Morning Reads: 27 January 2007

[Mika]

The motorcycling world viewed from the saddle of a BMW. A daily look at all things BMW, Euro-bike, products and things I find interesting on the internet. With links to news, reviews, events, riding skills, maintenance and racing series updates. Morning Reads is a one stop shop for motorcycling information.

Today’s Birthdays / Calendar (http://www.bmwmoa.org/forum/calendar.php?do=getinfo&day=2007-1-27&c=1)

http://www.binleyflorist.com/catalog/images/Flower%20%20BD%20cake.jpg

BMW MOA Chartered Club:

http://www.oceanstatebmwriders.com/transbmwlogo.gif

club:
Ocean State BMW Riders, #240

founded:
11/1/1993

contact:
Roy Jackson (r1100rs94@aol.com)
PO Box 1454
East Greenwich, RI 02818 US
www.oceanstatebmwriders.com

meetings:
2nd Monday at 7:00 PM, Gillian's Ale House, N. Kingstown, RI

events:
The Penguin's Perpetual Party, mid-September (club rally)
Chicken Ride, 1st Sunday in December

other events:
Ralph Razee Memorial Ride; Tin Butt 500, aka Dead Presidents Ride

http://m1ka.smugmug.com/photos/120673248-M.png (http://www.bmwmoa.org/rally/rally07/rally07announce.htm)

Gemütlichkeit is the warm, comfortable feeling
one receives from pleasant surroundings and atmosphere.
I think you will find that when you come here.

http://www.orgsites.com/wi/aztalan/MamreChurch.jpg

Lake Mills / Aztalan Museum (http://www.orgsites.com/wi/aztalan/)

Ozaukee – Washington Daily News ( http://www.dailynewsol.com/index.htm)

Fond Du Lac Reporter ( http://www.fdlreporter.com/apps/pbcs.dll/frontpage)

The Sheboygan Press ( http://www.sheboygan-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/frontpage)

Daily Citizen, Beaver Dam (http://www.wiscnews.com/bdc/)

Weather

West Bend WI
Current (http://www.weather.com/weather/local/USWI0733?from=search_current)

10 Day Forcast (http://www.weather.com/weather/tenday/USWI0733?from=36hr_topnav_undeclared )

United States
National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (http://www.noaa.gov/)

Canada
Meteorological Service of Canada (http://www.weatheroffice.ec.gc.ca/canada_e.html)


News:

Roadracingworld.com (http://roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=28023)Buell hosting a homecoming at Road America ASRA/Moto-ST Races

theKneeslider.com ( http://thekneeslider.com/archives/2007/01/26/hybrid-motorcycle-concept/): Hybrid motorcycle concept.

Mercury news.com (http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/business/industries/automotive/16551294.htm): King of the choppers.

Bikes in the Fast Lane ( http://blogs.motorbiker.org/blogs.nsf/dx/01252007163759MWELCA.htm) looks at a diesel motorcycle based on a SMART car engine. Here is a link the Track Diesel ( http://dieselmotorcycles.eu/) and their English website.

Articles about doping and steroid use regularly fill the average sports section. Car racing from NASCAR or Formula 1 all the way down to the Saturday night dirt trackers have more than a fleeting acquaintance with rule bending. Now the AMA (http://www.motorsport.com/news/article.asp?ID=242071) is penalizing three riders for using illegal fuel.

Calling all 00’s. If you have lusted after an Aston Martin in the past why not buy the company? AutomotiveBlogs ( http://blogs.automotive.com/1008151/miscellaneous/aston-martin-sale-get-serious-as-ford-selects-skadden/index.html) reports that Ford is seriously preparing to sell the company.

I should have been a plumber. Germancarscene.com ( http://germancarscene.com/2007/01/26/bentley-plumbers-van/) reports on a Bentley Plumber’s Van.

