA and after a little bit of a pause for effect continued, Im the driving standards steward! At that point we both had a good smile going (Im glad I finished that mouthful of wine, John) and he once again went on, After all, what can they say when they are up in front of me? They cant come up with an acceptable excuse, after all I invented most of them! To say I was surprised was an understatement but I can remember to this day the occasions I sat in front of the TV and cheered Mr. Cleland on to another win. Johns story has been played out all around motorsport over the years, it was a typical case of the poacher turning gamekeeper. Not hat I think that is a bad thing. When you get a bunch of competitive guys running as close as the WTCC guys do a little bit of rubbing is expected but do something silly and you have John Cleland to contend with and that particular irate Scotsman is not one

They cant come up with

acceptable excuses,

after all, I invented most

of them!

I would like to explain myself too.So how was it? As good as I expected and MORE! We could not have picked a better track than Sonoma to see the them on. The elevation changes, the sweeping curves coming back from the far end of the track, the cars were so good to watch as they seemed to be glued to the track. That is not to say we did not see some off track excursions? Some of the drivers were just determined to find the limit and back it down a bit for qualifying and the racing.


Yeah, thats right, racing. A typical WTCC event comprises of two races, one with a rolling start and the other from a standing start. Throw in the top ten qualifiers for the first race starting the second race in reversed positions and it can get pretty interesting at times.

How were my BMWs performing? Unfortunately not so good, Moroccan driver Mehdi Bennani was the quickest in his Proteam Racing BMW 320TC driver in tenth place, giving him pole for the second race. Tom Coronel was next up in twelfth in the lead ROAL Motorsport car followed by Fredy Barth (13), Darryl OYoung (14), Franz Engstler (15) Stefano DAste (17), Charles Ng (18)

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Stefano DAsteBorn Feb 28th, 1974 Genoa, Italy2007 WTCC Independents Trophy2 WTCC Wins

2013 Team: PB RacingStarted racing motorcycles and has been involved in touring cars since 2004 in European Touring Car Championship

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Below: No smiles from John Cleland if you are bad!

Tom Coronel drove BMWs in WTCC since 2011

Racing in the WTCC is tough! Charles Ng dukes it out with Seat and a Lada as he crests Turn 2


Practice saw everyone trying hard! Here Bennani locks the brakes into the chicane

Racing in the WTCC is tough! Charles Ng dukes it out with Seat and a Lada as he crests Turn 2


With the BMWs were struggling at best, the most anyone hoped for was moving through the field and into a points paying postion. Both Coronel and DAste managed that in the first race where Briton Tom Chilton took his first ever win in the series with the Ray Mallock Ltd, Chevrolet Cruze. Coronels teamate Darryl OYoung only managed to complete five laps before having to retire.Race 2 boded well for BMW with Bennani on pole but it was Gabriele Tarquini who converted the number two spot into first when he slipped the Castrol Honda Civic into the lead as he came over the top of Corner 2 as seen in the photo above. Bennani hung in for the duration of the race and finished only 2.4 seconds behind the flying Italian at the conclusion of thirteen laps. Coronel improved on his previous finish with a sixth after running in tandem with Fredy Barth in the Weichers-Sport BMW for most of the race. Stefano DAste again finished tenth to collect another championship point. When you survey the results and see things like race one winner Chilton, not being able to gain any places in the second race, you really see the depth of talent

that is running in the WTCC. The most notable thing I commented on was the cars sticking so close together in a couple of packs with only a few stragglers. Watching them run nose to tail from 7A through the Esses to 8A was just peotry in motion; definately something worth the trip for. It was classic tin-top racing at its best!

Editors Note:It looks as if the WTCC is not be returning to Sonoma for the 2015 season. this is bad news considering that this years event had to be cancelled because of shipping problems getting the cars to China in time for the next race. The cancelled round was due to be the third race at the circuit of a three year contract. A proposed 2015 schedule was seen online earlier this year and Sonoma was not on it. Considering the WTCC is a world series I feel there should be an event in both Canada and the USA. Mosport and Sonoma, that would be awesome.

