[ This is a bulk email sent to all Club Racers ]

I am happy to announce a mid-season rules change, as allowed by the BMW CCA Club Racing Rules Process.

Page 20, Section 2 "SCCA Classifications" Paragraph F currently reads:

Competitors choosing to compete under SCCA rules must comply with all
that series' requirements (including restrictors, weight, etc).

As of Wednesday, April 3rd, this paragraph is changed to read:

Competitors choosing to compete under SCCA rules must comply
with all that series' requirements, except that any and all
mandated intake restrictions (including restrictor plates,
SIR devices, etc) may be removed. Cars must be run at the
mandated SCCA IT weight, except for those cars which have
an ITS weight specified in the table of chassis weights.

Additionally, a line is added to the Appendix D "Official Vehicle Specifications" :

ITS BMW E36 325i/is 1992-1995 (2 & 4dr) 2850 lbs

Interpretation: This allows E36 BMW's running under the SCCA ITS rules to compete with us in the appropriate Prepared class at the specified weight without the SIR or other intake restrictor. If SCCA / IT decides to change their specified weight for this chassis, the weight required to run under CCA CR stays at the number listed in our rulebook.

Cars running under SCCA ITS rules must meet every other aspect of the SCCA GCR exactly (there is no mixing and matching between CR and ITS car preparation rules).

Drivers running ITS cars at our races must me the BMW CCA CR guidelines for personal safety gear (including HANS, etc).

If you have friends that race E36s in ITS, let them know that they can race their cars in BMW CR without the dreaded SIR (or any horrific weight increase).

Thanks, Dave

Just got the email. Awesome decision, Dave!!!!!!!!!

Cool beans.....I know a lot of guys will be very happy about that. Well done!!!!!

THANKS for doing the RIGHT THING for BMW CCA Club Racing at the RIGHT TIME! :buttrock

Hope this gets those guys on the track with us!



[ This is a bulk email sent to all Club Racers ]

I am happy to announce a mid-season rules change, as allowed by the BMW CCA Club Racing Rules Process.

Page 20, Section 2 "SCCA Classifications" Paragraph F currently reads:

Competitors choosing to compete under SCCA rules must comply with all
that series' requirements (including restrictors, weight, etc).

As of Wednesday, April 3rd, this paragraph is changed to read:

Competitors choosing to compete under SCCA rules must comply
with all that series' requirements, except that any and all
mandated intake restrictions (including restrictor plates,
SIR devices, etc) may be removed. Cars must be run at the
mandated SCCA IT weight, except for those cars which have
an ITS weight specified in the table of chassis weights.

Additionally, a line is added to the Appendix D "Official Vehicle Specifications" :

ITS BMW E36 325i/is 1992-1995 (2 & 4dr) 2850 lbs

Interpretation: This allows E36 BMW's running under the SCCA ITS rules to compete with us in the appropriate Prepared class at the specified weight without the SIR or other intake restrictor. If SCCA / IT decides to change their specified weight for this chassis, the weight required to run under CCA CR stays at the number listed in our rulebook.

Cars running under SCCA ITS rules must meet every other aspect of the SCCA GCR exactly (there is no mixing and matching between CR and ITS car preparation rules).

Drivers running ITS cars at our races must me the BMW CCA CR guidelines for personal safety gear (including HANS, etc).

If you have friends that race E36s in ITS, let them know that they can race their cars in BMW CR without the dreaded SIR (or any horrific weight increase).

Thanks, Dave

today (April 3) is a Monday... sorry to be nitpicky

today (April 3) is a Monday... sorry to be nitpicky

I guess it's a very good thing there are no races on Tuesday, April 4th.

I talked to a couple local ITS racers from Cincy the other day. One of them actually owns two cars. I know they will appreciate this. They are also hoping the committee will rethink the SIR.

I talked to a couple local ITS racers from Cincy the other day. One of them actually owns two cars. I know they will appreciate this. They are also hoping the committee will rethink the SIR.

This rules change by BMW CCA CR makes it much more likely that SCCA will rethink the "Always A Mazda on the Podium" rule as the BMW racers' entry fees can go away via a good, old fashioned boycott by joining us at the track! Perhaps an ad in StockCar Magazine would be too much of a slap in their face.... but it would certainly be a lot of fun! :)

Glad to see it. Hope BMW gets some of the SCCA folks to convert over. It also brings some value back to all the ITS BMW's out there.


-Rick

There is a committee working on a class above ITS right now. 'ITR' as it were. Might be worth mentioning (in a procative fashion) to the PTB in CR that the 325 looks like it would come in at around 2750 totally unrestricted. I would hope that they would allow the car in CR at this new spec should it become a reality.

Would anyone build a 328 at 2830lbs or a 330 at 3160lbs to race in the same class?

