1981 BMW M1 – Classified of the Week

Everyone and their gran has heard of BMW’s Motorsport division by now. The German giant has been churning out spicy versions of its saloon and family cars forever it seems and we’re never far from a new M-badged derivative of the company’s next model hitting showrooms, whether it be a continuation of the world-renowned 3 and 5 Series cars or newer additions to the line up such as the 4 Series Coupé, these better, faster, stronger variants remain perennially popular. And rightly so. But where did this penchant for performance originate? That honour, ladies and gentlemen, belongs to the M1, a typically pragmatic moniker from BMW for the first car in a series that would go on to help define the brand. This is Genesis. Ground zero.

Released in 1978 and very much adhering to the pointy, wedge-shaped aesthetic that was de rigueur at the time, the M1 was a hand-built coupé that was designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro with one thing in mind: racing. Very much a case of ‘keeping up with the Jones” (or keeping up with the Porsche’s in this case), BMW’s Jochen Neerpasch and his newly designated Motorsport division wanted to compete in Group-5 racing and so a joint venture with Lamborghini was initiated in order to design and build a suitable machine. The Italian auto maker was brought in to help with the production of the required number of homologation specials as stipulated in the big racing rule book but due to financial issues it only got as far as completing the car’s tubular steel space-frame chassis, after which the project was taken in house by BMW and Neerspasch.

The project continued on with Giugiaro’s fibreglass body being built by Trasformazioni Italiana Resine and the chassis being assembled by Marchesi. Other production work was outsourced to the newly formed Ital Engineering. The cars were then sent to Germany where Baur installed BMW’s mid-mounted, 3.5-litre double overhead cam fuel-injected straight-six engine. Capable of 165mph and a 0-60 time of around 5.5 seconds the 274bhp M88 motor was certainly potent and a perfect German accompaniment to the car’s handsome Italian lines.

With only 453 production cars and a mere 399 road going versions ever having been shipped to BMW Motorsport in Munich for final inspection and delivery the M1 is an incredibly rare care, possessing arguably one of the most important legacies in the automotive world and so when one comes up for sale, especially in as good a condition as this particular 1981 model (chassis number 00191 – making it car number 191 of 399), then we sit up and take notice, hence why we’ve chosen it as our Classified of the Week today.

Resplendent in its factory Inka orange paintwork over black leather interior this incredibly low mileage example is in stunning original condition. With just 18K on the clock it’s hardly been used and coupled with its known history from new makes this M1 an incredibly exciting proposition. Yes it’s at the pointy end of £550,000 but when was the last time you saw one come up for sale, especially in “as-new” condition such as this one presents. The car’s three previous owners can all be traced and with a fully documented history that dates back to the original delivery date in April of 1981 by Autohaus Weissenfel BMW in Montabaur, Germany the car’s provenance cannot be brought into question. Fastidiously serviced and maintained throughout its life and with a complete engine and transmission rebuild by renowned M1 experts Korman Autoworks, as well as a recent full service having been carried out during the previous custodian’s tenure, this is truly top tier.

Whether as a collector’s piece, an investment opportunity or just to simply own a bona fide slice of automotive legend this 1981 BMW M1 is truly an amazing and incredibly rare and desirable machine. What an opportunity!