The new 3-series (E46) will be available in the UK from Sept 1998, although the left hand drive cars will be available sooner. Competition will be soon coming from Jaguar, with their new X400 & Lexus will have a smaller car available at the end of 1998. (26-Dec-97)

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NEW CLUB! A new club has just started-up called the BMW M Power Club GB. Open to all M car owners, a full program is being planned for 1998. (4-Dec-97) The BMW Car Club GB committee has removed David Connell (the ex M Register chairman) from the club. (4-Dec-97) Coded as the Z07, the probable new Z8 was displayed at the Tokyo motor show in Coupe & Roadster models. Powered by the M5 5 litre V8, it may be available in a couple of year's at a price of around £50,000. It will be largely made of aluminium & will replace the 8-series. The car shows a retro style with the Roadster getting a speed hump behind the driver (Jaguar C-type style) & the Coupe having a douple bubble roofline which is carried on in the rear screen. (26-Oct-97)

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The new E39 M5 is expected to be launched in 1998. It will use a 5 litre V8 producing 400bhp & 370lbsft torque. The prototype car has clear indicator lenses (!) & M3 style door mirrors. It does have 2x twin tail exhaust pipes though. Expect UK prices at around 50,000 UK pounds. The new model will also be available as a Touring estate model too. (18-Oct-97) The 318i Coupe & Convertible will no longer be sold in the US from late Oct 97. The engine will be replaced by the 323is Coupe at $29,270 & the 323i Convertible at $35,270. The 318i sedan & 318ti compact will continue. The 323i has a 2.5litre straight six engine with 168bhp & 181lbsft torque. The new model 3-series (E46) will be phased in during 1998 starting with the sedan model. The current Coupe & Convertibles will continue being sold until their gradual replacement. Just who would buy an old model car when the new one is just around the corner - remains to be seen..! (11-Oct-97)

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New Sport Utility BMW Following the scrapping for the E53 BMW offroader - because it looked too much like the Ford Explorer - BMW are thought to be developing another model. This time it is likely to be based on the new Range Rover monocoque base & would be produced in the US. No E number is known at the moment - but it could be available before the year 2000. (28-Sep-97) Rusty recall There is a recall of E36's built between 1991 & 1994. There seems to be risk of rust in the lower steering column. (5-Sep-97) Compact A new model is being released soon, the 323ti. Unfortunately, due to "type approval" problems, it will not be available in the UK. It uses the 2.5 litre engine from the E36 & produces 170bhp, 0-62mph in 7.8 secs & a top speed of 143mph. (4-Aug-97) A new M3 engined Z3 coupe is due out very soon. (7-Jul-97)

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I know that you heard this from me around 2 years ago but, a BMW-Williams engine deal for F1 racing looks almost certain for the year 2000. Expect to hear confirmation of this in September this year. (7-Jul-97) US M3 A little furry rodent has told me that M3's have 4 programs in their management system. A Euro spec, US Spec, Motorsport spec mode & maybe a Test mode. It is possible to change the mode! If the car is a first generation E36 M3, the transformation is realtively simple. The codes are changed in the computer via entry of alternative codes through the on-board and away you go with substantially improved higher performance. If the car is a second generation E36 M3, then the process is slightly different. The computer is removed, reprogramed, reinstalled, and THEN you drive away with remarkeably improved performance. However, in this case, you are not limited to only 4 choices as the system can be programmed to exactly your requirements. I have a feeling that US spec M3 owners may be interested.... I'll post more details as I find them out. (20-May-97)

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The possible new BMW E53 off-roader has been canned because it was too similar to a prototype Land Rover. It was to have been based on the E34 525iX touring with ground clearance increased. Inside sources say that it's favoured design looked like the Ford Explorer. There had been plans to build the E53 in South Carolina, USA. (20-Apr-97)

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BMW have suspended import of the M3 sequential gearbox. The problem is with the "economy mode" which has proved unsuitable for UK roads. (20-Apr-97) UK 1997 model year changes The 3-series gets a new grill, while the 5 & 7-series get side impact airbags as standard. The 520i & 523i get Steptronic control on auto models & a new 535i & Touring will be released. There's a new Alpina sports suspension kit available for 7-series standard wheelbase cars which lowers the front by 20mm & the rear by 10mm all for an extra cost of £1,500. Due to a change in EC laws which now allow litronic headlamps, the 7-series now gets these as an option for £645. They are not retro-fitable. (14-Jan-97)

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ASC+T BMW will be standardising traction control on nearly all cars from 1997 except the 4 cylinder & diesel 3-series models. Also new for the 750 models is the Dynamic Stability Control (DSC) from the 850i. DSC works like ASC+T but also detects loss of grip in a sideways direction too.

