Forty-three members and guests gathered in-person to kick off the new year for our San Diego Chapter of the BMW CCA. New and long-time members were warmly greeted by our new chapter president, Matt Gage.
Read MoreAs we reach the end of 2022, it is time to select the members of the 2023 San Diego Chapter Board of Directors. This year’s election will be held online again, using MotorsportReg.com.
Read MoreDennis organized the annual Clean Car Contest and Charity Auction for decades…
Read MoreWe are SO lucky to have one of BMW’s permanent showcases for M car performance located just 3 hours from home.
Read MoreOur first Cars and Coffee event of the New Year was a resounding success (especially if you consider some of the exhaust notes!) The weather couldn’t have been better under a clear, sunny, San Diego winter day. We had over 100 BMWs participating this time and several other marques showing up as well. It was good to be back at Liberty Station at the Point Loma Cars and Coffee event, a fan favorite.
Read MorePresident - Greg Uhler
Vice President - Matt Gage
Treasurer - Ryan Moore
Secretary - Paul Silver
Driving School Director - Lisa Goehring
Social Director - Tyler Johnson
Wachmeister - Brett Litoff
Board Member at Large
Catalina Uhler
Kim Dais
Robert Fisher
Reza Sharghi
Communications Director
Autocross Director
Equipment Meister
Webmaster
Thank you to all of the members that participated in the 2022 Board of Directors election!
We encourage anyone interested in any of the remaining vacant positions to contact us at info@sdbmwcca.com.
As we reach the end of 2021, it is time to select the members of the 2022 San Diego Chapter Board of Directors. Because we are not able to meet in person due to COVID concerns, this year’s election will be held online again, using MotorsportReg.com.
Read MoreThe weather couldn’t have been more perfect for a late Fall Sunday. Clear skies and bright sunshine all day. The turnout was HUGE again! Thank you to all who attended! There were 80 attendees and over 40 vehicles! Crazy!
Read MoreWe had another great cars and coffee event, this time down in a new location in Barrio Logan at the K1 Speed parking lot. Hosted and organized by Garage Collective, we nearly filled the 100 car parking lot with all sorts of unique and interesting cars.
Read MoreThere are many ways to turn a routine task into a disaster. But you’ll only learn all of those ways once each of them happens.
Read MoreOur second Cars & Coffee event this year was another huge success! The weather was a bit better this time without the pre-event drizzle, the skies were sunny, and coffee was flowing thanks to the coffee van on site and La Jolla Independent serving brew and donuts from one of their several cars in attendance.
Read MoreIt was a beautiful, sunny day at Balboa Park on July 17, 2021. Members of the San Diego BMW CCA chapter gathered for another Cars and Coffee event.
Read MoreFor the ambitious, working on your car at home can be a sense of pride, but you need tools to get the job done, but how many tools do you need?
Read MoreAfter all of the twists and turns and ups and downs, we still put smiles on 80 faces. Though we couldn’t see them with faces covered, eyes couldn’t disguise our joy.
Read MoreMy road trip that I think about before going to bed? San Diego to Seattle by coastal roads only.
Read MoreThe car I’d never even considered because it was too much—more than I needed, even more than I was looking to spend, and much more than I dreamed I could ever own. Yet, like magic, there it was before my eyes.
Read MoreAt some past time, we BMW enthusiasts didn’t have a Bimmer as one of our pastimes. Each of us came to BMW ownership in our own way. Maybe one caught our attention on the road or at a Cars and Coffee. Maybe a co-worker pulled up in a shiny 5 Series and you were inspired to get one too. Maybe you read an article or watched a YouTube video and just knew BMW was the right car for you. We all have our own stories.
Read MoreOn June 29 our chapter hosted the 12th Annual Rug Cunningham Memorial Autocross in the west lots at SDCCU Stadium. Our runoff format features early timed runs, from which we gather class winners to go head to head in a Mystery Car. The Mystery Car provides a level playing field to see who's fastest of the fast.
The weather was perfect, with a little bit of spitting rain in the early afternoon. The course for the event was a reprise of a very fast and flowing one previously used for the 2015 runoff. Satakal Khalsa has been hitting the ball out of the park for the Club's recent courses, the runoff was no exception.
Independent Motorcars provided the Mystery Car, a 1993 318is. More than one runoff competitor remarked that the car has great balance and handling, but can be challenging to drive fast if you're not careful with your momentum.
By Tyler Johnson
On Saturday, August 24, the San Diego BMW CCA chapter hosted a great event at the K1 Speed Karting facility in downtown San Diego. The day started off meeting in the parking lot which became a mini car show. Coffee in hand and hoods popped open, you could really tell there was pride in ownership. We had a couple of M2s, a few M3s, and even a Z4 M Coupe to name a few cars at the event.
