Innehållsförteckning för January 2023 från TOTAL BMW

Hello, and welcome to the first issue of Total BMW. Whether you're here from Performance BMW, are joining us from BMW Car, or picked this magazine up because you love BMWs, welcome to you all. Some of you may remember Total BMW from the old days, and when the decision was made to merge PBMW and BMW Car, Total BMW was the perfect name for this new magazine that aims to bring you everything from the global BMW scene. We really want to give you the total BMW experience. So what can you expect from Total BMW? Well, when I say we aim to bring you all the BMW content from around the world, I mean that. From first drives of the latest models and features about iconic classics and…

BC Racing BR-RA coilovers for G20 3 Series BC Racing has just launched its BR-RA series fast road coilovers for the G20 3 Series. The BR-RA series coilover kits are supplied with aluminium camber adjustable front top mounts with pillowball centres and aluminium rear top mounts with rubber centres or no top mounts. They offer 30-way adjustable damping, adjustable spring platforms, and feature height adjustment via the bottom mount to retain full damper travel, meaning the ride isn't compromised when you want to go low. They also come with bearing-mounted upper front spring platforms and dust boots to protect damper seals. The BR-RA coilovers are recommended by BC Racing for the best balance of performance and comfort and are designed by the factory to have the best overall compromise of…

Colin Turkington has ended his 2022 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship campaign with fourth place at Brands Hatch during a spectacular season finale. The Team BMW driver went into the year's final event in fourth place for the title, and while he put in a strong fight and managed to make it onto the podium in the second contest, he was unable to challenge for the top spot after Silverstone's troubles. “After our frustrating qualifying session, I had no idea what to expect from the races, but I really enjoyed them and could race well. That's a positive way to end,” Colin said. “Race day proved to be a good day in what's been quite a difficult run towards the end of the season for me. Silverstone did the…

G80 M3 Opening a feature about a G80 M3 by talking about its looks might seem like picking low-hanging fruit, but far be it from us to turn down an easy meal, so pick we shall. However, the difference here is that we're going to open this feature by telling you that, actually, we like the G8x M duo, which is probably not what you expected to hear (read?). Admittedly, it took us a while to warm to the styling, and while it's not BMW's finest design hour, it's got a hell of a lot of presence, and we find ourselves drawn to the shape more and more. Our epiphany happened when we came across a G80 M3 at a show, and approaching it from the rear, we were struck…

E30 335d Diesel has had a bit of a rough ride. Back in the old days, it was never at the top of anyone's shopping list. While diesel cars were economical, they were also noisy and slow, often not even equipped with a turbo (like the E30 324d, for example), and even when a turbo was added to the mix, performance wasn't exactly thrilling. Diesel was best left to commercial vehicles for a long period. Then technology began to advance, swirl chambers made way for commonrail injection, performance began to come along in leaps and bounds, and suddenly, diesels became a very viable petral alternative, and the performance diesel had arrived. Things only got better and better over the ensuing years, with the move to twin-, tripleand even quad-turbo setups…

When it comes to full-on show cars, there's bold, and then there's bold, and Adam Waggott's (@y3h_m3) F80 M3 sits squarely in the second camp. There is no missing this build when you're wandering around a show, that bright pink wrap acting like a beacon that draws in modded enthusiasts from every direction, and when Adam fires it up and the cold start rattles your ribcage, it becomes even less discreet. Not everyone can pull off a build like this, but fortune favours the bold, and you love to see it. This is not Adam's first rodeo, and he has been into cars for a long time, as evidenced by his first car, an Escort XR3i, and modding them, as evidenced by the Audi A4 purpose-built show car and Nissan…

ENGINE GUIDE History The S55 was introduced in 2014 in the F80 M3 and F82 M4 models. It is based on the single-turbo N55 but with a raft of changes on board. Since its launch, it has found its way into the F87 M2 Competition in a slightly de-tuned form, as well as in slightly higher states of tune in the M2 CS, and Competition and CS versions of the M3 and M4, while the hottest version was fitted in the M4 GTS. Technical After almost 30 years of high-revving, naturally aspirated engines spread across four generations of M3, with fours, sixes and eights found beneath their bonnets, the move to turbocharged power for the F8x generation of M3 and M4 was never going to be a popular one, but…