Beer News:

Food Blog (http://www.kiplog.com/food/index.rdf )
It is inevitalble that if you drink enough beer, you'll drank some bad beer. I don't mean the Blatz or the Budwieser Ultra-Ultra lights. I mean you'll get a beer that once was a good beer.

Feature:

webBikeWorld.com ( http://www.webbikeworld.com/Moto-Guzzi-motorcycles/1200-sport/): Moto Guzzi1200 Sport.

webBikeWorld.com reviews all the literature available on the new Guzzi that was unveiled in Milan. Not a true road test but a paper tour of the new bike.

Motorcycle Repair and Care:

BMW-Motorrad.co.za (http://www.bmw-motorrad.co.za/bikes/workshop/tech/articles/compression.html) : The Workshop – Compression Test
We ain’t talking beans here.

Riding Skills:

Motorcyclistonline.com (http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/howto/122_0506_savvy_biker_tips/): Street Savvy – Give them the finger.

Video:

With a price tag of roughly 579 Roadsters you would think the Maybach in the video would at least be good looking.

<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/K45_CrR-z-o"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/K45_CrR-z-o" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object>

Wonderings:
Alex Edge in a post for Motorcycle Daily discusses something I have wondered about for some time but have been to lazy to follow up on, Motorcyclists and Traffic Lights: What’s the Solution (http://www.motorcycledaily.com/25january07_traffic.htm)? This question may not rank up there with global warming, solving world hunger or of I should start dating again; it does represent one of the daily PITAs riders deal with on a daily basis. How do riders deal with traffic lights that do not trip.

In Lilydale it is not an issue. We don’t have any traffic lights in town. Keep in mind that Lilydale is maybe three miles long and half a mile wide. In no time I can be confronted with traffic lights put up by surrounding communities. I have been riding for years and yet I find there are routes I avoid because of problems with tripping the light if I am alone.

Along with Mr. Edge I wonder what solutions you have come up with to deal with this problem.


Manufacturer of the Day:

EXILE CYCLES ( http://www.exilecycles.com/)

Woot

Todays Woot ( http://www.woot.com/Default.aspx)

The Blog ( http://www.woot.com/Blog/Default.aspx)

Unless noted otherwise, I have no known commercial interest in any products, retailers or manufactures discussed in the Morning Reads. The links used in the Morning Reads are for informational use only. The use of all links is subject to the terms of use of the originating site. [/size]

http://m1ka.smugmug.com/photos/122565836-M.jpg

[Mika]

All things BMW

BMW Group Press Club:

BMW Group achieves new sales revenue record in 2006
Revenues up by 5.0% to euro 48,999 million
Sales volume set to reach new high in 2007

26 January 2007

Munich. The BMW Group continued its successful course in 2006 with record figures for sales volume and revenues. Compared to the previous year, group revenues increased by 5.0% to euro 48,999 million (2005: euro 46,656 million). Revenues generated by the Automobiles segment went up by 4.2% to euro 47,767 million (2005: euro 45,861 million). The Motorcycles segment generated revenues of euro 1,265 million (2005: euro 1,223 million/+3.4%), whilst revenues from financial services rose by 17.8% to euro 11,079 million (2005: euro 9.408 million).

The total number of BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce brand vehicles delivered to customers increased by 3.5% to 1,373,970 units (2005: 1,327,992 units). “2006 has been the best financial year in the company’s history. We have reinforced our position as the world’s leading premium manufacturer by posting a new record sales volume figure”, stated Norbert Reithofer, Chairman of BMW AG’s Board of Management in Munich on Friday.

Earnings target for 2006 remains unchanged

In the light of the positive performance, the group is maintaining its earnings target for the financial year 2006. Higher volumes and internal efficiency improvements should, to a large degree, offset the adverse effects from foreign exchange and higher raw material prices as previously reported. “We remain confident that we will be able to post record pre-tax earnings of euro 4 billion for 2006” continued Reithofer. The BMW Group will publish its earnings figures, as usual, in March.

