Second PTG BMW M3 Retire
31 January 1999
PROTOTYPE TECHNOLOGY GROUP BMW M3 TEAM - SUNDAY, JANUARY 31, 1999 Rolex 24 at Daytona - Daytona International Speedway - Daytona Beach, Fla. AFTER 16 HOURS SECOND PTG BMW M3 RETIRES, THIS ONE WITH BROKEN SUSPENSION With a little more than nine hours to go in the 37th annual Rolex 24 at Daytona, the second of two PTG BMW M3s saw its race come to a premature end when the No. 10 Yokohama/Flextronics Int'l/Level One BMW M3 four-doors suffered a broken left-front suspension and lost a wheel on track. With Mark Simo at the controls, the No. 10 PTG BWM M3 was in and out of the pits to check the suspension during the 15th hour. Just before 4 a.m. local time, the left-front gave way and the car was stranded on track. The team retired the car after it was towed into the garage. The No. 10 PTG BMW M3 completed 238 laps of the 3.56-mile oval/road course at Daytona International Speedway and was in 24th place in GT3, in 59th place overall, and 163 laps behind the class-leading No. 23 Alex Job Racing Porsche. It spent some five hours in the garage after the second hour making engine repairs before resuming, then lost another hour making transmission repairs during the 10th and 11th hours. Earlier, the No. 6 PTG BMW M3 retired with mechanical problems during the 12th hour after completing 247 laps. That car spent significant time in the pits replacing a gearbox and transmission. With the retirements, the PTG team's streak of two consecutive Rolex 24 victories and four consecutive Daytona/Sebring endurance classics was ended. Still alive in the GT3 class were a trio of BMW M3s. The No. 17 T.C. Kline Racing BMW M3 was fifth in class after 15 hours, having completed 389 laps, 12 out of the class lead. The Nos. 54 and 45 Bell Motorsports BMW M3s were in eighth and 19th positions in GT3, having completed 378 and 302 laps, respectively. # # #