Andy, if SCCA is going to save any face in this 'new class' deal it needs to act ASAP, like this season. Otherwise, I would think that what you are looking for is other cross-over cars (i.e. the 328 and 330). Look at the BMW CR weights and see how ITR prepped cars would fall out under BMW CR rules, much like the ITS prepped 325 would (as amended by BMW CR, of course).

Mike

Andy, if SCCA is going to save any face in this 'new class' deal it needs to act ASAP, like this season. Otherwise, I would think that what you are looking for is other cross-over cars (i.e. the 328 and 330). Look at the BMW CR weights and see how ITR prepped cars would fall out under BMW CR rules, much like the ITS prepped 325 would (as amended by BMW CR, of course).

Mike

Mike,

The SCCA is not trying to save face. As of this moment the CRB has no knowledge of any of this. This is a grassroots (member driven) proposal that (IMHO) fits a couple of needs. It allows the 325's to run unrestricted and it classifies a ton of cars previously consider to be outside the envelope of ITS.

Unfortunatly, building a class with multiple makes and models, chassis configs, engine types and sizes, etc makes it impossible to 'build' around BMW CR weights. 'ITR' is either a good idea or a bad idea and must stand on its own.

Just asking if the weights seem to make sense to you guys given the same class.

Andy, if the SCCA wants BMW racers back, it will want to "save face" and do something that makes sense. All the BMW ITS racers in my region will be elsewhere this season and maybe indefinitely in the future.

You and the other grassroots members can look at the BMW CR classifications for the cars you are looking at and see if it makes sense, because CR uses a similar classing system, albeit with different prep rules. It would probably take less time to actually look than to make a post here.

Based on past experience the CRB is going to do whatever it wants anyway, apparently input from members or well developed evidence is not necessary.

Again, IMO if SCCA wants BMW racers back, it needs to do this ASAP (like in the next month), waiting a year or more will not leave a favorable impression. Former BMW ITS racers will have moved on to other sanctioning bodies where the are welcome (BMW CCA CR, NASA, etc.)

Mike

If you have friends that race E36s in ITS, let them know that they can race their cars in BMW CR without the dreaded SIR (or any horrific weight increase).

Thanks, Davewell there goes my hope to buy a former ITS car on the cheap! :(

Good rule change for the ITS crowd though.

This is gonna get uber interesting. :buttrock

David - Thank you for your help! I know this will make my decision much easier.

When did SCCA start promoting vaperware? Did they read a case study on Borland? :D Do you all remember what the point of vaperware is? It is to keep your customers from buying your competitors products based on lies about your future product that does not exist yet.

As for the SCCA, it won't matter if there is an ITR next year as I will have converted enough of my car to the BMWCCA rules by the end of the year to where I can't go back to the SCCA. Others who are leaving have already started to convert their cars and others who were on the fence have chosen the BMWCCA JP rules.

And, more so because of how dirty and underhanded the whole SIR thing had become, I have no confidence in the ITAC, CRB, or the SCCA board to make clear rational decisions supported by facts. That is more of why we are leaving, rather than the actual decision. The SIR situation had shown that the SCCA is still run by politics and lying and cheating as has been the case for decades. I and others refuse to be part of an organization that is corrupt to the core.

This thread should not be about the SCCA. It is about a different organazation- BMWCCA Club racing, making a rational decision baced on facts and should be recognized for a process that is open and actually works.

Thank you David again and I will be supporting the BMWCCA Club racing and there will be anther JP, not ITS car by the end of this year.

Bill Kim

This rules change by BMW CCA CR makes it much more likely that SCCA will rethink the "Always A Mazda on the Podium" rule as the BMW racers' entry fees can go away via a good, old fashioned boycott by joining us at the track! Perhaps an ad in StockCar Magazine would be too much of a slap in their face.... but it would certainly be a lot of fun! :)

Yea, one would hope. Not sure if you follow SPEED World Challenge but SCCA Pro took a similar "Always A Mazda on the Podium" approach after making the BMWs uncompetitive because of Auberlen in his Turner 325. Quite sad what they have to do what they get what they want.

Yea, one would hope. Not sure if you follow SPEED World Challenge but SCCA Pro took a similar "Always A Mazda on the Podium" approach after making the BMWs uncompetitive because of Auberlen in his Turner 325. Quite sad what they have to do what they get what they want.

I think Auberlen has made the BMW uncompetitive in every series he has raced in. He did win at Sebring though so it doesn't seem that uncompetitive. I do hate that the Mazda 6 was allowed the gearbox change they should build a better car to begin with. Kinda defeats the whole based on a production car thing, same goes for the caddies.

