Interview: BMW Performance Center

Lessons from Pros on Car Control

BMW dares you to “Drive on the edge of physics.” Who can resist the chance to drive, corner, and stop faster than you possibly ever have, all with expert instruction from professional drivers? Sorry, rhetorical.

BMW Performance Center West — **It all comes down to mastering the hardware**

Clean Fleet Report recently spent a day at the BMW Performance Center in Thermal, California (there is also a center in Spartanburg, South Carolina) and were treated to a day of fast acceleration, hard stopping, and aggressive cornering, with the overall goal of improving our ability to control a car. Think you have mastered driving under all conditions and circumstances? Take any of the courses offered at the BMW Performance Center and learn what you don’t know, but thought you did know.

Clean Fleet Report is a big fan of driving schools and track days where everyone can learn how to become a better driver. We headed out to the Coachella Valley to take the car control school program, which covered panic braking, double lane change, handling and cornering and the skid pad. At the end of the day you will be gassed, as doing all of these at the best of your ability is exhausting. But in a good way.

The day began with lead instructor Bryan Randall leading a classroom session where we covered such topics as proper vision, seating position, steering technique, brake dynamics and cornering. Bryan noted that while we would be doing all these driving elements on closed courses, everything we would be taught is fully applicable to everyday driving. This, of course, meant at the end of the day we were not to go out on the freeway and drive like a bat out of hell, but to take what we learned and apply it to become smoother, better, more efficient and more courteous drivers, while at the same time use the techniques we learned to maneuver through emergency situations.

During the lunch break, Bryan Randall and I sat down for a quick round of questions that focused on the philosophy and goals of the BMW Performance Center.

Clean Fleet Report:What are the goals for the BMW Performance Center?

BMW: This isn’t something we say commercially, but is one we say within: that we don’t sell cars here, but we do sell cars here. The idea is a guest comes here and they own a Mercedes, Porsche or whatever, and they have never given BMW a chance by never having driven one. Maybe they did a short test drive at a dealership, but they have not driven it the way it was designed to be driven. Remember, BMW is the Ultimate Driving Machine for a reason. We take this slogan very seriously.

CFR: As an instructor, what do you see when a guest comes into the center, and what do you hope to see when they leave?

BMW: Because of the history of BMW and the way we are trained as instructors, what we want are the people that first experience our cars, and then own them, to get the absolute most out of them. The programs and instruction we provide are an extension of what the cars are all about, and then how an owner will ultimately use their BMW. How they will best experience it. We believe we can teach an owner how to experience their car in ways that are safe and dynamic, and want them to come back for more. More can include purchasing a second or third BMW, or a return to the BMW Performance Center for additional instruction, or becoming a member of the BMW CCA, (BMW Car Club of America). The CCA organizes events that are an extension of what we do here, so this is another opportunity for owners to increase their driving skills.

CFR: It sounds as if the instructors and staff at the BMW Performance Center are passionate about the brand.

BMW: The BMW Performance Center is an extension of the passion the staff has for driving. BMWs have been my favorite car since I was a little kid and our staff loves these cars! Our getting people comfortable to drive the cars is key. We show them the car’s limits by teaching what that limit is, helping them understand the safety element of driving.

Another way we know the value of the program is from customer feedback. I know it sounds a little cliché to say this, but it is true that this is a fun program. People come here to have a good time and you tend to engage them on a more personal level. We have contact with customers through social media that love cars, with the end result being more direct communication.

CFR: Safety?

BMW: The safety and physics of what they experience on a closed course directly translates to driving on public roads. This is why we take people onto the skid pad for car control, emergency ABS braking for panic stops, lane change and cornering. The physics of performance driving and safe driving are the same thing.

I get comments from people that primarily fall into two categories. The first and most common are how they had an amazing time going through the program. These, of course, are gratifying, but the (great) ones are of a driving incident that could have been catastrophic, and something they learned going through the program helped them solve the emergency issue. Often this comes from parents about an experience their teen had, and this is important. Our Teen School, especially the two-day program, doesn’t just do the base braking exercise (which takes drivers to about 40 mph) but does a 70 mph interstate braking exercise which teaches how to solve stopping and turning at full speed, with full ABS. We know that when a person is younger sometimes their enthusiasm outpaces their ability. I have received a lot of emails about a near accident that ended up in their teen being fine.

CFR: Back to the concept that the BMW Performance Center doesn’t sell cars, but you do sell cars. Other than driving some cool cars, how else does a guest benefit?

BMW: At the BMW Performance Center guests can drive a buffet of M cars, on track and off-road. (Editor: the M stands for Motorsport, and a BMW with an M badge has engine, transmission, brake and suspension upgrades to make it more performance ready.) The benefit to the customer is they have had, for a very low fee, been able to drive a wide range of BMWs the way they were meant to be driven.

Another great program for customers that buy an M car, is they can take factory delivery at the Spartanburg, South Carolina facility. There, they will spend time on-track, with an instructor, at the BMW Performance Center in a car outfitted just like the one they have purchased. This program is not offered at the BMW Performance Center West here in Thermal, California as we are not adjacent to a manufacturing factory.

Also, BMW has a long running program called the Ultimate Driving Experience, which is free to attend and tours different markets across the country. The return for participants can come in a few different ways, including driving different BMW models on closed courses, and receiving a purchase incentive to visit your local BMW dealer.

Plus, many dealerships will give new BMW owners a day at the BMW Performance Center where they can go through the car control program. Each dealer is different, so the buyer would need to speak with their sales associate.

CFR: Let’s wrap this up with any closing thoughts you may have.

BMW: Even though the BMW Performance Center is a business, it is really about people learning how to drive their cars–especially what it is like to drive a BMW. BMW feels very familial, and when we do something right, we hear about it. And we hear about it often.

Story by John Faulkner; photos by John Faulkner and BMW

This interview took place on September 10, 2020, and has been edited for clarity and space considerations.