OUR CARS To be perfectly honest, I thought that when I signed off my Our Cars report in the last issue of BMW Car that would be it for wittering on about the Harper fleet every month… but here I am again. It would seem you're stuck with me for the time being! I was hoping I'd have more to write about this month, but long lead times at dealers mean that while two-thirds of the fleet is booked in for work to be carried out, I'm not yet sure how much of a bashing my wallet is going to be in for. By the time you read this, you'll probably be able to hear me quietly crying in a corner somewhere. The X3 is due an oil service, an…

There's always a frisson of excitement when attending a motor show, and that was certainly the case at the 2005 Frankfurt event, as on the BMW stand was a brand new coupé that the company had previously stated it wouldn't build. Was this a one-off design study, or would it make production? The answer was succinctly given by a genial member of BMW UK's press office who was on the stand: “If a concept has towing eye covers, you can just about guarantee it's more or less production-ready.” And in the latter part of 2006, the Z4 Concept Coupé entered the market in the UK, in the guise of the 3.0si and the fire-breathing Z4 M. While the Glacier silver paint of the show car had been lost, and a…

We've got a real soft spot for the original 8 Series, as do a lot of BMW fans, but for Archie Hendryx, the 8 Series means so much. It was always a dream car for him, and what he's built is the ultimate realisation of that dream, and his passion for BMWs runs deep. “My love for BMWs started at a young age when I was only 10 or 11, and of course, at that age, it was based purely on aesthetics,” Archie explains. “My uncle had just bought himself a brand new E30, and a few years later, my father bought an E34. Back then, BMWs were still quite a rare sight, and each model looked uniquely different. It wasn't until many years later, when I was able to…

In terms of the sheer scale and variety of cars on show, there is no other show on the UK scene that comes close to TRAX, This year's event once again showcased the best modified cars in the country and brought car enthusiasts and their creations from far and wide. The sheer variety of machinery on show at TRAX is always incredible, and you will find everything from full-on show builds to huge-horsepower monsters, track machines and everything in between, with every make and model imaginable on display. Whatever you're into, TRAX has you covered, and it goes without saying that the quality and diversity of the BMWs on show was absolutely top-tier. We'd brought together a sensational selection for our display, hand-picking a selection of the UK's most spectacular…

Edition The Edition was produced for six months in 2009 and featured black chrome kidney grilles, wing vents and exhaust tips along with Jet black bonnet vents and mirror caps. The car sat on 19” 220M wheels in either Jet black, silver or white with polished spokes and was fitted with 10mm shorter springs. There were five exterior colours to choose from, each with contrasting interior trim elements, and all cars came with special chequered flag door sill trims. ■ 2009 ■ 707 cars built ■ Black chrome grilles, side vents and exhaust tips ■ Jet black bonnet vents and mirror caps ■ Jet black, silver or white/polished 19” 220M wheels ■ 10mm shorter springs ■ Alpine white III, Jet black or Jerez black all with black Novillo leather with…

@totalbmwmag Hello, it's Elizabeth, and welcome to ‘our’ E36 Cab. I say ‘our’, because it actually belongs to our COO, Phil Weeden, but I've claimed it as ours because we've been entrusted with it for a little while. Now, as far as we're concerned, you don't need an excuse to add another BMW to any fleet you might currently have, but in this case, there's a method to all of this. Basically, Phil bought this as part of a head-to-head challenge running in Classic Car Mart called the Great Classic Trade-Up. The idea is that you buy a car, sell it for a profit and move up to the next step of the budget, and this E36 is purchase number two for Phil. And while it is very tidy, it…

@jasondoddphotos Tuesday 18 October was full of anticipation, the worldwide launch of the new M2. Now, a week before this, images of the car had been released on some social media channels. They looked distorted and didn't do the car any favours; a torrent of remarks followed saying that BMW had made another blunder. I was one of them, praying that the final design would be a continuation of the original 2016 model and would take some cues from the G82 M 4. 11 pm Tuesday night, and the car was released to the world; sadly, the leaked photos were true, and the car had been designed in a challenging way. Now, I'm not a massive fan of the new M240 design, but at least the front bumper does have…

We are putting together a directory of BMW clubs from around the world, and we want you to be part of it! Just send us an email with the name of your club, its location, and your social media details and website if you have one, and we'll add it to our directory! We'll also be putting your clubs in the spotlight, so if you'd like to see your club mentioned in the magazine, send us a write-up of no more than 500 words about what your club gets up to, along with some hi-res photos, and we'll get it in the magazine for you! Get in touch: Tbmw.ed@kelsey.co.uk…

