Steve Dinan
West 1972
Steve Dinan’s career in the fast lane of automotive innovation took off as soon as he graduated from high school.
With a strong desire to succeed, Dinan became involved in automobile tuning—the art of increasing not just performance, but the car’s interaction with the driver and passengers, the road and the environment, as well as its presentation and dynamic impact. He focused on BMW autos, introduced to the U.S. in the 1970s, and established Dinan Engineering in 1979 primarily as a BMW tuning operation.
Dinan has a cooperative relationship with BMW, which has officially sanctioned his company to modify and present their cars through its dealers. The cars are modified to his specifications at BMW dealers and maintain their factory warranty after they are sold.
He has achieved success through personal attention to detail and overall dedication to perfection. His tuning work primarily involves engine, suspension and drive-train. His operation analyzes new BMW vehicles to find where they may be substantively improved. It then produces high performance parts that replace or supplement factory parts. Dinan himself drives the resulting autos, carefully tuning their responses and integration until they form an integrated, harmonious whole.
His business has expanded to numerous outlets to meet demand. There are 140 Dinan sales locations in the U.S., with 100 of those authorized BMW dealers. Approximately 5,000 Dinan BMW autos are sold per year.
In addition to being a world-renowned tuner, Dinan is a winning race car engineer and driver. He has provided engines and engineering for various well-known teams. In May 2008, a Dinan-powered car won the 2008 Monterey Grand Prix at Laguna Seca in the Grand Am Rolex Sports Car Series for Daytona Prototypes.
Dinan has given presentations on engine modification to the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
He and his wife, Jan, live in Morgan Hill, Calif.