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BMW unleashes new M4 racer on DTM

We may not get to enjoy the fruits of it all, but we're in the midst of a golden age in touring car racing around the world. In Northern Europe, rival local series have amalgamated into the Scandinavian Touring Car Championship. In the UK, the British Touring Car Championship is enjoying the largest and most diverse grid in its long history. In Australia, the V8 Supercars series has grown from a Holden vs. Ford battle to include challengers from Mercedes, Nissan and Volvo. And in Germany, the DTM championship has managed to lure BMW back onto the grid to open up the battle between Mercedes and Audi. All good things, in short.
Since returning to the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters in 2012, BMW has won the drivers' title once and the constructors' title twice, proving the Bavarian manufacturer to be not only a suitable challenger to the two-horse race between its star- and ring-emblazoned rivals, but the dominant force in German tin-top racing. Now BMW is set to enter its third season since returning to the DTM, and this is the car with which it intends to do so.
Replacing the M3 DTM that has impressively won half of the DTM races it has contested over the past two years, BMW's latest racing car is made in the mold of the new M4 coupe. Only it's even meaner. While the production version has switched to a turbo six, the DTM version still uses a V8: a 4.0-liter unit with four-valve cylinder heads, mandatory air restrictors and a Bosch ECU to channel 480 horsepower and 369 pound-feet of torque to the rear set of Hankook racing slicks through a six-speed sequential gearbox. The lightweight chassis is rounded out with competition-level aerodynamics and all the mandatory safety equipment.

BMW X1 testing is underway

It was just a few weeks ago that we got our first glimpse of the next-generation BMW X1, riding around on a flatbed. Now, we have the first batch of images of the small crossover moving under its own steam.
Like the previous round of photos, BMW's psychedelic camouflage is on hand to obscure sheetmetal details, but our intrepid spies still managed to discover a bit about the new X1. It's internal code-name will be F48, and it will sit on the same platform as the next-generation Mini and the BMW 1 Series GT. And for those keeping track at home, those are both front-drive platforms.
The reasoning for the X1's new layout, though, is understandable. Front-wheel drive is more space efficient and affordable, which are kind of big deals to customers. The next X1 won't be limited to its front wheels, though, as BMW's xDrive system is almost a certainty on higher-end trims.

The Homer to contest 24 Hours of LeMons

It's finally happened. A 24 Hours of LeMons team has built the definitive interpretation of The Homer from The Simpsons for competition in an upcoming race. As you may recollect, The Homer is the fictional car designed by Homer Simpson for his brother's car company. Designed with a separate compartment for screaming children and other Homer-centric goodies, the animated machine bankrupted its parent company and put Homer's brother out of a job. Now we get to watch it race other crap cans as it tackles Southern California's Buttonwillow Raceway on June 29. Scott Chamberlain, Kris Linquist, Reid Conti, Ben Reilly and Mike Yepes will helm the machine, and Jeff Herman serves as the team's creative director.
The racer is the latest incarnation of a well-abused BMW 3 Series. The team campaigned the same E30 under the "Prickstine" banner as a Chrysler Imperial tribute and "Porcubimmer," the latter being a riff on the ever-popular joke about the difference between porcupines and BMW models. Never gets old. You can check out a video of the finished Homer below, and be sure to like the team on Facebook to see updates from the race. Now, about that Canyonero...