Tag Archives: m6

Alpina vs M … the battle of the performance super sedans

Many people ask… M versus Alpina.  BMW is releasing cars that seem to directly compete with each other.  Which would you rather have, an Alpina B6 versus a BMW M6?  Should you use BMW’s in-house performance division?  Or should you rely on an outside performance automaker to get your thrills in your four door super sedan?

The guys at MotorTrend paint a great picture explaining the difference between the two.

BMW Team RLL Troubled by Tire Woes

The pair of M6 GTLMs fielded by BMW Team RLL finished this past weekends Monterey Grand Prix 9th and 10th in a race mired by tire troubles. Using a new specification Michelin, Bobby Rahal’s team struggled to find an optimum setup to suit the rubber, with the race announcers on FOX Sports 1 deeming it similar to driving on ice for drivers Lucas Luhr, John Edwards, Dirk Werner, and Bill Auberlen. The team next heads to two tests at the stroried Watkins Glen circuit where Rahal hopes his team will figure the new compound and be competitive once again by the next round of the WeatherTech SportsCar Series. In the second race featuring PC and GTD cars, Turner Motorsports entered M6 GT3’s finished 5th and 12th respectively. BMW Team RLL next races at the 6 of the Glen July 3rd, so hopefully the next two months of preparations and testing put the M6 GTLM back to the front of the grid.

BMW Team RLL Eyeing Maiden Win for M6 GTLM at 2016 Monterey Grand Prix

By Mitchell Weitzman

 

The 2016 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship continues its tour of California this weekend with the Continental Monterey Grand Prix powered by Mazda, at the storied Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. While the M6 GTLM remains winless thus far this season, the new turbocharged challenger sees the return to a venue of considerable success for BMW Team RLL, who scored a sweeping 1-2 finish at Laguna Seca last year. It’s not to say the M6 has been off the pace so far this year, scoring two poles at Sebring and Long Beach in the hands of endurance veteran Bill Auberlen; the first win will surely come sooner that later. New competition from Ford’s new GT racing car as well as Ferrari’s new, and also turbocharged, 488 GTE has made the always competitive GTLM even that much closer. Also don’t forget the Corvettes and Porsches that remain as challenging as ever, with the #4 Corvette winning the Florida pair of enduros. Laguna Seca should be a good fit for the larger, F12-based racer, being able to use the wide, sweeping corners of the Salinas hills to it’s benefit. It’s surprising and a real testament to the speed potential of the M6 GTLM that it was able to score a pole at the tight Long Beach street circuit despite it’s size disadvantage compared to smaller, mid-engined American and Italian rivals. In GTD, Turner Motorsport will field a pair of M6 GT3s as well, making it a 4xM6 assault.

Interestingly enough, the race weekend will be split into two separate two-hour sprint races, the first featuring the Prototype and GTLM classes, with the second the Prototype Challenge and GTD classes. Race one starts at 11:15 a.m.  PT Sunday the 1st with Race 2 following at 3:45 p.m. PT. A 3 day pass to see all events is $90 a ticket, with a Sunday pass coming in at $70. Supporting races include the one-make Lamborghini Super Trofeo Series, Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge, Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge and the Mazda MX-5 Cup. For those that have not been to Laguna Seca, it’s well worth the trip to the scenic Monterey Peninsula. I highly recommend climbing all the way to the top of the famed ‘corkscrew’ as well as viewing from the hill above the Andretti Hairpin, turn 2, giving a great look at drivers overtaking under heavy braking.