Since 2015, the BMW Group has held a global aftersales contest called AFAME that recognizes point-of-sales marketing excellence among its retailers. This year eight dealerships in the U.S. are competing and Laurel BMW of Westmont (Laurel BMW) is one of them. Out of three BMW Show Car Themes, Laurel BMW chose “Tuning: M Performance Parts.” They are well known M car and motorsport enthusiasts, so this was an easy decision for them to make.
The dealership took a base model M2 and transformed it into a street legal racecar using M Performance Parts. The following products were mandatory via AFAME guidelines and had to be installed on the vehicle:
- BMW M Performance SCW Set
- BMW M Performance Black Kidney Grille
- BMW M Performance Rear Diffuser
- BMW M Performance Side Skirt Transfers
- BMW M Performance Alacantara Steering Wheel
- BMW M Performance Stainless Steel Pedal Covers
- BMW M Performance LED Door Projectors
- BMW M Performance LED Doorsill Finishers
The Center, then, enhanced the M2 even more by installing additional M Parts and some racing accessories to the car including:
- H&R Coilovers and Sway Bar
- BMW M Performance Exhaust with M Tips
- BMW M Performance Black Side Grills
- BMW M Performance CF Front Winglets
- BMW M Performance Belts
- BMW M Performance Carbon Fiber Spoiler
- Fall-Line Motorsports Cage
- Fall-Line Fire Bottle Bracket
- Hoosier Racing Tires
To get the job done effectively and efficiently, they reached out to a few of its industry partners for extra help like H&R Springs, Hoosier Tires, Fall-Line Motorsports, and Cutting Edge Graphics.
But building an M2 racecar wasn’t enough – the dealership took it to the next ULTIMATE level and created a national ‘M2 Art Wrap Design Competition,’ for artists, creatives, and car enthusiasts to design the car wrap of their dreams. The winner will be awarded a two-day M Performance Driving Experience, the opportunity to have their design reduplicated on the racecar, and attend its unveiling at a special event in Chicago.
Laurel BMW used a multimedia approach to drive awareness and promote the M2 racecar build and art wrap contest by creating original social media and blog content, videos, e-blasts and mailers.
General Manager, Pat Womack, stated “We’re excited to participate in AFAME this year, and wanted to do more than put M Parts on a car. We’re fans of the art car series, so we thought it would be cool to have our own ‘Art Wrap Design Competition.’ We received many original ideas. I can assure you the winning design is going to be eye-catching and will “wow” consumers.”
The selection committee of industry leaders includes legendary racecar driver, Bobby Rahal; President of Turner Motorsports, Will Turner; BMW NA, VP of Marketing, Trudy Hardy; BMW Group, VP of Arts and Culture, Thomas Girst; and BMW CCA Board Member, Len Rayburn. They will evaluate the entrants’ artwork and choose the winning design.
These photos represent some of the M2 parts installation process. The dealership documented the changes and upgrades during the vehicle’s transformation. Once the racecar was completed, it was off to the track at Autobahn Country Club in Joliet, IL, despite the fog and rain.
The winner of the ‘M2 Art Wrap Design Competition’ will be announced Friday, November 10, 2017 at 3:00 pm (CST) on Laurel BMW’s Facebook and Instagram social media platforms.
