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BMW Debuts Its New Z4 GTE

Daytona Beach, Fla. – BMW Motorsports and BMW Team RLL unveiled a new BMW Z4 GTE ALMS entry at the Daytona International Speedway this week.

Newly designed from the ground up, the BMW Z4 GTE has under construction for several months and had its first test in Spain a month ago. The car unveiled in Daytona arrived in the United States a few days ago and a sister car has just been completed. The Daytona car will undergo an on-track test at Sebring International Raceway next week in preparation for the upcoming Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring on March 16.
The second car will arrive in Florida prior to the Sebring race.

The BMW Z4 GTE is considerably more compact than its successful predecessor, the BMW M3 GT. All the dimensions of the BMW Z4 GTE have been modified to comply with ACO regulations. The new car took to the racetrack for its maiden test outing in the second half of January. BMW Team RLL was integrated in the process throughout the entire development period. Engineers from the USA travelled to Munich in December to play their part in the assembly of the BMW Z4 GTE.

“As we approach the start of the ALMS season in mid-March, the anticipation is gradually rising,” said BMW Motorsport Director Jens Marquardt. “All of us at BMW Motorsport and BMW Team RLL are very curious to see how the first few races pan out with the new BMW Z4 GTE. We are setting out on a development year, but are very confident we have once again developed a car that has the potential to win races and titles in the form of the BMW Z4 GTE.”

Added Bobby Rahal, team co-owner, “I am like a little kid at Christmas with a new toy. I think it is a very impressive car and we hope for good things. When you have a new car, there’s a lot of excitement that goes into it for everybody.” The former Indianapolis 500 champion said his team’s engineering group had a lot of input with BMW, which differed from the M3 machine that was received as a finished product. “The Z4 is very much a result of a cooperative effort. Our guys spent two months in Munich, helping bolt it together and testing it.”

According to Rahal, there’s always uncertainty with a new car but with his team’s involvement, he believes the refinement time will be short. “I think the teething time will be much less with this car, although we expect to have good and bad days. I do expect we will be competitive.”

BMW Motorsport also announced the driving pairs for the coming season. Car No. 55 will be driven by Bill Auberlen and ALMS rookie Maxime Martin. Dirk M

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