BMW has just announced its M Performance Parts range for the new G87 M2, allowing you to personalise your M car and add some serious flair, and the parts will be available alongside the M2's launch in April 2023. For the exterior, the range includes a carbon fibre front splitter and air intake trim, carbon side blades, side spats front and rear, as well as carbon mirror caps. At the rear, you can add a carbon boot lip spoiler, the aggressive carbon rear spoiler wing that you can see in the pictures, as well as a gloss black roof-edge spoiler. There's also a carbon fibre diffuser plus extras like the M Performance tow strap and antenna cover in aramid. One thing you can't miss are the centrally-mounted quad tips of…

Curtain airbags. Built-in satellite navigation. The world's first electronic speedometer. The iDrive interface. These are just some of the innovations that BMW has introduced with the 7 Series. Now the marque's flagship saloon enters a new generation, so rather aptly, the seventh Seven is the most innovative yet. The most significant talking point of the new generation is the introduction of a fully electric variant – the i7 – a car that is very much in keeping with the times. The i7 must deliver the expected refinement without compromising on the driving performance side in every aspect. No pressure, then. Development of the G70 began towards the end of 2017 when the initial concept for how BMW would replace the then-current carbon-cored 7 Series began. The car we're sitting behind…

Certain actions come to define generations. For the youths who came of age in the period of 2000-2010 or thereabouts, the act of filling a shot glass with a herbal liqueur and dropping it into a larger glass of a sugary energy drink became an unlikely cultural turning point. In isolation, these beverages are pretty revolting but combine the two, and they somehow morph into a type of rocket fuel. The cult of the Jagerbomb is the solid bedrock upon which countless night-time misadventures are built. Jägermeister is one of those brands that evokes mental images of devastation merely by the sound of its name. For many, this will always manifest itself as a series of half-remembered and bestforgotten evening exploits, swirling the fragrant Saxony digestif into a maelstrom of…

Instantly recognisable, BMW's 1990s 8 Series grand tourer provides a hefty dose of elegance and panache, and if you find a well-fettled 4.4-litre 1996on 840Ci, then you could enjoy years of dependable retro V8 motoring in an appreciating classic. Boasting better reliability than a thirsty 850 V12 or an original 4.0-litre M60-engined 840, the 1996-1999 M62 4.4-litre 840Ci is just as stylish – with its pillarless side profile and classic pop-up headlights – and great value too. BMW's E31 8 Series aspired to be the ultimate in high-tech GT luxury when it was launched in 1990. And packing a potent new V12 that had first appeared in the 7 Series, BMW hoped to establish itself at the very top of the automotive tree. More expensive and even better equipped than…

The recent increase in fuel prices has left most people feeling that driving a car is expensive. While you can shop around every time you fill up, use your car less and drive more sedately, there are other ways to save even more money. We are talking about the hidden costs of running a car, such as servicing and using the right oils, flushes, cleaners and additives. In the long term, this should help reduce the risk of problems that could, in turn, cost even more money, but is it worth spending so much on good-quaiity oils and extra on cleaners and additives that may or may not be proven to work? We asked the experts at LIQUI MOLY for the answers. Q We realise it's important to use the…

OUR CARS @buffycarjourno What better way to start the first issue of a new magazine than with a new car? PBMW readers will know that, until very recently, I was running an E86 Z4 3.0si Coupé as my daily, a car that I absolutely adored. It was a manual Sport in Montego blue, with Champagne leather, all the desirable options, and it was a delight to own. However, while it was perfectly suited to the role of fun weekend car, it wasn't an ideal daily. Over time, I started to realise it wasn't quite right for me, as much as I loved it. On short trips, it was great fun, but on longer drives, it felt quite tiring due to the busy front end that loved sniffing out cambers, the…

Thomas Stokes’ E46 M3 Few things make us happier than seeing someone who has not only spent a long time with their BMW but has really enjoyed driving it and using it during those years, and Thomas Stokes has really enjoyed his E46 M3. “I bought the car from eBay in 2005 with 24,000 miles, and it has now covered over 340,000. I can admit that I have first-hand knowledge of the car being capable of 170 mph, performed within weeks of my purchase,” he laughs. “I'm not sure what that means, other than the governor capping speed at 155 mph had been lifted. I am told that it might have the Dinan download, which lifted the governor and increased horsepower and torque, but I'm not sure. It had a…