BMW Road Trips
 

My 2020 racing season is back in full swing finally. I swear this year is being written by Steven King and being directed by Quentin Tarantino.

My last 2 races have been in Mid-Ohio and Virginia International Raceway taking the E46 on those trips but this week I head to Sebring Florida for round 2 of the IMSA Prototype Challenge series in the X5 with Mrs. OB. It is about a 1500 mile trip with one day at Epcot Center in Disneyworld on the way home. One week off and then back to back weeks/races at Road America in Wisconsin also with Mrs. OB. We plan on visiting the Arc Encounter traveling home from that one.

Masks are mandatory at all the circuits and I have been issued a contract tracing Smart ID for my credentials. We have our temperature checked via IR each and every day entering the circuit along with a signed COVID-19 waiver.

I'll take some shots of our adventures and will be putting thousands of miles on the X5 and E46. I charge my teams $.55/mile so at least I recover the couple of thousand dollars I put into maintenance this year during my stay at home months. :thumbup:

https://sportscar365.com/sro/sro-ame...t-tracing-app/

Glad you're back on the tracks OB and I'll bet Mrs OB is happy to see things coming back in line. Is the full schedule out yet or are they playing the events by feel?


2002 X5 3.0 378,900 miles and starting to get tired when it's asked to tow
2014 428i 68,000 miles and back on the road as the CEO sells solar systems nationwide


2004 325i sold at 123,600 miles
2001 325i sold at 66,000 miles


1970 Firebird Under restoration

Schedules are set with multiple conflicts between the series unfortunately. This past weekend I was running SRO GT4 with Porsche and Aston Martin in VIR while Drissi and my Trans-Am team were in Brainerd, MN. Drissi won their event, we had a rough 6 days in VIR. The BMW M4 GT4 was just too fast for us to challenge. Our best efforts placed a 4th and a 6th in 3 races. :rant:

After driving the CEO's 428 at the governor's limit, I can appreciate the capabilities of the M4. Let me know if you're within a day's drive of Texas. I've got plenty of vacation to take and don't mind helping with set-up or tear down.

I have a couple of events at COTA this year. I'll give you a heads-up as they get close. :thumbup:

Two years ago our summer trip was the ark adventure. Time it right and you can visit the art and the museum on the same day they have a special combination price.


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Great photos Andrew. We are really looking forward to the Arc Encounter. :thumbup:

Did you watch the time lapse on my Segway MiniPro between levels on the 300' each way ramp? I have a similar one at the St Louis gateway arch

Great pictures Andrew. The size of the ark really makes you pause. Looks like a very unique experience. We'll need to add it to our future destination list.


2002 X5 3.0 387,900 miles
2014 428i 68,000 miles


2004 325i sold at 123,600 miles
2001 325i sold at 66,000 miles


1970 Firebird Under restoration

OB, Glad things are picking up for you. I hope everything keeps going well and that the wins keep coming.

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Seconded, thirded, or fourthed. :thumbup: Keep the pics coming too. Always enjoy seeing your exploits.

We stayed just over the river in Ohio, wife has connections with a hotel chain for some serious discounts. We took advantage of the combo package and I got an additional Veteran's discount.

My favorite parts of the ark were how they had a ramp between the levels which would have to be a given, how they had a giant door to the outside with a ramp going up to it. Also, they have a scale model that's a must see. The clever automatic food and water dispensers and last but not least, pay particular attention to the entrance where they have a cutaway of the clever design of the hull.

X5 made it to Florida no problem. AC was struggling just a bit at 95F to keep up. I see a AC service coming soon.

Got to the Florida state line on I95 and had to go through the welcome center for COVID-19 screening. Really not a lot to it but everyone has to go through. They asked us where we were coming from and waved us through when we told them we were from North Carolina. I should have taken a video but was a little nervous about the process.

Are you a taking X to WI? I have the gear for AC if you think it'll last. Also: laws of physics make colder air on lower speed so often you'll be more comfortable at a higher temp setting that the machine can keep up with.

Indeed we are bringing the X to Wisconsin. Not sure how much time I will have once we get to Road America but I might take you up on that. The AC blows really cold up to 90F ambient temperatures but then just a little lazy over those temps. Something is just not right. :dunno:

Does It fare better with recirculation air?

Couple of pics of our Norma M30 LMP3 project this week. Has to be the smallest rear sway bar ever.

And a couple shots of our lifts. Racing today in less than 2 hours. :thumbup:

Finished 2nd today. Not quite enough for the win but a great day for points in the 2020 IMSA LMP3 Championship. The 2020 leader in points crashed and DNF with 0 points.

Happy team owner and driver :thumbup:

Nice driving OB! It was almost like someone was looking out for you - you may not have landed #1, but with the PL pulling down a dnf... well, you got to sneak up on him some [emoji16][emoji106][emoji106]


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Thanks PF but I'm not the driver, just the Sparky. I run the electronic data and video systems in the car. But you are right, at the end of the day, we gained some points toward the 2020 Championship. A good day indeed. :thumbup:

Spent a couple of days at Disney World on the way home. We spent the night at Disney Springs and the next day at Epcot. Disney Epcot and Disney Hollywood Studios just opened last week with mandatory masks at all times.

