Motorsports DTM

After a nearly 20-year absence from participating in DTM, BMW triumphantly returned for the 2012 season proving that the German automaker didn’t miss a beat while taking time off from racing.

Seasoned race car driver  David Coulthard will end his racing career this weekend at the DTM season finale at Hockenheim.

Not quite the same merger as what ALMS and Grand-Am are doing, but DTM and Japan’s Super GT have signed a cooperation deal that will see DTM race cars at Super GT events and vice versa.

It’s hard to believe it’s been almost 20 years since BMW last participated in a DTM race, but the return of the German automaker to the series is already a successful one. 

BMW will return to Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM) after an almost 20-year absence. To celebrate the occasion, which will occur this weekend, the automaker release a video showing its awesome car running around a track with dramatic music in the background. 

The fearsome Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Black Series Coupe is going to be taking on an arguably tamer role than its used to. Instead of laying rubber on a track, it will be the official safety car of this season’s DTM Season.

Audi Motorsport has revealed the designs for its eight A5 DTM race cars scheduled to compete at the Hockenheimring season opener on April 29th.

Audi reveals the homologated Audi A5 DTM race car today as the automaker from Ingolstadt makes its final racing preparations before the season debut at the Hockenheimring.

Mercedes-Benz motorsport has again turned to Racer David Coulthard this year to pilot some new AMG wheels for the DTM season.

Not long after Mercedes-Benz revealed their C-Coupe DTM car, Audi went ahead and one-upped their German rival with the launch of the A5 DTM.

Formula One drivers Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg helped Mercedes-Benz take the wraps off their new competitor for the German DTM touring car series, based on the Mercedes-Benz C-Coupe.

We are already highly anticipating Michael Schumacher’s unveiling of the DTM AMG C Coupe at the upcoming Frankfurt Motor Show but now Mercedes has teased us with a video of the new car. Mercedes DTM driver Gary Paffett gives us some comments about the new machine in the video, building even more suspense to see how Mercedes will compete against BMW‘s DTM racer and Audi‘s A5.

The official unveiling will take place on September 13th, 2011 with Michael Schumacher, Nico Rosberg, Gary Paffett, Mercedes-Benz Motorsports chief Norbert Haug and Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche taking center stage. The 2012 DTM season is shaping up to be one of the best, and we’re highly anticipating news of a race series to bring the DTM machines over to America.

Check out the video after the break.

There’s no better way to get a rise out of the jaded automotive media and ensure a spot on the local network newscast than to have a genuine professional racing star introduce your new car at an auto show. And that’s just what Mercedes intends to do at the Frankfurt Auto Show next week, with the new DTM race car being revealed by none-other than 7-time Formula 1 World Champion Michael Schumacher. Oh, and teammate Nico Rosber (who’s actually out-performing old-man Schumie this year) will be there too.

The closest most of us will ever get to piloting a true DTM race car would be in Gran Turismo 5, and even then the results aren’t always pretty. Those that have unlocked some of the rare collectible race cars in any Gran Turismo knows what it’s like to try to control it for the first time.

Naturally when we heard that MotoGP champion Nicky Hayden strapped himself behind the wheel of a Mercedes DTM race car, we were curious to see what would happen. Obviously we weren’t the only ones, as he had no problems letting the cameras roll.

Hayden, also knock as The Kentucky Kid, won the MotoGP World Championship in 2006 and there’s no doubting his prowess on all things two-wheeled. Tack on another two wheels, a whole lot of horsepower, a wet track and cold tires and the results are pretty similar to what we experience the first time we try to pilot a supercar in Gran Turismo. We can’t laugh at Hayden though, as he’s the one that was fortunate enough to get behind the wheel of Mercedes’ DTM race car while we’re still waiting for the loading screen to finish on our PS3.

Check out the video after the break.

[Source: Jalopnik]

Now Coulthard can add another occupation to his resume, brand ambassador for Mercedes-Benz’s AMG division.

BMW has unveiled the M3 DTM, a high performance race car that will compete in the 2012 DTM (German Touring Car) series. The M3 debuted at BMW Welt in Munich, and is a very exciting event after a two decade absence of BMW at DTM. Between 1987 and 1992, the M3 won 40 race and had over 150 podium finishes in Germany’s premier tin-top series.

