Power behind the BMW M cars

Jul 8 2009 Ian Johnson

Power behind the BMW M cars

EVERY week I see sporty BMWs flashing past me bearing the brand's mark of power - the coveted M badge.

The story of the mighty M cars goes back as far as 1971 when the power egg cracked open with the birth of the BMW Turbo, a gull-winged exotic rolling test laboratory.

Using lessons learned in the Turbo it was decided to homologate a mid-engined BMW for endurance racing which meant that 400 street-legal versions had to be turned out.

It was originally planned to build a V12 power unit, but this was shelved during the energy crisis so a more developed light alloy 24-valve version of the BMW 3.5 six-cylinder was chosen with dry-sump technology.

And the road car started to take shape. Named M1 it did not have gull-winged but conventional doors and its styling by Guigiaro looked like a cross between a Lotus and a Lamborghini.

Indeed it was decided that Lamborghini should build the M1 and the necessary machinery was installed for this to happen. However Lamborghini could not cope with the production for financial reasons and the whole show was transferred. After a year's delay the project began to see light of day.

But the the car was subject to further hold-ups and although unveiled at the Paris Salon in 1978 the M1 was not homologated until 1980 taking part in just one season of the endurance events for which it was designed before the rules were changed.

But M1 became an instant legend. Its suspension and powertrain masterminded by Baur of Stuttgart were in a new league. At the time it was said that this 163mph supercar possessed a chassis that was faster than the engine.

Despite this, only 455 were made and today this glassfibre bodied 277bhp Beemer is a treasured collector's item, being one of the rarest of all BMWs

Indeed, it is so significant to the manufacturer that last year BMW unveiled the M1 Homage concept, an updated version of the M1 at the Concorso d'Eleganza at the Villa d'Este in Italy.

It was a salute to one of the most important European performance cars, a vehicle that placed the BMW M cars on he fast track for decades.