Monorail was not running so we used the new transportation Skyliner to move around the parks and resorts.

OB,
Glad you and your better half got to spend some time down there.

Stay sane.

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Looks more peaceful and easier to enjoy without the big crowds. The ears and bow look great on Mrs OB!


The CEO and I are just doing day trips to area lakes with the Waverunner and cooler.



2002 X5 3.0 379,400 miles
2014 428i 68,000 miles


2004 325i sold at 123,600 miles
2001 325i sold at 66,000 miles


1970 Firebird Under restoration

The park was probably at 5% capacity. No crowds but no waiting in line for anything but it was f*ing HOT and the masks made it worse. A lot of kiosks were still closed but had a decent time.

Next up is the run to Road America and the Arc Encounter in a couple of weeks. :thumbup:

Looks like a good time OB. Keep enjoying that Florida sunshine if you're still there. And remember, as hot as it is there, it's hotter here in South Texas, if that makes you feel any better. ;) Probably not.

We were supposed to take the kids to Disney for the first time a couple weeks ago. :( Had to cancel that and a family reunion in South Florida. I'm ready for 2020 to be in the rear view mirror personally. F*ck this year.

2020 is being written by Steven King and being directed by Quentin Tarantino. :bustingup

BMW Summer Road Trips
 

Hey Boost! I hope y’all are doing well!

All good Happy! :thumbup:

Amen Brotha!

Tip of the hat to Andrew for the suggestion of running the AC in re-circulation mode. We stayed comfortable all the way home with ambient temps of 98F. :thumbup:

Even at 100°f outside you should not need recirculate once the car is cooled off. You filled when hot ambient, need to compensate for that so you are likely a little low yet.

I almost never turn recirc off (AC or heat). Maybe a handful of times a year. Does lead to some fogging issues from time to time. I just switch it off until it clears... LoL, or roll down a couple windows. Probably dumb but that's what I've always done. :rofl:

It's not great. Recirc air is unhealthy for a lot of reasons. There is a reason why BMW limits to 3 or 10 minutes when on automatic.

Yeah, figured. Like being on a flight. But I've always done it and the aircon is cooler in recirc. :dunno:

but unless it's 110 outside ac capable of making cabin 70 with fresh air. Set to auto and dial in 73 and wait until the fan slows down to indicate it's reaches steady State. If you are still warm tap down one degree at a time until you're comfortable.

Caveat the car will blow like a tornado when it's hot so I usually set the temp to 78 initially

Yep, makes sense Andrew. I leave the aircon temp at 60 at all times. LoL, get annoyed when passenger changes their side. :rofl: I do the same with heat btw, set to 90 recirc at all times. It's a personal quirk at this point that my wife has made peace with. :bustingup

The initial tornado you describe turned me off from auto function beginning with my '92 e36.

The car cannot ever achieve 60° you are wasting energy and over stressing the hardware. Learn what temp is comfortable. One of my best buds on xo also used to always have the AC set to max until I taught him the lesson below.

Laws of thermodynamics are working against you. What you achieve when you set to max is to remove the maximum heat from the evaporator.

Read this carefully (everybody). Laws of physics dictate the faster the fan the warmer the air.

Each time

Every time.

I prefer not to have warmer loud air so I set to the slowest speed that will get enough BTU out of ME and the best way to achieve that is as described above.

The standard for the HVAC world is to start at 74°F (23c) so that's what I recommend. If properly charged X5 will achieve 74 in under ten minutes no matter the temp outside. (set to full auto).

If it's struggling to keep up you can use recirc but better to switch the output to dash to cool your face. Only until no money needed then switch back to full auto.

The caveat of full auto is that the car will sound like it's trying to hover three fans will be so fast when you get into a hot car so I usually will change the set temp to 77-78 until the car coola a bit then bump down to 73 or so.

I hear you. I almost never have the fan speed set to full for AC, Max fan speed for me is usually just above 50%. But the temp always 60, I don't like seeing any other number. Yeah I'm weird, what can I say? My OCD just has certain triggers. If my passenger rolls their window down, mine has to go down to the same height so it matches. Each and every time. I don't even think about it, just automatic.

You'd appreciate that just how some cars have sync with left right temp, there Bentley Continental GT has the same with seat position. When you don't have a passenger the passenger seat copies the driver's

So here's the thing about how you use the AC controls. It doesn't make any sense. Largely becauae the AC can't make 60° cabin unless it happens to be 65 outside. Pick a different number that you can train you brain.

Do you set your house AC to 60°?

Find a temp that you are physically and *mentally* compatible with and you'll be much more comfortable. Why waste time and effort to be less comfortable? The car not obit is not ever 60° it's assuredly a temperature the automatic control can keep up with.

Once you find that temp (73 for me), set it and forget it you should not ever have to change it. Use the dash mix vane to fine tune comfort to balance sun hearing etc.

If you need to, literally cover up the number thats no longer 60.