New sales volume record targeted for 2007

The BMW Group plans to achieve further growth on the back of its strong brands and product portfolios and to sell more than 1.4 million cars in the current year. “The BMW Group is heading towards a new sales volume record in 2007. We want to maintain our position in the current year as the number one manufacturer in the premium segment” underlined Reithofer. “All three brands should achieve new sales volume records“, he added.

Capital expenditure increased

Capital expenditure in 2006 rose by 8.0% to euro 4,313 million (2005: euro 3,993 million). Capitalised development costs recognised as assets in accordance with IAS increased by 10.0% to euro 1,536 million (2005: euro 1,396 million) as a result of up-front expenditure for new models. Capital expenditure for property, plant and equipment and other intangible assets increased by 6.9% to euro 2.777 million (2005: euro 2,597 million), partly in connection with the expansion of the production network.

Slight increase in workforce

The number of employees increased slightly during the past year. At the end of 2006, the worldwide workforce comprised 106,575 employees, an increase of 0.7% (31 December 2005: 105,798 employees). Due to the fact that some apprentices' final examinations were held at an earlier date this year, the number of apprentice positions at 31 December 2006, at 4,359, was marginally lower than one year earlier (4,464).

BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce brands each at the top of its segment in 2006

During the past year, the group’s three brands – BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce – each headed the market in its own segment.

The number of BMW brand cars sold increased by 5.2% to 1,185,088 units (2005: 1,126,768) units. The BMW 3 Series was again, by far, the BMW Group’s best-selling model series during the past year. Overall, the sales volume of this model series climbed by 17.1% to 508,479 units (2005: 434,342 units). The 3 Series therefore accounted for 43% of all BMW brand vehicles sold in 2006. The 5 Series took second place with 232,193 units sold (2005: 228,389 units /+1.7%). The 1 Series, which will be launching a three-door version within the compact class at the end of May 2007, came in third place with 151,918 units sold (2005: 149,493 units /+1.6%). This was followed by the BMW X3 with 114,000 units sold (2005: 110,719 units /+3.0%).

The sales volume of the BMW X5 fell by 25.8% to 75,321 units (2005: 101,537 units) in advance of the model change; the new X5 has been available in the USA since November 2006. The 7 Series reinforced its strong position in the luxury class, registering a sales volume of 50,227 units (2005: 50,062 units /+0.3%). With 30,981 units sold (2005: 28,808 units), the Z4 was 7.5% ahead of the level achieved one year earlier. 21,947 units of the BMW 6 Series were delivered to customers (2005: 23,340 units/-6.0%).

Restricted availability caused by capacity extension measures at the Oxford plant meant that the MINI saw its sales volume decrease by 6.2% to 188,077 units (2005: 200,428 units). The second generation of the MINI was launched on the European markets on 18 November 2006. The sales volume of the MINI should pick up sharply in the current year and exceed the previous high level recorded in 2005.

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars recorded a small increase in sales volume, with 805 Phantom sold in 2006 (2005: 796 units /+1.1%). Since the Rolls-Royce marque was launched in 2003 within the BMW Group, it has succeeded in increasing sales volume for the third time in succession. The Rolls-Royce model range continues to expand, the latest addition being the two-door Cabriolet Phantom Drophead Coupé presented at the Detroit Motor Show. Production of this vehicle is planned to start at the Goodwood plant in summer 2007.

100,000 motorcycles sold for the first time in a single year in 2006

The group’s motorcycle business also made good progress in 2006, with the annual sales volume figure surpassing the 100,000 mark for the first time. The number of motorcycles sold increased by 2.7% to 100,064 units (2005: 97,474 units).

