MOTOR: Mount Panorama focus for fast car fans

Car companies are putting more effort into the Bathurst 12-Hour weekend as it becomes a fast-car focus.

BMW is joining the party in 2025, with a world-first premiere, and so is Genesis with the first race-track laps of its X Gran Berlinetta Concept.

Ferrari is back in a bigger way, thanks to its new one-make Challenge race series, as Mercedes-AMG continues to host its AMG owners and hopefuls at the biggest party of the year.

It could, and should, become Australia's 21st century motor show in the same way that the Goodwood Festival of Speed in the UK is now the premiere motoring event in Britain and a brilliant backdrop for carmakers highlighting their best new efforts.

Bathurst action kicked off this week with the unveiling of the M3 CS Touring in a global first for the brand. It looks great and the M3 badge means it will be a wickedly-quick wagon, but only if you have $253,900 to grab one of the 55 cars earmarked for Australia.

Genesis has big plans for Bathurst '25 but was only the supporting player as its global ambassador, the legendary Le Mans racer Jacky Ickx, returned to Bathurst for the first time since he won The Great Race as Allan Moffat's co-driver in 1977.

Ickx stood alongside the winning Falcon coupe, and also in front of the Genesis concept car, as he presented the winners' trophies to the mayor of Bathurst.

It won't be long before he is cutting laps again, just as a select group of BMW guests – including a small group of motoring journalists, me included – get a preview drive of the latest M5 on Monday morning once the race cars have returned to their garages.

The importance of the 12-Hour weekend as a marketing tool and owner reward is obvious to Mercedes-AMG, which has the biggest contingent of cars in the 12-Hour as well as pole position for spectators on the top floor of the Rydges Hotel overlooking The Chase.

"We've been involved for more than 10 years," says Jerry Stamoulis, the spokesman for Mercedes-Benz Australia.

"Motorsport is an important part of what we do for our brand, and this feeds into our performance cars for the road.

"This year we will host 200 of our customers are the Rydges Hotel for a unique perspective on the event. We think it's the best seat in the house at Bathurst."

"We've launched cars there in the past and will have some special AMG models for our customers to test drive over the race weekend."