M Compact BMW AG have produced two M Compacts to gauge public reaction to the car. The engine is the same 321bhp unit that powers the Euro M3, but in the smaller and more agile Compact package it produces a 0-60mph of 5.2secs, rather than 5.9secs as in the larger body. FYI - German M3 prices The basic M3 (no air con, leather etc) is selling for around 75,000DM tax free and around 87,000DM tax inc. The same price applies to both the coupe and sedan. The convertible however goes for around 97,000DM.

New 3-series The July issue of BMW Car magazine has some interesting computer-enhanced pics of the new E46. Due to be released in Sept 1997, the Coupe, Touring & Convertible versions will be out in early 1998. The new Compact come out in 1999 and it may get it's own model name - to compete with Audi's new A3. By the pics, it looks like a smaller version of the new "5" and it has the snub-nose grill of the Z3. The six-cylinder 2.0, 2.5 & 2.8 litre engines will continue, but the 4 cylinder 1.6 & 1.8 litre engines will gain a lightweight aluminium cylinder head. There's also talk about a high performance diesel engine too!

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A prototype of the new M Roadster will appear at the Geneva Motor Show next month (July). It is expected to be powered by a detuned version of the new 3.2litre six, producing 315bhp instead of 321bhp. BMW claims a 0-60mpg of less than 6.0 sec and an electronically limited top speed of 155mph. A revised front spoiler, flared wheel arches, double twin exhausts, chrome engine out-takes and new 5-spoke alloy wheels are the main styling changes. Although the prototype features an up-graded interior with, for example, chrome-rimmed dials, BMW has yet to decide on the final interior spec. High demand and low UK sales volume means the car will cost around £42,000!

UK deposits for the new Z3 have exceeded 2,600. Dealers are not taking any more orders until the first RHD Z3's arrive towards the end of this year. It will take up to Spring 1997 to catch up the backlog. Still to come are the 2.8 litre version in 1997 and the M Roadster due in 1998.

After taking over the UK Alpina distribution from Sytners in January, BMW have now taken over the AC Schnitzer GB distribution. Plus point is that all the bits are now available from every BMW dealer - minus point is that I've never seen a BMW salesman who's interested in anything other than selling new cars!

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New Z5. BMW is to launch a new hatchback coupe based on the Z3 in 1997. They will make 19,000 cars each year alongside the Z3 in Carolina. Price range will be between £22,000 to £30,000. Base model will be called a Z3 Coupe which will have a 1.9litre 140bhp engine. In the rest of the range it will be called a Z5, the standard model being a 6 cylinder 2.5litre engine from the 323i with a performance model using the 2.8litre 193bhp 328i engine. There will be a Motorsport model using the M3's 3.2litre 321bhp engine.

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BMW return to F1?. Rumours of BMW returning to GP racing were fuelled by BMW chiefs arriving at the F1 Silverstone GP in a Williams helicopter. Frank Williams is known to be unhappy about losing the exclusivity deal with Renault and he may be looking for an alternative. BMW is believed to be planning to build a V10 to run with a lesser team in 1997, before joining with Williams for an assult on the title in 1998.

3-Series bargains. It seems that the arrival of the Compact in the UK has taken sales away from the standard 3-series range. A little bird told me of a current glut of stock - could this be a good time to push a hard bargain with your dealer? The new Z3 is released in Spring 1996. At current exchange rates it will cost £23,000 and is based on the 3-Series Compact platform. The US factory in South Carolina will be producing only 30,000 per year which will be shared-out worldwide. The Z3 will use the same Compact rear suspension but the brakes will be modified to discs on all wheels with ABS and power steering as standard. The release engines for Europe will be the 1.8 litre 4-cylinder 8-valve as used in the 318i with 115bhp. A few months later will see a 1.9 litre 150 bhp 16-valve engine derived from the 318is. The most interesting version will be released after the initial sales drive and will use the 2.8 litre 6-cylinder engine of the 328i.

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A Compact bodied M3 is said to be under development. It's not yet known which engine it will get. There could be up to 5 new compact models by next year, including a 325i version & an Open-Air model with a full-length fabric sunroof.

You are the visitor I've had since 30 March 1998.

Thanks for your time.