Financial services business remains on growth course

The BMW Group’s financial services business continued to grow in 2006. The volume of new retail customer contracts rose by 4.0% to euro 24,449 million, and hence reached a new record level (2005: euro 23,507 million). The proportion of new BMW and MINI cars financed by the Financial Services segment increased in 2006 to 42.4% (2005: 41.1%)

BMW Group leads the way in waste-water-free production in the automobile industry.

BMW Engine Plant in Steyr ensures sustainable environmental protection.

26 January 2007

Munich/Steyr. The BMW Group is working on continually improving its protection of the environment in its worldwide production network, with the motto "Clean Production“. One of the most important milestones in this respect has been achieved in the BMW engine plant in Steyr through the application of a completely new process and waste water concept. Using a new combination of various membrane technologies, all manufacturing waste water in the plant is treated and fed back into the production system. The result: the mains drainage connection for operating waste water from the Production area was closed at the end of 2006, which means that around 30 million litres of water will be saved each year.

Water is used to create an emulsion with coolants for milling and turning, and for washing or rinsing during the finishing of cylinder heads, crank cases, crank shafts and connecting rods. Even in the BMW engine plant in Steyr, which produces around 60% of all BMW engines, water is an element that cannot be replaced by anything. However, using considerable technical skill, it can be treated. A waste water treatment system using nanofiltration technology was introduced back in 2003. "This system produced such convincing results that we decided on the ambitious objective of further improving our waste water treatment so that in the future we would be able to introduce a completely enclosed water cycle for production", says Franz Hornbachner, responsible for planning what is called 'fluid technology', talking about the moment when the idea of waste-water-free production was born.

This objective became a reality at the beginning of the year. Through a combination of ultrafiltration, nanofiltration, reverse osmosis and evaporator systems, waste water is transformed back into valuable process water – using purely physical methods, without the addition of any chemicals. The waste water goes through three stages. Firstly, oil residues are removed from the waste water by ultrafiltration. Then heavy metals and low-volatility lipophilic substances, i.e. surfactants (surface-active substances) are removed from the water by nanofiltration. In the third stage of the waste water treatment, dissolved salts and short-chain organic compounds are removed by reverse osmosis.

The BMW Group has invested around 1.5 million euro in these technologies over the last three years. The largest engine plant in the BMW Group will save 30 million litres of water a year altogether through the new technology – which is the same amount of water used on average each year by a village of 750 inhabitants. The BMW plant in Steyr is thus not only easing the burden on the environment, but is also saving a considerable amount on sewage charges.

At the same time, the Steyr water cycle is an example of the Clean Production philosophy of the BMW Group, which aims always to implement the most sustainable production methods at each site. The individual solutions introduced at sites to handle water as a resource make a massive difference overall: since the year 2000, the use of process water in the group has fallen by a quarter for each vehicle produced.

Clean Production in the BMW Group
The BMW Group has a long tradition of environmental protection: in 1973, the company was the first automobile manufacturer in the world to create the Group "Environmental Protection" function, with far-reaching overall responsibilities. In signing the United Nations "Cleaner Production" environmental declaration in 2001, the company once again confirmed its commitment to implementing environmental protection in its production facilities.
Today, around 70 employees worldwide work in the BMW Group's environmental protection organisation. At all its locations, environmental management systems, which go far beyond what is required by law, guarantee environmental protection within the company's operations. The BMW Group was the first automobile manufacturer worldwide, in 1999, to certify all its production locations uniformly in accordance with international environmental management standards.


THE END (http://www.turnofftheinternet.com/)

[PAULBACH]

How important is noise when you ride?

Electric motorcycles (http://thekneeslider.com/archives/2007/01/26/hybrid-motorcycle-concept/)? <- Check it out

About Wonderings and the traffic light problem. After awhile with no traffic coming from the left or right and none in sight I just go. There is a danger to just sitting and wondering what to do. A cage can come up from behind and mush the tupperware. There are times when common sense has to overrule electronic devices that are not motorcycle friendly.

Putting the kickstand down only kills the engine. Now you dead in the water. Not good.