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Above: No smiles from John Cleland if you are bad! Below: Tech inspection for North Americans Above: Frank Engstler leads a train up the hill Below: Tom Coronel told me, no kerb hopping, yeah right!


Above: No smiles from John Cleland if you are bad! Below: Tech inspection for North Americans Above: Frank Engstler leads a train up the hill Below: Tom Coronel told me, no kerb hopping, yeah right!

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2014 UK MINI Challenge Championship

Chris Knox became the first driver in the history of the Power Maxed MINI Challenge to lift the John Cooper Challenge Trophy for a second time.Scotsman Knox collected the prestigious trophy during the championships lavish awards ceremony last week, which was this year held at the home of MINI UK the MINI Plant Oxford.

Knox becomes the first driver in the 14-year history of the championship to lift the outright champions John Cooper trophy for a second time, following on from his first title in 2011.

Its such a special feeling to be the overall champion again, especially seeing as my deal to race only came about a few days before the start of the season, said Knox. After round one I didnt think Id be winning it this year. But I worked hard with the ExcelR8 team and my backers SL Group to make it happen. What a season.The Cooper Trophy was just one of a long list of prizes handed out to the most successful drivers in the championship this year. Neil Newstead- who celebrated his 40th birthday on the night of the awards - picked up second in the R56 JCW Class with Luke Caudle getting the third placed trophy.In the Cooper Class Shane Stoney grabbed his second successive champions trophy. We had so much experience to draw on for this year having won the title with Coastal Racing this year, he said. I felt so

comfortable with the team and the results just came my way. But the level of competition was so much higher this year with more Coopers on the grid. It may have looked straightforward on paper, but it was one of the

Words by Ian Rae, photos by Dave Young Photos


toughest seasons of racing Ive had.Josh Gollin celebrated second place in the class points ahead of Ricky Page, who fought off injury to snare the final piece of silverware.There was also a range of special awards handed out. Alan Taylor claimed the Directors Cup for the JCW Class, with Rob Sims Racings Simon Walton taking the same award for the Cooper division. Grace Williams was awarded with the Cooper Ladies Cup after a hard fought season.

An emotional Matt Hammond was named as Rookie of the Year for 2014, having saved diligently for four years just to fund his way on to the grid. Its so special to be recognised because this has been the culmination of a long-held dream for me, he said. I was inspired by Tommy Byrnes book and it made me want to become a racing driver. Theres been a lot of blood, sweat and tears just to get to the grid and Ive had an amazing year. I want to be back next season, but Ive got a lot more hard work to do to get me back here.Lastly came the historic announcement of Lawrence Davey as the winner of this years Best of British Award.

Far Left: Power Maxed owner Adam Weaver hands Chris Knox his second Championship Cup Power Top Left: Club class top 3, centre - 1st Shane Stoney, left 2nd Josh Gollin and right 3rd Ricky PageBottom Left: Power Maxed owner Adam Weaver and Rookie of the Year Matt HammondBelow: Chris Knox recieves the DaveYoungPhotos.com collage from Davids daughter Louise.


Above:Knoxs No1 mechanic, Steve Taylor from Sunderland showed up in a kilt as a tribute to the Flying Scotsman.

Left:The people who make it all happen, the MINI Challenge team from left to right, Michael Chesterton Partner in the MINI Challenge, John Harland Scrutineer/Tech, Michelle Harland - MINI Challenge sign on, Rhea Beauchamp - event coordinator, Robert Ladbrook - Motorsport News Journalist, Antony Williams - MINI Challenge Partner.

Bottom Left:Louise Young, Shane Stoney and proud papa Chris Stoney

Bottom Center:The Award ceremony had a great turnout. It was a night enjoyed by all.

Bottom Right:Chris Knox enjoys an end of season drink with fellow JCW drivers Alan Taylor on the left and Keith Issat on the right. Taylor won the Directors Cup which has a forty years old minimum age to enter.