I set both my BMWs to 70F all year round. What is the proper pressure on the low side? Mine is sitting at 45psi with ambient temps around 95F,

Higher


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BMW Summer Road Trips
 

(I just). Without seeing the high side to make a better judgment it's a little tricky.

Set the air to recirculation, fan speed to about 1/4 and put a probe digital thermometer into one of the middle vents.

You should be able to get the temp down to about 40°

Definitely not getting to 40. I would guess high 60's at best. :dunno:

BMW Summer Road Trips
 

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So on 100° day 45/248 psi netted 39° output. Unless you know the high side there's a lot of guessing. That said, on a more Typical day of 80° I would possibly aim for 45-47 psi and 40-45° output if I only can iawow side pressure.

Jealous of that my friend. I have something wrong for sure. :banghead:

Likei said the recirc is a stop gap. Check your status of your heater core valves and EVAP temp with foxwell. A stuck open heater valve will produce your symptom. Also make sure the mixing vane on the dash is set to three blue

(My ac is cold enough even at 96 ambient I have to mix in aittke outside air)


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You can look at it when I come up in a few weeks. Blows really cold at lower ambient temps so I am doubting an issue with the heater valve. Mixing vane is definitely 3 blue.

Dayum! 39.8 F! So jealous. Do you know how many lbs of refrigerant you have in it? I think I need to top mine off.

I forget how much it took but I vacuumed it empty first. It took 2-3 12 oz. cans but you can't get it all out.

That actually aligns with stuck open heater. I run ac plus heat any time it rains to dry the air. It is unlikely to have both sides fail open but you still should confirm.

Threw another 2100 miles on the X5 running the COVID 2020 Tour. This trip was up to Road America Wisconsin from Charlotte with the better half. 8 days of work/vacation.

We made a 3 day trip both ways stopping in Downtown Knoxville, Magnificent Mile Chicago, Road America, Downtown Cincinnati, The Ark Encounter in Kentucky, Pigeon Forge on Tennessee and Biltmore Estate in Asheville.

We even stopped by to say hi to Andrew and he checked out our AC system and added a couple of pounds or Freon before heading to the track.

Good trip. :thumbup:

...

Videos from Road America:


https://www.icloud.com/sharedalbum/#B0kG3KxPyGRXxih

Looks like a fun trip! Thanks for sharing OB.

Glad you were able to make the trip OB! It feels good to be out when we can, even if it has to be "masked". Our next one will be the annual Labor Day trip to Lake Ouachita - our 23rd in a row, but maybe the last one for the current E53.


2002 X5 3.0 380,300 miles
2014 428i 68,000 miles


2004 325i sold at 123,600 miles
2001 325i sold at 66,000 miles


1970 Firebird Under restoration - progress review at the shop today

Great videos of Robby Gordon's Stadium Super Truck series Andrew. Love the slow motion and it looks like you got to see the NASCAR Xfinity race after ours. I wish we could have shown you a better result in our race but 2nd place into the last lap with a spin and contact in the wall left us in 6th for the event. Still 2nd in points for the 2020 Championship but now 10 points back :banghead:

We had a great time CW. 8 days from start to finish. I think the Magnificent Mile in Chicago and Pigeon Forge in Tennessee were some of our best memories. Chicago was a ghost town but we had a wonderful time seeing the art and culture before the Hooligans came in that weekend just after we left.

Thanks Steve. Mine just turned 185K with the last 2 trips. Just now "broken in". Hoping to run it to 300K. ;)

Your garage was in the perfect place for the jumping trucks and I was very happy with the framing and lighting.

Funny how the exhaust sounds at 1/8 speed.

Nobody commented on the Acuity Flag in Sheboygan so I thought I would add another picture for perspective. :dunno:

The "world's tallest tribute to freedom," is a 400-foot tall flagpole waving an American flag that's 7,200 square feet. The pole is about 100 feet taller than the Statue of Liberty, its flag is four stories tall, and it stands in an unlikely location: an insurance company campus in Sheboygan, Wisconsin.

The flag itself is 70' by 140' and each star measures 3.5 feet and each stripe is more than 4 feet tall and weighs 340 lbs. The pole itself, weighing in at 420,000 pounds, required 500 gallons of paint.

BMW Summer Road Trips
 

We drove part that today. From the freeway I guessed about 80’ wide. Almost off by a factor of two.

Thanks for the photos OB. It's good to see some of the States again andbto see folks getting back to living. [emoji106] I can't wait for more road trips from everyone (I miss the color green around the American flag)

Stay safe on your travels everybody!!

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We had a great time EOD. It is still a bit challenging figuring out the different state laws for bars and restaurants. I think almost all hotels are open now so travel is fairly easy. :thumbup:

Enjoyed the pictures.

Thanks BC, been a lot of driving this year since May. I think I put over 5000 miles on the X5 and 1500 miles on the E46. Sometimes I wish I hadn't spent so much money before the lockdown maintaining both cars but sure glad I did when I'm over 1000 miles from home. Not even a glitch other than the AC in the X5 struggling to keep up with 95 degree ambient temps.

