BMW Fest Cape Town 2014

It was once again Killarney Race Circuit for the setting of the Annual BMW Festival for Capetonian BMW lovers. This time in its 5^th year running, the venue was shared with Motorsport South Africa’s (MSA) scheduled drags competition which meant on-track action was changed from the usual format of Open StreetCar Track Day to Drag Racing. Additional On-Track activity came in the form of Drifting at the oval circuit.

Inside the new pits section we had Auric Auto BMW Dealer from Claremont who set up a tasteful display of cars. A limited edition E92 M3 in Dakar Yellow, as well an E82 1M both belonging to a long-standing client of Sales Manager Matthew James brought some colourful ///Magnificence to the party. Also on their display was the stunningly-beautiful all-new 4 Series Convertible, and one of my all-time favourite Beemers, the latest 6 series, also in convertible form. 

Another regular exhibitor was Bruce Craigs Spares – Specialists in new and used parts for BMW and MINI vehicles. Alies Wheels had brought through a good couple of classy Beemers for show as well.

Ashfaaq Bux from GTS Tuning house arranged an array of awesome Bavarian metal for the fans to relish at. He presented the popular Midas sponsored 1M of Junaid Parker, a super clean E30 325iS, and a couple of E92 V8 M3s.

Outside the New Pits area the gravel parking was filled up with various BMW models from different clubs and Individuals. Reiny and Clive Salie from BM Squad superbly managed all parking arrangements and the cars parked together made for a satisfying sight.  Old E12s, E24 6series’, parked alongside newer models with a few selected special models resting in between. Even a new 750i was joining in on the fun.

At 1pm the parade lap was ready to spring into action but delays from the dragsters meant a wait was in order. Nonetheless when it did happen the sight was spectacular. About 135 Beemers took part in the parade lap led by myself and Matthew in the 6series.  This time the full circuit wasn’t used for the parade lap as half of the track was closed off due to the drag-strip being in use, but most guys had fun anyway.

After the parade lap we began judging for the show n shine competition and some cool prizes sponsored by Auric Auto & Claremont Fitment Centre was up for grabs.

The winners in the different categories were:

Zameer Dalvie for Loudest car of the day with his E92 M3 with Schnitzer exhaust.

Nazeem Levy for Best M category New ( 2005 – current) with his E63 M6. Although it had 103000km’s on the reading. It still looked factory new and the V10 sounded as sweet as honey.

Ridwaan Osman took gold for Best M category Old (1994 – 2004) with his amazingly clean and stock standard Dakar Yellow E36 M3 with over 181000kms on the clock. A prime example of how a car should be nurtured.

Zakiyyah Adams was well deserving of her prize as her stunning 1997 E36 328i convertible was chosen for best E36. Just look at the pic of the car J

Best Factory Standard New went to Mark Apollis for his brand new F20 M135i kitted out with MPerformance products

George Wessels showed off one of the most desirable cars of the day which grabbed the accolade for Best Classic. The car in the form of an original 1983 E12/8 M535i.  A very sought after vehicle which has become an icon in its own right.

Francois Williams had the best E30. A zinnober red 89 325i in stock standard form with 270+000 kms’ on the reading. A very very well-kept example of an E30.

Rowen Cole’s E46 M3 attracted attention from all. Whether the colour scheme was liked or disliked, it won him prize for Best Modded car. The paint and modifications were expertly done by Rowen and all credits to him. Well deserved.

Leon Louw took prize for Best Factory Standard Old with his 84 E12 520i. This car was as standard as it left the showroom floor in the early 80s and still going strong.

Prize giving was done at 4:30pm and regular BMW drivers were then invited to take each other on on the drag strip. A few challenges arose with regards to track activities being sanctioned by MSA but at the end of the day, there was much positive feedback.  It was a joyful experience for those who have never attended one of these before.

It is a plan to host this event every 01 May as it remains a public holiday and we hope to regain the original format with the BMW Festival alongside a full circuit Open Track Day and Street2Strip Drags thereafter.

Till next year, thanks to all that participated.

 much more pics here