Topic: Rumor on BMW E30's ... Automatic 50 Lap Penalty?
Due to the past success of spec e30's at Lemons events ... sounds like misinformation to me ... someone posted on a local BMW forum.
BMW 6 Series ... "All Bitched Out!"
The 24 Hours of Lemons Forums → Lemons Newcomers → Rumor on BMW E30's ... Automatic 50 Lap Penalty?
Due to the past success of spec e30's at Lemons events ... sounds like misinformation to me ... someone posted on a local BMW forum.
No, just cranky Alfa racers startin' rumors (or BMW freaks being paranoid as usual). Though it may be true that E30 guys SHOULD feel obligated to come up with a better theme than the next guy, there are no official automatic sanctions against our beloved Bimmers.
There IS, however, an automatic stencil.
It's not the "past success" of E30s that's the problem (Miatas, RX-7s, Mustangs, and Supras would be better targets there; if you look past the quick lap times, a typical E30 Lemons car has about a 10% chance of actually contending). It's that there are so damn many of them, they often have insultingly lame not-even-going-through-the-motions themes, they frequently break down in a manner that requires tow-truck assistance, and they often turn mild-mannered drivers into foaming-at-mouth black-flag monsters.
All that said, we're not going to slap automatic lap penalties on E30s just because they're E30s; that rumor is the result of certain E30 pilots feeling persecuted by the teams driving other fast BMWs (e.g., E21s, E24s, E28s).
There IS, however, an automatic stencil.
We proudly wear the stencil on our E30. Hell, one of our guys has that on a t-shirt! Having a good theme helps immensely. It frustrates us too to see cars with little more than a number spray-bombed on the door...
Now if it's a really weird and/or POS car (Corvair comes to mind) then that in and of itself can make up for a lack of a theme.
Rich
Team Porcbimmer
We proudly wear the stencil on our E30. Hell, one of our guys has that on a t-shirt!
Hallo Mr Stercraw!
So if I drive my E30 to the track will it get stenciled and our real Lemons car get docked laps? Maybe bmw drivers really are paranoid. I guess that'd be better than coming off the track from my stint and find it up on blocks and used as a parts car for all the other E30s
all i can say is a good theme goes a long ways. I think thats why i feel so much animosity towards MOST of the miata guys. They show up with a miate spray painted and call it a theme. BS.
I will however compliment the Barbie Miata. those guys tried hard and seemed to have the essence of the race in mind.
It frustrates us too to see cars with little more than a number spray-bombed on the door...
Its actually amusing to be on the other end of that ridicule and I think our team deserved it at last year's detroitish race.
we put a lot of effort in the 07 theme for our e30, died an early death and finished dead f'ing last. last year we painted the car white and put numbers on it. the amount of prep/effort/parts rather than theme paid off and we ran the whole 24 hours and finished quite well.
we're planning on trying to put together both a good theme and a good performance at the 09 nelsen ledges.
the e30 hate is a little weird, but i get it. however... our $450, 247,000 mile car with a floorboard ventilation system is a beater Lemons car in every respect. its loved and cherished and i know it wont always be in my life, so i'm trying to enjoy every moment with it.
I have no problem with the e30. I think Miatas are far more likely to win and there are more and more of them every race. The Datsun Z cars sure seen like they should run well, but so far, nobody has come close to a win. I'd like to think our Z has a chance, but it is our first Lemons race, so we could just as easily finish DFL like bingo's first e30 attempt.
The 24 Hours of Lemons Forums → Lemons Newcomers → Rumor on BMW E30's ... Automatic 50 Lap Penalty?