I want to get through the summer the way it is and make a plan during the winter for solving that issue. Andrew and I scanned it with his Foxwell when I was passing through and showed everything is normal. He even put his AC gauges on it and added a couple of pounds of Freon. Mine would only blow 44-46 degrees at idle. I think I have a compressor that needs replacing. :dunno:

Check when driving. It took about ten minutes before I got nice cold readings. Driving 40+ for ten minutes with foxwell set to live data of the evaporator temp. Should be close to 40.

I think this thread is for everyone's road trips? Hope so anyway.

Finally got out of town, wife gave me a kitchen pass for a couple days, so I went over to Houston to visit Mouse.

It's HOT out here. Not EOD hot... but hot. ;) I need to put that Logic7 lower temp thermostat in. 210F is just too hot.

Attachment 78649

This is in front of a cool shop in H-town. They host Tex-Fest every year and hopefully the wife and I can make it there this year. I went last year solito. It's a 5 series gathering, but the X represented well and the guys were very cool and appreciated it being there. I posted some pics from last years gathering.

Attachment 78650

The trip was nice and the X did wonderfully. The coilovers are a dream. Red hit 124300 miles by the time I got back to SA. Only hiccup was my dumb@ss leaving the fuel filler cap on the fuel door after filling up. "Check fuel filler cap" on the dash a few minutes after leaving the gas station. I was tired. Sooooo, I ordered a new OE one today. At least this new one will have an intact tether so I can't do that again. :D :bustingup

So you think I'm hot?

I prefer the term sexy....[emoji1787][emoji1787][emoji1787][emoji1787]

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Thanks for the shot of Red CW. She looks fantastic. Yes this thread was hopefully going to have a lot of travel shots from our members. Traveling with our X5's is part of the journey.

BMW Summer Road Trips
 

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A few vinyards and cheese factories with as many as possible watering hole stops for boy he loves swimming. I made him hug the swim area bouy.

Oh: my 14 day old Ninebot Segway mini tried to commit suicide by jumping into lake Michigan. I saw it in my 210° peripheral vision 6" before taking the plunge off the pier; yelled "grab my feet grab my feet grab my feet" and basically dove after it aiming for my waist to hit the edge of the pier.

I grabbed the top handle of the NineBot just about 1 foot / 25cm below the waterline as it was about to commit burial at sea. IPX7 rated I hopped on and drove it back to the car. I had less than 1s to react decide what to do yell grab my feet and dive for it.

Highlight of the trip probably lunch at Glacier Ledge Restaurant. It was like being teleported to a fancy restaurant in LA. Out if this world.

Great photos Andrew! Love it!

Agree, very nice shots Andrew. :thumbup: Can't wait to travel with the family again.

Looks like it was a great trip. What's that lake water temperature Andrew? Our local lakes are at 82-86 degrees.


2002 X5 3.0 380,600 miles
2014 428i 69,600 miles


2004 325i sold at 123,600 miles
2001 325i sold at 66,000 miles


1970 Firebird Under restoration

I'm off to Virginia International Raceway this week for round 4 of the IMSA Prototype Challenge series. It is hardly a journey of 2 hours door to door from here but I will be driving the 3 series instead of the X. I'll post some track and road shots of the trip as I begin the trip. :thumbup:

Andrew, enjoyed the photos. I lived on Lake Michigan in Muskegon for 7 years. Looked a little like you might have been in Pentwater because of the bridges but several locations look similar. I loved the 2 months of summer. Hated the winters with the lake effect snow.

Virginia International Raceway complete in out IMSA Prototype Challenge series. It was nice to get the E46 out for the run up there and home.

Good weekend for us. Not quite enough for the win but had to start from the rear and worked our way to P2 at the finish. :thumbup:

When is the next Tex-Fest?

I wouldn’t mind checking Red out.

I want to say late October? I'll check it out and PM you. I'd certainly enjoy seeing your hopped up M54 manual. Problem is all the cabins (both sizes are booked). The group booked the entire place out last year, was really cool. Someone asked the owners if the noise or cars were an issue. They said we were some of the best groups they've had and since we had rented out the whole place, no one was going to complain. :thumbup:

OB great photos and I just realized that grass is the ONE thing that I have driven over in my X5 [emoji1787]

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Thanks EOD. I really enjoy flogging that little whip every now and again.

Can't drive the next one but I'm off to COTA in Austin Texas tomorrow morning for a week with the Ferrari Challenge 488 series. Be taking care of 6 of those prancing horses for a week. :thumbup:

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Sounds rough OB. :nanana: One of these visits to COTA we'll be able to hook up for a beer. Someday. lol

I would always invite my Texas brothers to come out for a weekend of fun but the COVID-19 has moved us to no fans. We have a limited amount of crew allowed on each team and no guest list. Once we get past this, you guys are always welcome to come and have a good time with me and my teams.

Ferrari North America is even mandating a negative COVID-19 test within the past 7 days to even compete at the event so I have a COVID-19 rapid test scheduled tomorrow once I land in AUS.

