BMW show golf and luxury cars do mix

Three local golfers are off to the luxury surroundings of the Fancourt Hotel and Country Club Estate in South Africa after placing first in respective categories of the BMW Golf Cup International qualifying tournament.

Amateur golfers were invited to tee-off at the Royal Malta Golf Club, in Marsa, over three days for the national qualification tournament for the big event in South Africa, which will be held between December 4 and 9.

The winners were Warren Alcock in the under-12 handicap category, Giorgio Barbera in the 13-28 handicap category and Maike Beekman came first among the ladies.

The three will now take part in the BMW Golf Cup International World Final. The five-star Fancourt Hotel is South Africa's top golfing and leisure destination, situated at the foot of the Outeniqua mountains in the heart of the Garden Route.

BMW also took the opportunity to launch two new cars on the local market at the end of the event.

The Z4 Coupe two-seater sports car, which has stunning looks and is capable of reaching 0-62mph in just five seconds. Its three-litre engine, with a six speed gearbox has a limited top speed of 155mph and 269 lb ft of torque at 4,900rpm.

From the nose to the A-pillars, the coupe is identical to the roadster version of this car. But the roof and the rear end are completely different. While one model has a canvas top, the other displays a stylish version of the classic double-bubble roof.

Meanwhile, the new 3-series coupe is a genuine four seater with room and speed in equal measure.

It is incredibly quick - it's twin-turbo high end three-litre engine gets the car from 0-62 in 5.5 seconds - packing 306bhp and 400ft lbs at 1,300-5,000 rpm of torque.

With this car, BMW has not just come up with a new vehicle, but a completely new engine that has taken the best part of four years to develop and that will no doubt feature on future BMWs.

The interior is rock solid too: From the unfussy dash console to the upholstery that conceals air bags that will descend on practically every inch of each occupant's body.

Active steering and BMW's X-drive system (that intelligently delivers power to whichever wheel requires it most at a given moment) are optional extras.

However, this version of the 3-series weighs some 10kg less than the saloon due to the aluminium casing surrounding the engine and plastic front body parts. This all contributes to impressive fuel consumption figures, with even the most powerful petrol engine (there are three to choose from, starting with a 2.5 litre) offering 29.7 mpg.

The starting prices of the cars are about Lm28,000 and Lm27,000 respectively.