Touring Car

With six cars joining the grid this year in the DTM series, BMW is sure to present wildly different liveries – largely determined by the sponsors brought on board – for each one. And this is the first.

Choosing a safety car to pace a racing series is tricky business that almost invariably results in either a constant flux of vehicles called into duty or playing favorites between the manufacturers taking part in the series. NASCAR changes its pace cars about as quickly as it changes tires. Formula One sticks with Mercedes-Benz machinery, and nobody seems to complain very much. But Noah Joseph

It's not often that the series crosses these pages, but there's no getting around the fact that UK racing fans have enjoyed an unprecedented level of competition in the British Touring Car Championship this year. No season in BTCC history has had a bigger or more varied field of entries, the lead in the standings has changed hands a head-spinning eleven times this season, and with one last stop on the calendar at England's storied Noah Joseph

The new entries just keep on lining up for the British Touring Car Championship, which is rapidly becoming the most varied racing series in the world. There are already 27 cars based on 13 different models from 10 different manufacturers, but now the touring car series is about to get a 28th, based on a 14th from an 11th, respectively.

When Ford rolled out the new Focus, it launched a program to adapt the car to various touring car racing specifications. The car has been performing admirably in the British Touring Car Championship, winning several races last season with Are

Talk to most car fans about V8 supercars and they'll probably start talking Ferrari and Corvette. But to Australians, V8 Supercars is a racing series – one of the most popular touring car series in the world, and one that is only gaining popularity.

You go ahead and try to find a racing series with as high a participation rate as the British Touring Car Championship. With 13 different models from 10 different manufacturers covering 27 entries, the BTCC field is at an all-time high this year. But there's always room for one more.

Touring car racing fans are eagerly anticipating the return of BMW to the DTM series. The Bavarian automaker last competed in DTM (or its progenitors, anyway) a whopping 18 years ago, but late last year announced it would return to the German touring car series in 2012. Now it has revealed the means to that end.

Tackling Eau Rouge: F1 vs Track-Day cars – Click above to watch video after the jump

While archrival BMW may be downscaling its racing program – in touring car series particularly – Audi looks to be going the other way. For evidence, we turn your attention to Exhibit A: a new entry into the British Touring Car Championship for 2011.

Showdown at the Gold Coast Corral – Click above to watch the video after the jump

BMW is returning to the DTM – Click above for high-res image

Fabien Coulthard crashes out of the Bathurst 1000 – Click above to watch video after the jump

Toyota Avensis Next Generation Touring Car – Click above for high-res sketches

The cynical among us learned long ago that life just isn't fair. Those still holding out hope, however, can look to the European touring car championships for cold, hard evidence. While Americans are stuck with NASCAR and their "Car of Tomorrow", Europeans get to watch machines like DTM Audis, Bel

Sometimes we can't help but lament the relative lack of touring car racing in North America. Sure, there are a handful of series, but they don't enjoy nearly the popularity that they do overseas, including in England (BTCC), Europe (WTCC) and Australia (V8 Supercars). Even the Belgian Touring Car Series is looking increasingly appetizing with some of the latest entries to join the field.