64

o what am I talking about in the title of this article?You look at the photo and you see a hard

charging Darryl OYoung in his ROAL Motorsport BMW right on the bootlid of James Thompson. Whats wrong with that you say? Nothing, in fact the two are great Touring Car drivers but I am wondering if the problem may have nothing to do with BMW being competitive or spending the money to developing a new engine program to suit the new rules. It may just have to do with the manufacturer of the car that Thompson drives.Those on American shores tend to know nothing about the Russian manufacturer Lada except for the jokes that were made about the Fiat 124 platformed Ladas that made it to Canada between 1979 and 1998. The cars were even prevented from entering the US due to trade sanctions. Lada was designed to be the peoples car for the Eastern Bloc with the term entry level probably being coined for it. Now BMW is racing against a team of Lada Granta Sports with their lead driver being James Thompson, a former British Touring Car champion. Another WTCC competitor is SEAT, the Volkswagen owned Spanish manufacturer. Both are producing cars that are capable runners in the WTCC but as challengers to BMW in the road car market are they really on the same level as BMW, Mercedes and Audi?Is it a case of potential customers seeing them run against these more affordable cars and thinking they are on a par with the road going versions. It may be, after all the Lada WTCC is so far away from the road car it is not true. At least the BMW has racing in its DNA and always will have. We all know a good marketer can sell fridges to eskimos, but is selling a Lada as an option to a BMW doable. More and more manufacturers are building cars with higher specifications. Alloy wheels are

S Is this why BMWleft WTCC?


Is this why BMWleft WTCC?

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now the norm as are many of the other things previously only seen on executive brands. It is now common to drive a non BMW brand off the lot, similarly equipped for a LOT less money. So how does this affect BMW racing in the WTCC? Racing is a form of marketing to all the manufacturers who spend the money to compete. They have to get a return on it or they would not set up a race program and spend the large sums that they do. Is it that the base 3 Series models are selling themselves without racing marketing? At least that is the way it seems here

in Canada. A lease on a 2014 320i sedan can be had for 0.9% on a 24-36 month term. That equates to not a lot of money for a premium brand car and seeing how many 320i versions are running around since the F30 introduction leads me to believe they are flying off the lot. The issue I have about BMW leaving the WTCC or a similar road based class is the loss of development that racing has traditionally brought to their road cars. I am sure there is technology gained from the DTM but those cars share very little with their road going brethren.


I always think that manufacturers racing is a little bit like advertising. You may not get a sale on the first adverts but continuing with them keeps your name out there. People are buying the 3 Series with four and six cylinders not V8s and carbon fiber tubs. It just seems wrong to me for BMW not to be racing at this level of Touring cars and look forward to the return of BMW to the WTCC.

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Above: Brandon and Peter stand behind their record setting E30

Left: 8x10 / 18x12 Giovanna GFG Gavar Wheels (custom offset) with Toyo R888 255/35/18 & 335/30/18

Right: DTMFiberwerkz E30 DTM Obsession Widebody kit (one of three produced)


BadgeEngineering from the Smokeys Group

Words and Photos by Ian Rae

found out about the guys at Smokeys Dyno & Performance thru a friends of mine Shari

Arfons of McCullough Public Relations Inc. They are one of her clients and she was pretty sure their E30 would be of interest to me as it was a bit special.How special? was my question. Are you worried about it not having a BMW engine, was her response. Well the answer to that is, Im a motorhead and I love to see people get creative with their projects and NO I dont care! So after a morning trip to Corsa Performance to check out their state of the art exhaust plant it was down to Akron, Ohio to meet Brandon and Peter, the two guys behind the business and this hybrid BMW.

Established in 2006, Smokeys Group is a full-service high-performance shop looking after luxury, exotic and performance vehicles. Brandon and Peter pride themselves on giving personal attention and customized performance solutions to suit each individual customers needs. The company consists of two sides, selling and installing performance parts and the dyno where they specialize in advanced engine management and providing expert custom tuning. In addition they have a full service wheel shop where they can fit wheels and tires up to forty-five inches outer diameter. The service area has four lifts where four bays allow top-quality maintenance care for exclusive makes and models, both foreign and domestic.