This race car features a carbonfibre-reinforced plastic monocoque (CFRP) with a steel roll cage, a six-speed sequential gearbox, and a naturally aspirated 4.0-liter V8. The M3 produces 480-hp and is capable of achieving a 0-62 mph time in three seconds with a top speed of 186 mph.

Three teams will race M3s in next year’s DTM series including BMW Team Schnitzer, BMW Team RBM and BMW Team RMG. “It is good to see how our DTM project is picking up speed,” explained BMW’s director of development Dr Klaus Draeger. “Next yea, BMW returns to the DTM after two decades. We will be facing our main competitors in the premium sector – and are already looking forward to this challenge.”

Check out the videos after the jump!

BMW has taken the cover off its jaw-dropping M3 DTM Concept Car, giving us a taste of what will hit the track in the upcoming 2012 DTM season. Even though the German automaker has announced that the looks of the car will most likely change considerably leading up to its first race, we hope they retain the general idea: an amazing badass race car.

BMW has already announced it will return to the German DTM touring car series after it pulled out of the championship almost two decades ago and has announced plans to preview its new race car next week. Ahead of that official debut, however, comes this lone photo, reportedly of the DTM racer, outfitted in matte-black and camo.

BMW will unveil its M3 DTM car next month to compete in next year’s DTM touring car race series. The Bavarian automaker has not competed in the series for 18 years but feels its car will pack a serious punch.

The  Mercedes-Benz C 63 AMG has become DTM’s official safety car for the 2011 season and will debut May 1st at the opening race of the German Touring Car Masters season. The C 63 AMG will be slightly modified from its factory counterparts in order to meet the demands of being a DTM safety car and will give driver Jurgen Kastenholz a little more fun behind the wheel.

Now they are making a comeback, and a massive one at that by announcing that three teams will be running two cars each this year. The car in question will be a special for DTM version of the M3 GT. The three teams running this new racer are Team RBM, Team Schnitzer and Reinhold Motorsport GmbH.

After days of back-and-forth rumors concerning the arrival of DTM touring car racing in the United States, the series debut in the United States has been confirmed for 2013, in partnership with NASCAR and GRAND-AM sports car racing.

The German DTM Touring Car series is looking to make a foray into North America sometime around 2013, with a possible partnership involving NASCAR and Grand-Am.

BMW fans, it’s time to get your blue, purple and red flags ready because your favorite German automaker has just announced its return to the DTM series for 2012. BMW and the DTM series made the announcement at this weekends’s race at the Hockenheimring, marking the return of BMW to the series after a lengthy 18 year absence. The timing couldn’t be better either with only two other automakers (Mercedes and Audi) currently competing in the notoriously fender-crunching competition.

The M3 will form the basis of BMW’s entry into the series and you can be sure BMW will field a long list of factory cars with privateer teams lining up to get a piece of the BMW race cars. We also expect BMW to bring out the very best drivers from their motorsports program.

2012… we can’t wait!

Official release after the jump:

Today’s generation of automotive enthusiasts are treated with “The New DTM” that started in 2000 and onwards. But prior to that, DTM racing was much more than just uber-expensive Audi s and Mercedes-Benze s that we see today. Short for Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft (pre 2000), German touring car racing has truly evolved over the years. It’s now known as Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters, and while it’s just merely a technicality, DTM as a whole has seen more than just a one word change.

Flashing back and checking out this ridiculously awesome video really reminds us of the golden years of DTM racing. Back when BMW and Mercedes-Benz really fought it out on the track to determine who had the better vehicle. And these were your (now) classic BMW E30 M3s and Mercedes-Benz 190 Es that were true enthusiast vehicles. The drivers took risks, and the cars weren’t built on pure science and technology. Sparks flew, tires hopped and and even a little sideways action was mixed in.

As exciting as racing is today, there’s just something tragic about watching it and then checking out a video like this. Good times have certainly passed, we only wish Audi was more in the fray during those golden years.

Check out the video after the break.

