Conflicted History: The Supercar BMW M1
In the 1970′s BMW decided they would establish themselves in the class with Porsche and Ferrari by creating a supercar. To do this they figured a design would have to be created that would compete with the Group 5 race car series, and then build it.
There were rules for this racing series which BMW needed to fulfil in order to produce the vehicles. The rules also stated that 400 cars had to be created for road drivability, thus the BMW M1. Unfortunately, the BMW M1 super car experienced some hassles in the development. The tale from this escapade is about what one should not do to make a supercar.
Initially the BMW motorsport department turned to Lamborghini to use their experience to help design and build their new racer. The result was a sleek, low slung, mid engine supercar with body work designed by Ital Design and a 3.5 litre engine that could be turbocharged to produce 850 bhp in Group 5 racing spec.
Unfortunately Lamborghini was in dire financial circumstances at the time, which meant that the project suffered frequent delays and in the end the whole project had to be moved to the BMW motorsport department in Baur, Germany. However, by the time the M1 was ready to be launched in 1978, two years after its initial conception, Group 5 racing rules had changed meaning that the M1 was no longer practical.
BMW did not want to lose all of their hard work. To save the project it was proposed that the M1 be allowed into a one make race series, the Procar BMW M1 Championship. The race was a support to the Formula 1 Championship. Stars of the F1 were Ayrton Senna, Nelson Piquet, and Nikki Lauda. They were all racing in identical vehicles.
Although the race championship was a victory the road version of the BMW M1 did not prove fruitful. The standard trim gave it 277 bhp, with zero to sixty in 5.6 seconds. The top speed produced was 162 miles per hour. Only 456 models of the M1 were created, making it an unusual collection piece for car enthusiasts.
The M1 BMW was a supercar with great performance, making it a legend not only in speed but quality and lower running costs. The twin kidney shaped front grille with the pop up headlamps and black slats on the rear windshield only added to the design.
Despite the lack of success the BMW series had this did not mean certain aspects of the car were not reused later on. The engine was used in the BMW M5. The design was also brought back for a concept car called the M1 Homage.
