BMW SA to host first-ever BMW M Festival at Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit

BMW South Africa will host the first-ever BMW M Festival from 21 to 22 October 2017 at the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit in Johannesburg.

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At the festival, BMW customers, fans and car enthusiasts will get a sneak preview of current as well as upcoming BMW M models, experience hot laps and book test drives across the BMW M and M Performance model range.

“South Africa has been one of the top performers in the world in terms of BMW M market share and sales. For example, since 2015 BMW South Africa has been ranked fifth in the world in terms of overall BMW M market share and managed to rise up to third place this year. It is therefore very clear that South Africans are big fans of our BMW M vehicles and – as seen at the international BMW M Festival held annually at the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring – we would like to use the BMW M Festival as an opportunity to inspire our customers and fans with innovative experiential platforms,” says Alexander Baraka, General Manager: Brand Management BMW, Marketing Services at BMW Group South Africa.

Festival goers will also get the opportunity to participate in drag races, drifting, walk through one of the largest BMW showrooms with attractive finance offers to choose from, book test drives, enjoy live music, gourmet food and drinks, a children’s play area and more. The current lineup of confirmed DJs and artists is as follows:

Saturday, 21 October 2017:

• Tomorrows Will
• The Rocketeers
• Majozi
• Goodluck
• Goldfish
• Timo ODV

Sunday, 22 October 2017:

• Tomorrows Will
• PH
• Milkshake
• DJ Kent
• Nasty C
• AKA
• Sphectacula

Others will be confirmed in due course.

The BMW DTM race team (Team Schnitzer with driver Tom Blomqvist) will also make a special appearance at the event and offer visitors hot laps in the BMW M4 DTM car around the 16-turn, 4.522km anti-clockwise FIA graded circuit. With four titles in three years, the BMW M4 DTM is synonymous with great success in the most competitive touring car series in the world. Marco Wittmann won the Drivers’ title with this car in both 2014 and 2016. BMW Team RMG also picked up the Teams’ title in 2014, while BMW won the Manufacturers’ Championship in 2015. This year the new BMW M4 DTM made its debut. The car has been given a complete workover and undergone significant development in accordance with DTM regulations (more information available on the BMW Motorsport website: https://goo.gl/HKcJ5p).

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The Gauteng BMW Car Club Concours Event – the most prestigious event on the BMW Car Club calendar – will also take place at the BMW M Festival. This event has been ongoing for over 32 years and is the greatest annual South African celebration of BMW heritage. Entrant’s vehicles are prepared meticulously for up to four months prior to the event and then expertly judged on their condition, authenticity, preparation and presentation.

Shell South Africa has also partnered with BMW South Africa as the title sponsor of the BMW M Festival. “We’re proud to call BMW M our global partner and to team-up with them to host the exciting and first-ever BMW M Festival powered by Shell V-Power in South Africa. The BMW M Festival is a further testimony as well as an opportunity for our customers to experience and celebrate our shared passion for innovation and performance, which are the driving force behind our partnership. It is for this reason that BMW M recommends Shell V-Power, our performance fuels,” says Frans Maluleke, Cluster Fuels and Brand Manager for Shell South Africa.

The new BMW M5 to make a special appearance ahead of local launch.

Scheduled to be launched in South Africa in the first quarter of 2018, the new BMW M5 will make a special appearance at the BMW M Festival in Kyalami after its world premiere at the Frankfurt International Motor Show (IAA Cars 2017) in September.

The new BMW M5 (fuel consumption combined: 10.5 l/100 km*; CO2 emissions combined: 241 g/km*) takes BMW M GmbH into new territory, with M xDrive all-wheel drive featuring in the high-performance sedan for the first time. This change of tack sees the M5 exploring new dynamic dimensions and offering greater everyday practicality in all driving conditions. The new car is committed to building on the tradition of a concept – the luxurious four-door business sedan with a taste for the race track – first glimpsed in 1984 with the original BMW M5.

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Providing ample power for the new BMW M5 is a 4.4-litre V8 bi-turbo engine with M TwinPower Turbo technology.

The M engineers have carried out significant revisions to the outgoing model’s power unit. For example, newly developed turbochargers, ultra-efficient indirect charge air cooling and increased fuel injection pressure together help to raise output and, above all, torque.

The engine develops 441 kW at 5,600 – 6,700 rpm, while a monumental 750 Nm of torque is placed at the driver’s disposal from as low down as 1,800 rpm and remains there until 5,600 rpm. A map-controlled, fully variable oil pump ensures oil is supplied as and when the new BMW M5 needs it, even on the track. The car’s impressive performance figures speak for themselves: 0 to 100 km/h in just 3.4 seconds, 0 to 200 km/h in 11.1 seconds.

Top speed, meanwhile, is an electronically limited 250 km/h, but the optional M Driver’s Package can keep the fun coming to 305 km/h.

The new BMW M5 channels all that power through a specially tuned eight-speed M Steptronic transmission with Drivelogic.

