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BMW Team PTG Highs and Lows at Sears Point

25 July 2000

   
          SONOMA, Calif. (July 24, 2000) -- BMW Team PTG won its
fifth-consecutive sports-car GT class victory in  Sunday's
American Le Mans Series Grand Prix of Sonoma at the 2.52-mile
Sears Point Raceway.  But the win was disallowed following a
post-race technical inspection, when the car's fuel tank was found
to be larger than the size allowed.  Team owner Tom Milner said
Professional Sports Car Racing officials told him the class-winning
No. 7 BMW M3 was disqualified.
          Boris Said of Carlsbad, Calif., started the No. 7 M3 second
on the GT grid and held the position for more than half of the two-
hour 45-minute race.  Hans Stuck of Austria drove the second
stint, took the lead at the two-hour mark and crossed the finish
line about 20 seconds ahead of the second-place Porsche. 
          Peter Cunningham of West Bend, Wis., started sixth in the
No. 6 M3 and moved to third in the first half-hour.  Johannes van
Overbeek of Danville, Calif., then took over in seventh place just
past one hour and finished fourth.  Brian Cunningham of Danville,
Ky., and Nic Jonsson of Aliso Viejo, Calif., started the No. 10 M3
third, but retired after 30 minutes with a mechanical problem.
          In the prototype class, BMW Motorsport drivers JJ Lehto of
Finland and J”rg Mller of Germany finished third in the No. 42
BMW V12 LMR and their teammates Bill Auberlen of Redondo
Beach, Calif., and Jean-Marc Gounon of France were fourth in the
No. 43 BMW.
          "This was a brand-new car which we had just finished and
we had not checked the capacity of the fuel tank," Milner said of
the new No. 7 BMW M3.  "We had the capacity checked at the
gas pumps and it came up to about three-quarters of a gallon
below.  Apparently, this form of measurement wasn't accurate
enough, and after taking expansion and other things into account,
our fuel capacity was a half-gallon too large. 
          "It didn't have any effect on our performance or the outcome
of the race -- we pumped out 2.5 gallons after the race," he
continued.  "But regardless of those facts, our fuel tank capacity
was above the maximum allowed.  We all feel bad about this and it
was an oversight on our part.  We did every measurement that
was available to us to make sure the tank was legal and just
missed it by a half-gallon."
          Tom Salkowsky, motorsport manager for BMW of North
America, Inc., echoed Milner's sentiments.  "These are some of
the issues you face when you develop a new car, especially when
you bring it to the track and haven't turned a wheel yet," he said. 
"It's very disappointing after the team worked diligently to prepare
the car for the race.  However, all the other measurements were
up to par on the car and it's the only car we've experienced any
issues with.  Obviously, there's a half-gallon in the piping of the
car that we have go back and correct."
          Despite the post-race disappointment, Stuck noted the new
car's impressive performance.  "There are rules we have to obey
and our tank capacity did not comply with the rules.  It did not
affect the race, because we had still enough to win with an extra
two litres [of fuel].  It's very sad for the team because they tried
their utmost," he said.
          "But our improvements have paid off, like the engine, and
Yokohama [tires] played a big role.  We maintained our speed
longer than Porsche did on the Michelin tires.  I put pressure on
the Porsche driver, so he cooked his tires and then the snake bit
him."
          Both BMW teams will compete in the next American Le Mans
Series race, the globemegawheels.com Grand Prix at Mosport, at
Mosport International Raceway in Bowmanville, Ont., on Aug. 6.