I

70

Now on to the interesting stuff, that matte metallic blue BMW or as the guys at Smokeys call it, the GMW! The 1987 325is is an Arizona car that provided the Smokeys crew with a solid base to start from. In an effort to get easy power at an affordable price the team decided to move away from the BMW powerplant and install one of the Generals V-8 motors. But this was no normal piece of Detroit Iron, a GM Performance LS3 block was secured and bored and stroked to 408 cubic inches which equates to a rather large 6.7 liter. For those who are not familiar with the LS3 it is an aluminum motor and fitted with Trickflow Specialties GenX 235 heads it is actually fifty to sixty pounds lighter than the in-line six BMW motor that previously sat between the frame rails. The plan for easy power was accomplised with the LS3 putting out 590 horses to the wheels, which should equate roughly to 700 at the crank with an estimated 18% drivetrain loss. There is no super trick ECU needed for this land speed racer, a factory GM LS computer is all it needs even with the heads and intake. Power is transmitted to the RPM Transmissions T56 Magnum Conversion Level VI 6 speed transmission through a Mcleod RXT Street Twin Clutch rated for 1000hp. The rear end came out of a 2000 M-Coupe. It had the factory LSD with 3.23 gears but we are going to be upgrading them to 3.73 over the winter. The car runs the M-Coupe axles and the 5-lug conversion in the front. Plans for 2015 include more suspension upgrades and possibly forced induction of some sort. Brandon told us, We took the car to the Wilmington Mile in Ohio this year and took two new records, nect year I want to go back and take some more.

You can find out about the Smokeys Group at their website www.smokeysgroup.com.

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The Revolutionis Coming!


X-1

PRODUCT PARTNERS

BK FABWORKS

5ZERO4 DESIGNS

AEROMOTIVE FUEL SYSTEMS

SADEV TRANSMISSIONS

RACEPAK

SMARTWIRE

VI-PEC

GOOD AERO

IMPACT SAFETY

OS GIKEN

BELL INTERCOOLERS

SWIFT SPRINGS

AST SUSPENSION

MASTERSHIFT

DRIVEN STEERING WHEELS

SETRAB USA

RICHWERKS

MEDIA PARTNERSMOTORWERKS MAGAZINE

MINIOLOGY.COM

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he revolution is coming and it is coming in the shape of a MINI! Thats right folks, Jan Brueggemann of Revolution Motor Works is

working on something that is revolutionary in the MINI world. Those of you who hang out at the racetrack may be familliar with the British sports car manufacturer

Radical. Mick Hyde and Phil Abbott pioneered the concept of a light chassis with a superbike powerplant to build a brand that has now produced 1,900 cars in seventeen years. In addition to the bike engined cars a V-8 is available and the cars are now seen at racetracks all over the world. The British duo set out out to create a niche market where drivers could buy a safe racecar that would provide incredible performance for a realistic price. Brueggemann plans to do the same thing for the sedan market. Starting off with a clean sheet, he got brainstorming with his fabricator Barry Karakas at BK Fabworks in Oak Hills, California and the pair thrashed out the details of what the new car should look like. Jan explained, There were some things I had set firmly in stone. It had to look like a MINI, be powered by a MINI and perform like no MINI ever seen. Thus the RWM X-1 was born. It also had to pretty well be unbreakable and be easy to work on with removeable body panels Karakas had no problem with the unbreakable part, the bulk of his business is building all sorts of trucks and buggies for the rough and tumble of desert racing. It was agreed that moving the Tritec motor to the rear of the car would give the optimal chassis balance as the motor would almost be mid-mounted. Brueggemann went on, With all the criteria we set out, it dictates the only real option is to build a tube chassis car where everything can be placed where we want it for optimal performance. That has the by-product of making the car easy to work on as it is basically nothing more than a frame with a body attached.

It had to look like a MINI,

be powered by a MINI

and perform like

no MINI ever seen

Below: The full tube frame features CrMo tubing to keep weight down.

T


Below: The X-1 features a flat floor to to match up with a state of the art diffuser at the reat of the car.

Below: You get into the car ala NASCAR, climbing through the window opening.