The exclusive limited-run special-edition BMW M4 CS to be launched at the BMW M Festival.

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Also at the festival, the exclusive limited-run special-edition BMW M4 CS will be launched. The M4 CS sees BMW M GmbH introducing a new nomenclature for its models. Positioned above the standard M models will be the performance-boosted Competition versions. Then come the CS special-edition models, a notch higher still. Positioned on top are the performance-maximising “brand shapers” which display a clear motor sport or club sport character but are also fully road legal.

The 3.0-litre high-performance engine raises the output of the M4 with Competition Package by 10 horsepower, to 460 hp (338kW).

State-of-the-art M TwinPower Turbo technology allows the M4 CS to dip below the four-second mark for the 0 to 100 km/h sprint, stopping the clock at 3.9 seconds.

The top speed of the M4 CS, which comes as standard with the M Driver’s Package, is electronically limited to 280 km/h.

With its two mono-scroll turbochargers, charge air cooler, High Precision Injection, VALVETRONIC variable valve timing and Double-VANOS fully variable camshaft timing, the six-cylinder in-line engine and takes a clear and consistent aim at the higher echelons of performance, but is equally committed to developing significant torque from low engine speeds and achieving high levels of efficiency (fuel consumption combined: 8.4 l/100 km*; CO2 emissions combined: 197 g/km*).

The new BMW M4 CS is equipped as standard with the seven-speed M Double Clutch Transmission (M DCT) with Drivelogic.

First M Performance model in the X3 range – the BMW X3 M40i to be unveiled at the festival after its world premiere at the IAA Cars 2017 in Frankfurt .

The first ever M Performance model in the X3 line-up – the BMW X3 M40i – will also make its first local debut at the festival ahead of its market launch in November. The BMW X3 M40i sets new standards with its sharper dynamics, high level of exclusivity and standout emotional appeal. Developed with an insatiable appetite for revs and superb pulling power, the 3.0-litre M Performance six-cylinder in-line engine ensures the X3 M40i sits at the top end of the model range. Output of 265 kW (fuel consumption combined: 8.4 – 8.2 l/100 km; CO2 emissions combined: 193 – 188 g/km)* propels the flagship X3 from 0 to 100 km/h in an impressive 4.8 seconds.

The BMW X3 M40i also includes a wealth of model-specific set-up and equipment features, which both underpin and lend added impact to the exceptional performance credentials of this SAV.

Among these features are the standard – and strikingly dynamic – M Performance-specific exterior design cues, which include the M Aerodynamics package with design elements finished in Cerium Grey. The flap-controlled M Sport exhaust system with Black Chrome tailpipe embellishers, M Sport brakes, M Sport suspension with M Performance specific tuning, variable sport steering and 20-inch cast light-alloy wheels also come as standard. The BMW X3 M40i can be specified as an option with adaptive M Sport suspension, which covers an even wider spread of ride comfort and sportiness set-up options.

The BMW X3 M40i leaves the factory equipped with an eight-speed Steptronic Sport transmission complete with Launch Control.

This transmission is a perfect match for the engine’s dynamic characteristics and can be operated using shift paddles on the steering wheel. In addition, its xDrive all-wheel-drive system has a far more pronounced rear bias than on the other model versions. The Performance Control feature integrated into the DSC system and acting on the rear wheels has been reconfigured to produce the dynamism, agility and traction for which M models have made their name.

Moving into the cabin, sports seats and the sprinkling of “M40i” logos adorning, for instance, the front door sill strips and instrument panel provide further visual emphasis of the car’s performance capabilities.

The new BMW X3 will be produced at Plant Rosslyn in Pretoria, South Africa, in the first half of 2018.

At the BMW M Festival, visitors will also be able to view the full range of other BMW M and BMW M Performance models as well as various BMW M Performance Parts and accessories currently offered in South Africa.

Ticket Sales

Ticket prices and packages are as follows (including VAT):

Saturday/Sunday 1 day pass:

M-Ticket: R150 M-VIP ticket: R500 M-Hospitality: R2500

Weekend pass:

M-Ticket: R250 M-VIP ticket: R900 M-Hospitality: R4500

BMW M-Ticket:

M-Ticket includes: Access to M-Festival, access to main music stage, food and lifestyle village, BMW new M cars display, BMW vintage M display and the right to sign up for one of hundreds of BMW M car track test drives (first come first serve basis).

BMW M-VIP Ticket:

The coveted M-VIP includes all the benefits of the M-Ticket as well as access to the BMW M Sky Lounge with private cash bar, bar snacks, comfortable lounge and shaded environment, private ablutions, VIP parking and the M-Afterparty kicking from 5pm – 10pm each evening.

BMW M-Hospitality Ticket:

All the benefits of the M-Ticket as well as VVIP parking, private area within the M VIP lounge with view of the track, concierge, all local spirits, beers and wines included, all day canapés. Available to a minimum of eight people.

More information available on www.bmwmfestival.co.za