Traveled in to Austin today. Easy flight and then over to a doctors office for a COVID-19 test. Ferrari North America requires a negative test result within the last 8 days to enter the event. For those that have never taken the COVID-19 nasal swab test, all I can say it felt like someone rubbing sandpaper on the back of my eye.

Not really my idea of fun but we do what we have to do to make things happen.

Good luck to your team this week. :thumbup: Wish I could go out and support. But times are what they are. At least your back out there enjoying the race gas fumes.

I haven't done the test but my mom has a couple of times. She said it's definitely unpleasant, but nothing crazy.

Busy the first day of testing. Lots of Italian art. :thumbup:

Aahhhhhh..... ^_^

Couple more pics from the corral this week.

Thanks for pictures!

More pictures from today. Tomorrow is qualifying and race 1. Should have everything ready. Our schedule is crazy with arriving at the circuit around 11:00 AM and finish our last runs at 11:00 PM. Long days.

Your car pron is the best. Keep it coming OB. :thumbup:

So pissed OB, that I can’t be there!

Great day for us today for R3 Motorsports and our Ferrari 488 Challenge cars. We put one of them on the pole in qualifying and led flag to flag in race 1. We came in with a 1st and 2nd in the race tonight and let me tell you, the champagne is BACK. Ferrari really put on a celebration in victory lane. The catering staff were walking around with wine, champagne and deserts for everyone. There was even a guy rolling cigars and handing them out. They even had fireworks for the podium celebration. What a party! :thumbup:

Race 2 is tomorrow before flying home to repack for Road Atlanta next week with IMSA Audi TCR running in Michelin Pilot Challenge series. This week will be hard to beat. :driver:

...

Congratulations OB!

You have a great team and keep on winning!!![emoji3060][emoji3060]

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Thanks EOD. The Finals are in Abu Dhabi this year so I might be traveling over to your side of the world. The 2020 schedules are still a moving target so it might be moved to Monza Italy.

We had another good day yesterday pulling in a couple 2nd place runs in race 2. Back home and packing for Road Atlanta for AUDI TCR this week.

Awesome news. Depending on the dates, my General and if the GCC is letting people cross the border I can cross the empty quarter in about 9 hours and meet you there!![emoji3060][emoji1696]

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Headed to Road Atlanta tomorrow morning in the E46 for IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge TCR class with Audi RS3 LMS. Another week grinding rubber and carbon fiber. :thumbup:

Sounds like my kind of place! [emoji684]

Congrats on those finishes OB! Missed being there for the action but understand the situation. Trust that you and the Mrs have been healthy.



We'll be headed to Lake Ouachita in Arkansas this weekend. Probably the last big towing trip for the X5. The driver seat leather is developing a crack to match the crack in my butt, and I think the grid in one of my cats is finally starting to collapse as it seems to be down on both fuel mileage and power.


Can't complain too much though at 382,000 miles! Have a safe weekend.


2002 X5 3.0 381,300 miles
2014 428i 69,700 miles


2004 325i sold at 123,600 miles
2001 325i sold at 66,000 miles


1970 Firebird Under restoration - Serpentine belt conversion is in, just waiting on the new dashboard cover and re-assembly begins.

First couple of days in Road Atlanta Michelin Raceway have been promising. Our car is good and headed to qualifying today with a 4 hour race tomorrow afternoon. We have good performance and just trying to get a handle on the tire and starting driver strategy for tomorrows run. :thumbup:

Good luck brochacho!

Yesterday was one of those days. We got hit by the Mercedes coming out of the pits and put us in the wall ending our race at the 2 hour mark. :banghead:

A great effort by the boys all week only to have a WTF moment in the end.

Tomorrow is back to Virginia International Raceway for 2 days of testing our Trans-Am Camaro running in TA

Made it home from the 3 day test at VIR. We tested good with the Camaro and even got the chance to run Paul Menard around in the car for 20 laps. He retired from NASCAR Cup Series after 2019 and hoping to have him on as a second car. :thumbup:

Well, the high-miler X5, CEO and her security team of Shadow and Sadie all went to Lake Ouachita in Arkansas for the 23rd Labor Day Weekend in a row.
The nice, new aluminum PWC trailer was begging for something new to tow it, and it may just get its wish pretty soon.


Got to Mountain Harbor Resort without any issues, waking up to participate in a huge Trump floatilla of more than 1700 boats. No capsizings on this lake with plenty of fire boats and game wardens keeping an eye on things.


The next two days were filled with perfect weather, wine and water and reservations were made for 2021.


2002 X5 3.0 382,100 miles
2014 428i 70,000 miles


2004 325i sold at 123,600 miles
2001 325i sold at 66,000 miles




The trip back was thrilling as the rear cat gave up the ghost and suffered a partial collapse near Mt Pleasant, TX. There were times I could barely make 45 mph up a grade until we got just west of Dallas. Then all of a sudden, I was back to maintaining 75 mph as it must of puked some of the guts out of the converter.


So I've got a pair of el-cheapos coming from carparts.com with an indie scheduled for install that will keep everything at about $1000 and get me through till next spring when there will be something different in front of that trailer.