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The one thing Brueggemann decided to do to make the X-1 different from the Radical business model was the availablility of potential customers buying the car in various stages of completion. He explained, I know everyone cant afford to drop the money needed to buy a ready to run (RTR) rolling chassis so I thought that making it availble in various forms would work for those who have the talent to finish the car themselves and save them a bit of money as well. This works well for the many drag race chassis builders out there and I see no reason it wont work for the X-1. This is where our Race Car in A Box moniker comes from. You order the car to your spec, list the parts you require to go with it, we pack them up in a big box and before you know it, the whole deal is sitting in your driveway.The X-1 was due to be shown for the first time at the recent SEMA show but Jan pulled the plug on it. I just was not happy how the body was looking after we got everything screwed together. It just did not have the look that I wanted. I felt I had let down our product partners by not being there but in the long run I am sure they will understand the car has to be perfect when it comes out for the first time. Talking of these partners, we have absolutely the best people on board with this project. Their products will be seen on the production cars and with our own in-house development car I feel we can help them out with some development as well. Electrically we have the latest Vi-Pec ECU that will allow us to flat shift with the Sadev transmission. A Racepak EFI module communicates to the Racepak IQ3 datalogger dash where it shares ECU data with the datalogger. The car wiring is made easier by using one of Racepaks Smartwire PDM (power distribution modules) units which also communicates on the V-Net and allows us common use of sensors without duplication. It also allows you to use logic to control outputs based on the status of one or more inputs anywhere on the V-Net. Richwerks is building the engine wiring harness and all together it is going to be a really robust system, The fuel system comes from Aeromotive and features twin pumps for endurance racing. The great thing about Aeromotive is their wealth of technical knowlege, Brett Clow has been in the business a long time and knows exactly how to spec a system no matter if it carburetted or electtronic fuel injection. Watch for another installment in the next issue.

Below: Well built A-Arms and quality rod ends make for great adjustibility.


Below: The X-1 will feature a 2000cc Tritec motor with a turbocharger

Below: This work of art came from Bell Intercoolers

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A Driven 12.9 flat steering wheel is fitted with shift controls from Mastershift.

Twin A1000 fuel pumps reside in the fuel cell in case of failure when running endurance races.

Scott Good has got building super light carbon fiber rear wings down to a fine art. Good Aero understands that the balance of downforce versus drag is something most amateur raceteams do not spend a lot of time sorting out.Their wealth of knowlege of their products and mounting solutions make it easy for them to provide a wing that is going to work.

LOW COSTMOTORSPORT

FOR THEMASSES!

Sunday April 26th - CTMP Mosport GP Sunday June 28th - Powerade CenterSunday July 5th - CTMP Mosport DDT (Bimmercruise)Sunday July 19th - Powerade CenterSunday August 23rd - Powerade CenteSunday September 20th - Powerade Center Sunday October 4th - CTMP Mosport GP

www.trillium-bmwclub.ca

80

And the Winner Is

#14 Doug Bennett

82

n the last issue of MWM we held a competition to win a driving school at the world famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The winner would visit the school with our editor (myself) and enjoy a school behind the wheel of one of the latest F56 MINI Cooper S cars at the Miles Ahead MINI Performance Driving school. The winner had to answer questions set by the Miles Ahead team; the questions focused on the Cooper heritage at IMS. Five of our readers had all the questions correct and we had to come up with some means to select a winner. It was around that time that Miles Ahead announced a school program that for the first time would allow students to run on the full road course at IMS. For Miles Ahead this was a milestone they were hoping for, in fact if things go according to plan there will be more events like this in 2015. It was at that point that I contacted Stephen Simpson and asked if we could move our school to that date. Simpson talked with his partners, Stephane Gregoire and Ted Woerner and they thought it was a great idea. So now all we had to do was choose a winner. I contacted all the winners and asked them if they were available on October 22? With it being midweek it was difficult for some and it came down to two people to choose a winner from. Doug Bennett from Modesto, CA would face-off against Wayne McLennan of Shrewsbury, MA. Both where enthusiasts who enjoy hot MINI Coopers so that was fitting. We did not want to use questions for the tiebreaker and have to come up with something different to decide the winner. What we came up with was taking all the ccs that the classic Mini was built with and giving points for every number that match on Doug and Waynes license plates. Well that seems like a great idea except that both MINI owners have vanity plates. Wayne being a Kiwi had the plate NZUS so no points for him. Dougs plate proclaimed his love of the R53 MINI with DUG R53. It came down to one number, the five in R53 much the five in 1275, Doug had won with one matching number. To give the guys at Miles Ahead their due, they came up with a fantastic offer for Wayne to join us at the Brickyard. Unfortunately other obligations precluded that from happening. So on October 21 Doug flew into Indianapolis for the start of this great adventure. We started off with a mini tour of the Dallara racecar factory located just across the road from the Speedway.