If you thought MINI’s challenge to Porsche was a bold move, then get a load of this. Legendary racer Hans-Joachim Stuck has challenged two-time DTM Champion Timo Scheider to a one lap race of the Nurburgring. Scheider will be piloting his Audi A4 DTM race car and Stuck will be driving… a MAN race truck?

We’ve all thought about it: Women who can really hustle a car around a race track are hotter than women who can’t. In fact, on the 1-10 scale, we’d give a full 2-point bonus to any girl with a fast car who knows how to drive it. If she can earn points in a professional racing series, it goes up to 3 bonus points.

Scottish bombshell Susie Stoddart finished seventh this past weekend at the Lausitzring, earning her first points in the German Touring Car ( DTM) series and turning up her own personal hotness scale to 11. It seems she can also drive the more “pedestrian” AMG cars just as well. Hit the jump for a video of Susie in 5-inch stilettos and tight pants hooning a Mercedes E63 AMG Estate around a track. If we don’t post another article for a while, you’ll know why.

After a successful test session last week, there’s a strong possibility that two-time DTM Champ Mattias Ekström will race at the NASCAR Sprint Cup race on June 20th at Sonoma, California. And he’ll be driving a Toyota no less.

Here’s a story that is certainly going to get the rumors of Volkswagen‘s involvement in NASCAR started. Last week two-time DTM Champion Mattias Ekström was at Virginia International Raceway helping test a Red Bull Racing Toyota for the upcoming NASCAR race at Sonoma.

The reason for the odd match isn’t about NASCAR ambitions says Audi, but rather a driver’s dream and a sponsors request. That’s right, Red Bull Racing is the main sponsor for the No. 82 and No. 83 Toyotas in NASCAR, as well as the main sponsor for Ekstrom’s Audi DTM car. No. 83 driver Brian Vickers was ill and the car still needed to be tested, and according to Audi, Red Bull Racing USA remembered Ekstrom’s interest in NASCAR and made the request to Audi Sport.

“It’s no secret that the NASCAR series fascinates me and that it’s been a long-harbored dream of mine to drive such a car,” said Mattias Ekström, commenting after the test that, “The first hour of the test I was fighting the car a lot just getting used to the power, the weight and the fact that the car has little aero — all things that are very different for me. A few hours into the test I felt a lot more comfortable in the car and overall I think we had a really good test. I came into this test not having any experience in these types of cars, and also having never worked with the No. 83 team before, so it was really nice to see how well we all worked together. I really enjoyed my first Sprint Cup test and am glad to have had this opportunity.”

Er…. did he just say “first” test? We think so. Gentlemen, start your rumors.

[Source: Audi and RedBullRacingUSA.com]

Official release after the jump:

After pulling from the series in 1992, BMW has announced a tentative return to the DTM touring-car series in 2012. BMW is planning to build a new race car based on the current M3 – which would ideally also be able to run in Japan’s Super GT series and the American Grand-Am series.

The BMW race car must meet certain unspecified regulations and if it does so, will see BMW take on German rivals Audi and Mercedes – which are currently the only two manufacturers in the series. Back in 1992, BMW pulled out of the DTM series due to a dispute over its E36 3-Series race car. Before that, BMW won the DTM Championship three times, once in 1987 and once in 1989 with the original E30 3 Series and once back in 1984 with the 635CSi.

BMW board member Dr. Klaus Draeger commented that with the withdrawal from Formula One, BMW has decided to make an increased presence in road racing. “BMW sports and touring cars have achieved success right around the world, and have significantly influenced the brand’s sporting profile right from the word go. For that reason, we see it as a consistent step to return to our roots after bidding farewell to Formula One, and to expand our commitment to this discipline.”

BMW Motorsport Director Mario Theissen commented that the M3 GT2 (above) currently used in several series (including the American Le Mans Series) will continue to be the focus on the BMW motorsports program next year.

Official release after the jump:

With some big changes coming to the Australian V8 Supercars series, Mercedes-Benz may be looking to get in on the action. Starting in 2012, the Australian NASCAR-meets-Touring Car series will follow after the U.S. stock car series by introducing a Car of the Future platform, essentially making the championship more of a spec series.