That looks like SO MUCH fun Steve! Looks like you had a great time! :thumbup:

Back to Mid-Ohio this past week with my LMP3 team. Came home with a solid 4th place finish. Moved a couple positions up in the 2020 Championship with the final race Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta in a couple of weeks. Put another 1000 miles on the E46. Performed flawlessly at 211,000 miles.

Those are some wicked looking scoops behind the rear wheels OB! Looks like you had some great racing weather and good results.


The CEO and I wrapped up our summer road trips with one more lake visit Saturday out to Possum Kingdom Lake, 60 miles west of Fort Worth. Nice, 91 degree day, but the water had already dropped to a significant shrinkage temperature. (That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it).


X5 did great with the new catalytic converters and had no trouble maintaining 75 MPH pulling the waverunner up the long grades. Sunday had perfect weather to winterize the ski and put its 190 horses in the barn till next spring.


2002 X5 382,800 miles
2014 428i 70,900 miles


2004 325i sold at 123,600 miles
2001 325i sold at 66,000 miles


1970 Firebird Under restoration

Possum Kingdom Lake has some awesome properties. Is one of those yours?

Not yet OB, but we did cruise a lot of shoreline Saturday checking for real estate signs. We don't need a McMansion, just 2 or 3 bedrooms with lake front. You have to watch your location for water level changes. The lake is at normal pool now, but we've seen it 8 feet below as well.

Took a run to Pigeon Forge Tennessee for a little R&R with the Mrs. Solid 4 days of fun and relaxation. :thumbup:

Looks like a good time to me!!!

Agreed. :thumbup:

OB, the fall colors look great. Hope you and the Mrs had a good time unwinding. Those bloody Marys are tugging at my heart strings. My CEO whips up a good one for me each night has part of my COVID prevention protocol!


2002 X5 3.0 383,800 miles
2014 428i 72,000 miles


2004 325i sold at 123,600 miles
2001 325i sold at 66,000 miles


1970 Pontiac Firebird Under restoration

Those were out by the firepit in the morning made by us. When we went out for brunch at Crawdaddys in Gatlinburg, we got these. There is even a crawfish holding the straw :rofl:

I have been dosing , I mean consuming bloody Mary’s as well. I assumed they were a valid vaccine!

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That’s what I am talking about!!!

Agree. I miss the fall colors of the East coast. Not so much the cold winters... but the snowball fights were epic. :D

Thanks OB. Not only am I thirsty, but now I'm hungry too!


There's a great place in Orange Beach, AL called the Brick & Spoon. They have a full page selection menu for building your bloody Mary. 5 different vodkas, 5 different spice levels, a vegetable section, a protein section and a seasoning section. :D


Good grief, what am I doing to myself so close to lunchtime :dunno:


2002 X5 3.0 383,800 miles
2014 428i 72,000 miles


2004 325i sold at 123,600 miles
2001 325i sold at 66,000 miles


1970 Pontiac Firebird Under restoration - new dash cover due in three weeks

This week was a run in the E46 up to Monticello Motorsports Club in New York. Fantastic motorsports club with all the comforts. No cars on track for me, just prepping the cars for the 2021 season.

So much New York and Connecticut money there it is just insane. The officials put me up in the Resorts World Casino 5 minutes from the track.

At $120,000 to join and $30,000/year to maintain the membership, it is a different world from mine.

Needless to say, running around in a car worth less than $250,000 is slumming it. :rofl:

5 Porsche 718 GT4' Clubsports's, a Porsche GT2RS Clubsport, A BMW M4 GT4, 2 McLaren 570S's, A Ford GT from 2006 and a new one from 2019.

Wicked. That is all I have to say about that. Always enjoy your car pron. Needed more E46 in that North Eastern fall weather though. ;)

Yeah, she was a mess CW. I left for NY in the pouring rain and drove 11 hours with 9.5 of it wet. Coming back was close to the same with torrential downpours from the effects of Zeta. Can't see me rolling dirty... :rofl:

I was accelerating about to hit 2nd gear... And then I woke up. [emoji17]

Reminds me of the time I got caught in mild to moderate blizzard on the 210 in Los Angeles. That was a WTF moment! The E53 took it like a champ, but what a mess to clean up after. On a positive note... There was no salt involved.

NY was expecting 3" of snow tomorrow. Got out of there just in time. All you could see was my tail lights and a middle finger pointed to Cuomo as I left. 14 day quarantine my a$$ :bustingup

Hahahaha.. Now that’s what I call, getting out of dodge!

:D :bustingup

Last 2 races of 2020 in the Trans Am series. Finished up a little short of the TA National Championship but a solid 2nd place in the points. Here are some pictures of our run this past weekend in Road Atlanta to end our 2020 season.

A solid run in COTA a couple of weeks ago and a great weekend this past week at Road Atlanta. We came across the checkered 1 and 2 in the first race and 2 and 3 in the second race. Both cars on the podium in both races. :thumbup:

Great to see Tomy on the podium again! Hope all this COVID crap is gone for the 2021 season. Really missed seeing you and the team in action at COTA.