I think Auberlen has made the BMW uncompetitive in every series he has raced in. He did win at Sebring though so it doesn't seem that uncompetitive. .yes, but they made the rules change AFTER Sebring to see if they could slow him down. The changes included both additional weight, and requiring the weight to be be placed so that it affected the balance of the car, pulling weight off the rear axle! The weight distribution is now 52/48! "you have a great car from the factory, please change the weight distribution so it more evenly matches these nose-heavy FWD cars."

Auberlen didn't run the following race at St. Pete, so we don't know the true effect of the changes. We do know that the other BMWs didn't make the St. Pete podium. Will Turner started 8th and ended 6th, next highest BMW finish was 18th.

http://www.world-challenge.com/events/raceresults.php?ID=129

I didn't realized they had made changes this year already, what were the changes.

yes, but they made the rules change AFTER Sebring to see if they could slow him down. He didn't run the following race at St. Pete, so we don't know the true effect of the changes. We do know that the other BMWs didn't make the St. Pete podium. Will Turner started 8th and ended 6th, next highest BMW finish was 18th.

http://www.world-challenge.com/events/raceresults.php?ID=129


Auberlen also publicly stated that the rule change went "too far" and thus there was no point in him racing at St. Pete.

I didn't realized they had made changes this year already, what were the changes.
after auberlen's win at sebring, all bmws got 100 lbs added, rev limit reduced by 400 rpm, and weight distribution was changed (from 50/50 to 52/48 i believe)...

on topic: glad to hear of the CR rules change, great move by CR imo...

sorry for the OT, but ...

http://www.world-challenge.com/news/story.php?ID=280

BMW Receives Competition Adjustment In Touring Car

TOPEKA, Kan. (Mar. 23, 2006) - SCCA Pro Racing announced today a competition adjustment for the SPEED World Challenge Touring Car class BMW 325, taking the car's specs closer in line to those at the beginning of 2005.

The car gets 100lbs heaver (from 2700lbs to 2800lbs), receives a lower rev limit (8500 to 8100 rpm) and has its rear weight distribution changed from 50 percent to 48 percent.

"Data from the first race of the year showed that the BMW 325 had an advantage under braking, at mid corner and corner exit over the other top cars in the series,” SCCA Pro Racing Senior Director of Technical Services and Race Operations Harry Turner said. “The changes put the car close to where it was at the beginning of 2005, coming off a Championship run in 2004. Throughout 2005, the other front-running models also received negative competition adjustments, and we"re confident that this will bring the relative parity back in line at the front of the field to where we have similarly prepared and driven Acuras, Audis, BMWs, Mazdas and other makes competing for poles and race wins.”

Bill Auberlen, who won the SPEED Touring Car Championship in 2003 and 2004, captured the 2006 season-opening Round at Sebring International Raceway last week in dominating fashion in his Turner Motorsport/H&R Springs BMW 325i. With 10 points, BMW currently leads Mazda (7) and Acura (5) in the Manufacturers’ Championship Presented by RACER Magazine.

after auberlen's win at sebring, all bmws got 100 lbs added, rev limit reduced by 400 rpm, and weight distribution was changed (can't remember the exact percentages)...

I believe 50/50 to 52/48....

I believe 50/50 to 52/48....
yep, just found it and edited...

I do hate that the Mazda 6 was allowed the gearbox change they should build a better car to begin with. Kinda defeats the whole based on a production car thing, same goes for the caddies.

"you have a great car from the factory, please change the weight distribution so it more evenly matches these nose-heavy FWD cars."

This is such truth.
The kind of stuff that would piss off the Pope.
Complete bull$hit,,, pretty much the same crap thats going on in ITS, just on the Pro level.
SCCA just doesn't ever give BMW's a fair fight to win, and if one slips by, they jump on it to rectify that situation.

They "have" to handicap the good, well designed, well made cars, to protect their precious POS Mazdas and Acuras to make them look like better race cars than they are (see also BMW Z4)

Make it straight fight, equal prep,,, have a single equal "series prep" that applies to all cars and then see what rises. I'm bettin it would not be some POS Mazda 6,,, or even an Acura...

Oh and back on topic,,, HUGE Kudos to Dave M and BMWCCA CR for stepping up and really doing the right thing for the ITS guys. Nicely done.

JMHO
jimmy p.

Yea sorry for introducing some OT to this thread. Big news and great announcement from Dave and the CCA CR board.

Auberlen also publicly stated that the rule change went "too far" and thus there was no point in him racing at St. Pete.my last OT post, I promise.

I can't find anything on the internet about what Auberlen said, but it's clear that after Sebring he said he "can't wait to get to St. Pete," but then couldn't go to St. Pete due to a "scheduling conflict." So the clues are all there, even if the exact quote is not.

OK, back to the good news for BMW CR! Way to go guys.