BMW Car Club of America

What the BMW Car Club of America is

The BMW Car Club of America (BMW CCA) is a national club for people who own or simply like BMWs. According to the club’s history page, it began in Boston in 1969, when a few enthusiasts left leaflets on the windshields of the new BMW 2002 to recruit members. The same page calls it “the world’s largest owner-supported car club,” with 67 chapters and more than 75,000 members.

The club is a not-for-profit corporation governed by a nine-member elected board: four national officers and five regional vice presidents. It keeps “a strong yet independent relationship” with BMW AG and BMW of North America, and its headquarters is in Greenville, South Carolina.

Who it is for

The club’s bylaws limit active membership to “anyone interested in BMW automobiles.” Nothing in the bylaws requires owning one. The Everglades and Rocky Mountain chapters make the same point: members need not own one.

The bylaws also allow an active member to add members of the immediate family as associate members, who vote and share club benefits but do not receive the club’s publications.

How membership works and what it costs

Joining happens online at the club’s own join form. The form offers four lengths: 1 year for $75, 3 years for $210, 5 years for $355 and lifetime for $2,250. The same form asks every new member to choose a local chapter, and it has a section for adding associates.

Some chapter websites still quote older national prices, so the national join form is the figure to trust. The bylaws also allow an individual chapter to charge additional dues of its own.

Per the club’s membership page, a membership of 3 years or longer makes a member eligible, after 6 months, for a BMW CCA Membership Reward Rebate of up to $1,000 on a new or Certified Pre-Owned BMW bought from an authorized US BMW center. Members receive both of the club’s publications, Roundel and BimmerLife.

How the chapters work

Local life in the club happens in chapters. Each chapter is an independent corporation chartered by BMW CCA, and under the bylaws any group of 15 or more members in good standing may apply for a charter. Every chapter member must also be a member of the national club.

The club’s chapter directory sorts its 67 chapters into five geographic regions (North Atlantic, North Central, South Atlantic, Central and Pacific) plus non-geographic chapters built around a model or an interest, such as the 2002 Forever, E30, E31, M and X chapters.

The Roadrunner Chapter’s dues page explains how assignment works: a member is placed in a geographic chapter by home ZIP code unless a different chapter is requested, and further chapters can be added.

What members do

The national event calendar shows what chapters run in a typical month: socials and dinners, cars and coffee meets, autocross, high performance driver education (HPDE) at road courses, driving tours, tech sessions, charity drives and Tire Rack Street Survival schools for teen drivers. BMW CCA Club Racing and the BMW CCA Foundation are listed on the club’s site as related organizations.

The national club also runs its own gatherings, such as Roundel Reunion, a weekend of drives and get-togethers in Greer, South Carolina, open to all BMWs. Chapters also organize BMW corrals at races, such as the Peachtree Chapter’s corral at Petit Le Mans.

How to find the local chapter

The club’s chapter finder looks up the chapter for a given location, and its chapter directory lists every chapter with a mailing address and a link to its website. Most chapters publish their own calendars, and many welcome visitors at cars and coffee meets before they join.