2002 X5 3.0 385,600 miles
2014 428i 72,500 miles


2004 325i sold at 123,600 miles
2001 325i sold at 66,000 miles


1970 Firebird under restoration - no dash pad until .....February, geez.

Finished off 2020 travels with another weekend at Lake Ouachita for a quiet celebration of my birthday with a few friends. Had great views off the cabin deck, including an early morning flyover of three C130's doing a low altitude run over the lake. Came prepared with plenty of bottled vaccines and antibiotics :bustingupto keep the COVID away. I made my semi-world famous herb encrusted prime rib for everyone. Even the security team of Shadow Demi Lee, Sadie Diamond Lil and "special investigator" Charlee Anne (The Westy) got some relaxing done.


Now it's time to get started on roasting that turkey. :thumbup:


2002 X5 3.0 385,600 miles
2014 428i 72,500 miles


2004 325i sold at 123,600 miles
2001 325i sold at 66,000 miles


1970 Firebird Under restoration - No dash pad til February :(

Good times! Looks so relaxing.

I'm off to Florida on Friday for a week or 2 as the 2021 season is starting with getting our 2 new Duqueine D08 LMP3 cars ready for the new season that were delivered last Friday. IMSA racing starts the first 2 weeks of January. So much for the off season. :dunno:

A few days down here in Florida and making progress on the data systems and wiring in the cars. May light the first beast today! :D

Well, summer is over but the travel continues. Made 4 trips to Florida in the last month, 3 in the E46 and once with the X5. This week started out our 2021 season.

Nice to see you out for the new season OB! Hopefully I won't be "masked off" from COTA this year. Should have the Firebird completed by then - might tickle the team's fancy to see some true, old school horsepower. Are you monitoring the same data points in that series as for the TA cars?


Watch the salt spray on that gorgeous vehicle! And don't try to drive on the beach at Fort Lauderdale - soft sand :banghead: , expensive tows and costly tickets.



2002 X5 3.0 388,800 miles
2014 428i 74,800 miles with a CEO appreciative of run-flat tires


2004 325i sold at 123,600 miles
2001 325i sold at 66,000 miles


1970 Firebird Under restoration

A few more data points on these cars Steve. The downforce is insane if you get it right.

Daytona allows driving on the beach, hell the first Daytona NASCAR races were actually on the beach. :thumbup:

Some more car porn for those that follow my adventures in motorsports...

The new 992 Carrera Cup cars hit the circuit for the first time this week in Sebring. Looking after the Racelogic VBox video systems for the entire series. Yeah, they are fast...

Wow..!

What I would do, to hit that track! Pretty sweet Boost! :thumbup:

Car porn is right. Clean, tidy, stout and shiny and probably soothes you to sleep at idle. Too much fun OB. Hope things open up for spectators soon.

More Car Porn
 

Left Sebring for the day and headed down to PBIR to shakedown the Pikes Peak Porsche GT2RS I installed the data and video system in last week at Champion Porsche Motorsports. Really good test, next run will be up the mountain... :thumbup:

[emoji106][emoji106]

So much awesome. Your updates here never disappoint. So glad things are returning to normal for you regarding your work schedule. And not just because we get such good auto porn. ;)

The Pikes Peak car is flat awesome. The GT2RS is a purpose built 700HP twin turbo monster that flat gets it. Notice the key and automatic PDK. ;)

Very awesome! 700HP! That thing must be a millimeter away from flying! :zoom:

This thread title is as close as it get's. Where's Props ?

How are you guys managing storage space on the long ventures. Roofbox - Noise ? Windflare, mielage ?

Everything I've read seems to infer a tow hitch box is best (I'm tow hitch equipped).
The Yakima EXO system with basket AND box combo is interesting

Back in the X5 for a 4000 mile run. We left Charlotte on Monday and our first stop was Louisville, KY for the night. Got up in the morning and headed to our second stop for the night in the Magnificent Mile in Chicago. From there we drove the next day to Brainerd, MN for the race this week.

The X5 ran like a top but yesterday after a rest stop I could hear a different note to the engine. Kind of a whirring or whining. Kept the RPMs low and got to our hotel and checked a few things out. Found the clutch fan to be mostly locked up so ordered a new fan clutch from FCP along with the removal tools to be delivered to the track tomorrow. We are not even halfway through our trip as we head for the Black Hills, SD after the race on Sunday.

Good that you found that fan clutch issue. Mine seemed to get looser and looser as the mileage went up on the E53. It was still original though at 389,000 miles. Will you be back at COTA for the TransAm series this year?

Made it to South Dakota and saw the sights. We started in the Badlands and then to Mount Rushmore the first day.

Spent the next day at Crazy Horse and then off to Sturgis. The bikes were just starting to gather before the craziness this week and next. We were able to move around Main St and visit all the bars and shops before the crowds.

Finished up our journey in St Louis at the Gateway Arch before heading to Nashville.

All in all a good trip other than the new Meyle fan clutch not performing the way a Genuine fan clutch would work. It got me home without sending the fan blades through the hood but would never really lock up in heated conditions. It would move the needle a little to the right in traffic conditions. Ordered a genuine BMW part to replace it.