The group raced in three races for some intense battles against the clock and bragging rights. Toshi claimed the top lap time of the day with a blistering 21.930s and won two of the three races. A true ringer! The action was intense with everyone having a great time on track. One of the sessions we had the course to ourselves which enabled some time to really practice your line and braking points. In between sessions, we discussed tire grip, kart power, racing line, and how best to make a pass without losing the pass in the next corner. The racing was truly wheel to wheel—something we don’t get in autocross and track events for obvious reasons, because who wants to scratch their BMW?! Bring on the Miata and Corvette clubs as we have some fast racers in our group!
After the race, the group walked to a local brewery just a few blocks away for lunch. One of the attendees was a BMW mechanic from a local BMW dealer. Needless to say he got plenty of questions!
All in all, everyone had a great time and met some new friends. Be sure to join us next time at one of our chapter events!
By Dan Tackett
BMW CCA recently selected BMW of Escondido as the recipient of the 2019 Outstanding BMW Dealership award for the Pacific Region. This annual honor is the result of a nominating process and a decision by a national committee. We were very proud to present the award and surprise Tim Brecht during a Club event that BMW of Escondido hosted.
BMW of Escondido is the only remaining family-owned BMW dealership in San Diego County. One by one, the other four dealerships, which used to be family businesses, have been sold to corporate owners. The Brecht family has maintained their ownership and passion for our favorite marque through three generations. Patriarch Bill Brecht began his enthusiasm for the marque as General Manager for BMW of San Diego way back in the 2002 era, when they were the only local BMW dealership and had a small operation on Columbia St. downtown. When a 3.0 CS that Bill had personally sold new came onto the market 15 years later, he promptly bought it, and that classic coupe remains in the family to this day. He stayed with BMW of San Diego for 20 years, overseeing their move to the current location in Kearny Mesa. Following several years of effort, Bill earned a BMW dealership franchise of his own, opening Brecht BMW in 1985 at a former Cadillac dealership facility in downtown Escondido. The family’s big step was to build a new state-of-the art facility in the then-new Escondido Auto Park, which now houses their Mini of Escondido dealership.
Once their modern building was completed in 1988, Brecht BMW was able to fully reach its potential. Along with his wife Jeanelle and sons Tom and Tim, Bill Brecht began to establish a strong reputation for great customer service and genuine support for the BMW community. Bill was also involved in his Escondido community through serving in the Rotary Club and on the Board of the Escondido Chamber of Commerce—a spirit of volunteerism that continues with both of his sons today.
The Brecht family had a long history of building very fast turbocharged dune buggies and enjoying many weekends racing them in the desert. Wasting no time once in BMW circles, they transferred their racing passion to the track after buying two 2002 race cars. I remember Bill Brecht saying, “If it goes fast, burns gas and makes noise, I’m interested.” Their family weekends moved from the desert to various race tracks as Bill, Tom, and Tim all got their SCCA racing licenses. The first shakedown of the 2002s occurred at our Chapter’s inaugural 1989 Holtville Driving School, making their driving debut as we made our hosting debut. The family went on to campaign a pair of E36 325s and later a pair of E36 M3s in SCCA National races. The 2002s continued in VARA Vintage racing in parallel with competing in SCCA driving in more current BMWs: a turbocharged Z3, then a Z4, and a 328i sedan. Brecht Motorsports has evolved into the current era by competing in a Motorsport-built M235i Competition. Bill even created a track paddock runabout out of a Motorsport-liveried Isetta, which remains in the showroom at BMW of Escondido. The lure of the desert hasn’t been completely forgotten: Tim Brecht built and still kicks up the sand in a dune buggy with a twin-turbocharged M5 V10!
Brecht BMW was a strong supporter of the San Diego Chapter from the start. After our first few years of conducting High Performance Driving School events, Brecht BMW became our consistent track school sponsor. Not only have they provided helpful funding and raffle items, Tim Brecht often came to the track in his racing rig with one or more new BMW models (and sometimes a race car) to give track rides to participants and demonstrate the capabilities of the latest cars (and SAVs!) from BMW. That is genuine enthusiasm for the marque and the Club! When another dealership bowed out of sponsoring trophies and providing some auction items for our Clean Car Show and Charity Auction, Brecht BMW stepped up to fill the void and has continued ever since. When we had a Club Tour or other event that started in North County, they often offered to let us start from the dealership and provided food and beverages before we hit the road. Our relationship has flourished for over 30 years.
Bill Brecht succumbed in 2003 after a battle with cancer, a sad loss to the entire BMW community. His sons have maintained the enthusiasm that their father exuded, and despite a franchise-required name change to BMW of Escondido, the Brecht family still conducts their business as Bill would have. Going to extra lengths as a business, genuinely supporting the BMW community, and being a sincere friend of the San Diego Chapter are great reasons to honor them with the Outstanding BMW Dealership Award. And as a tribute to the memory of Bill Brecht and his fine example of volunteerism, our Chapter annually selects the “Bill Brecht Volunteer of the Year” award recipient to recognize the Chapter member who stands out for going above and beyond in their service to the Chapter. Congratulations to BMW of Escondido!
San Diego Chapter of BMW Car Club of America
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