Stephan reviews his racing history.

Pippa Mann was the first female to win a pole position at IMS

86

The full tour was not available as Dallara is currently undertaking classified work for the US government. As we wandered around the words I did not know that you are frequently spoken as the Dallara history was unveiled. Of course we did get our racing fix behind the wheel of their simulators. Then it was out the Hilton Garden Inn that is one of the preferred hotels for the Miles Ahead school. Doug how to shower and a little snooze and then we hit one of my must dos when Indianapolis the Union Jack Pub. While it no longer has a huge collection of race helmets and automotive art there is motorsport memorabilia to be seen. The full road course program have been modified to allow for a morning and afternoon session. Doug and I had chosen the afternoon course so we did not

have to get up at the crack of dawn. We did venture in early to photograph the morning class as they were put through their paces. The classroom was located in a plaza within a stones throw of IMSs iconic pagoda, it was at that point we really knew that it was happening, we were going to join that small group of people who have driven at speed over that yard of bricks that gave the Speedway its nickname, the Brickyard. The school started in the classroom with Stephanes lovely wife Virginie taking care of registration where we all received a Miles Ahead hard card. Ted Woerner then gave an overview of the Speedway and its links to the Cooper Car Company. He explained the schedule for the day and then went on to introduce our coaches, Stephan Gregoire, Stephen Simpson, Gabby


me in the online Real Racing game. A row of four would follow Gabby line astern and every time we reached the main straightaway the leader would fall to the back of the line. This gave everyone the chance to follow the coach. What impressed me about the coaches was their ability to drive at speed, look in the mirror at our lines and then comment over the radio. These guys are good, believe me. I think it was during that session I really got the impression of how huge the Speedway really is. Coming on to the main straight is almost like driving into a canyon, the grandstands are that big. The Cooper S swallowed up the 3/4 mile straight and over 110 mph was seen at the braking zone for the road course turn one. The cones marking the apexes were set up on the inside of the kerbing so it was kerb to kerb from corners 1,2,3. Just like Chris Knox, although I doubt we caught air like he did. Six was taken a lot wider than I had expected but it was all about being in the right spot turning into seven and the infield straightaway. 8.9.10.11 were a blast of flowing corners where the MINI excelled before foot hard down into twelve where the car moves around a little when you were really

Chavez and Pippa Mann. All four of them have competed in the highest levels of motorsport. We found out our coaches would be in contact with us via a two-way radio that we were not to use under any circumstances. The school would consist of three segments, learning racing lines, a time trial to decide your run group and then road course lapping. The class was split into four for the first two segments, with two groups running racing lines around the original Grand Prix course. This bypassed the new infield section at turn one used by Moto GP, where the other two groups were running the time trial that would seed them for the lapping sessions. Doug got behind the wheel and we motored over to the short chute between corner one and two. Stephen Simpson was leading our group then slowly led us from the start point through the series of corners to the finish where Stephan Gregoire was waiting with a stopwatch. The run was initiated by Ted Woerner doing his best impression of the Brickyard flagman. At that point we had to find the quickest way between point A and point B. Stephen Simpson was watching our runs and critiquing them as we drove. With his commentary over the radio fresh in your mind it was easy to adjust your line as you made your next run. With Doug and I are sharing, Doug made three runs before handing over to me. Time constraints meant I only got one run and I was not happy with the first corner and my breaking into the stop zone. Later when we found out what the times were, I had finished fourth

MotorWerks Magazine V4 Issue 2

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