Only used a quart of oil in the nearly 60 hours of driving/5000 mile trip. Can't really complain. She ran like a top. Started our trip in the 192,000 mile range and ended up over 197,000. Honestly it was like driving to the west coast and back.

Just have to love the road construction workers in South Dakota. :bustingup

BMW Road Trips
 

Took a small trip to my E53 parked in the front of my house, and I found this parked out front.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...f4b7a47e80.jpg
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...3d1aebbc18.jpg
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...8582191d26.jpg

You don’t see that every day!

That's the old Risi Competizione transporter! :thumbup:

Easy run this week. Off to Nashville for the Music City Grand Prix downtown street circuit. I am fairly certain the town will be epic this weekend.

Do you have a car running in the Grand Prix OB? I'm doing a 500 miler tomorrow with a one-day turnaround to San Antonio again, racking up the miles on the F15 in a hurry with 11,000 in 6 months.

8 cars in Trans-Am TA2 I am responsible for at the Music City Grand Prix. I am running in-car video live feed to the TV company. :thumbup:

Fantastic OB! The exposure will be great for you. Hope everything runs smooth.

The first race ever on the streets of Nashville was epic. Mrs. OB and I had a great time, there had to be 100,000 people in town. The night life was made of dreams!

Everything went smooth and even took a couple of days in Pigeon Forge on the way home. The X5 performed flawlessly again, that's 75 hours behind the wheel in the last 30 days. :thumbup:

Awesome!! Glad y’all had a blessed trip!

P.S. Who knew Indy cars fly now! Puwahaha… LoL.. Epic race indeed!! :2thumbs:

Awesome OB!! Glad to hear things are going so well.

Sent from my SM-A730F using Tapatalk

[emoji44]


Sent from my iPhone using Xoutpost.com

X2! Good stuff. :thumbup:

Looks like it was a great weekend. The company I work for made that Hard Rock guitar sign Mrs. OB is standing below. We have a few of those around the country.

I made signs for many years of my life for my father’s company. :thumbup:

:thumbup:

It's healthy to eat life with a big spoon - it's good for your well being and there's no other time to do it other than ... now :D.

Well said brother! And making those memories in the X is just icing on the cake! :thumbup:

I'll throw a few pics in on OB's thread thanks to his generous offer to spend some time with the Burtin Racing Team at COTA in November. It was an honor to see him at work assisting the team with data analysis from the cars' test runs, and I even had the chance to get gear lube on my hands with an engine and rear axle swap. :D


Thanks Joe! :thumbup:

That exhaust system! :wow:

I was amazed at how busy COTA gets on race weekends. We drove by there on the way to Round Rock when Indy was running last month... there was a line going the opposite way on the tollway stretching for miles. Every surface road was jammed too.

Edit, not Indy. I meant F1... duuuuuhhhhhh. :D

It's really becoming quite the facility. Road improvements were underway to expand the north side traffic flow for next year.

I would’ve liked to have been apart of that gathering! :thumbup:

Loved having you with us Steve. All my Xoutpost brothers are welcome to come out to the races with me. Just let me know and I'll put you on the guest list. I wish we had better results in the race but came home on the podium with hardware. Nice way to end the 2021 season 2nd in the 2021 TA Championship. :thumbup:

I heard 400,000 in attendance for that F1 race. WOW!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you know the difference between F1 and Trans Am?

In F1 the fans know the name of every driver...

In Trans Am, the drivers know the names of every fan... LMAO :rofl::rofl::rofl:

And this Trans Am fan appreciates it.:D

:bustingup:bustingup:bustingup

Admittedly, I'm not hugely familiar with motor sports. But that's funny.

It was 400,000 total over 4 days. There were 140,000 on race day.

I don’t care what it is! If it’s got two or four wheels, loud pipes, and goes fast to its capabilities, on a closed circuit, I am all for it!

I am definitely a track junkie! Even the virtual ones!

Well, my GLW and I are just back home from a 2,000km summer road trip - basically a lap of New Zealand's South Island.

We started with a day trip across the very south of the island, East to West...

https://i.ibb.co/5knZmrs/20211228-205153.jpg

Then a day's driving up the West Coast, followed by another day back to the East and then into the Marlbough Sounds at the top of the island...

https://i.ibb.co/7zV69ZP/20211231-145038.jpg

The next couple of days were spent with good friends and family, boating, fishing, hiking and relaxing...

https://i.ibb.co/1Ljm6mN/20211231-071426.jpg

We had the BEST fresh Blue Cod Sashimi for lunch after that trip... :p:

Another two enjoyable days driving back down the East coast (with a lunch stop at Kaikoura) saw us home safe.

https://i.ibb.co/X4JjqFv/20220101-144853.jpg

The X5 never missed a beat (as long as you don't count blowing a front strut/shock at around the 1,400km mark!), returned around 34mpg (6.9L/100km) for the trip and was a great place to spend the best part of a week. :thumbup:

Now to replace those front struts... :rolleyes:

Great photos Wayne. Road trips are the true definition of car ownership! :thumbup:

Beautiful!

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