Like many I was filled with excitement and anticipation when it was announced that BMW would release a M-package 1-series. We were all pretty sure it wouldn’t be called the M1, since that name was taken, but regardless of what it was called there was plenty to be excited about. The 3-series was getting too big and seemed a significant departure from the iconic E30 M3, which was for me, though I didn’t really know it at the time, THE CAR to capture my attention and it elicited “ooohhs” and “aaahhhs” whenever we passed the local BMW dealer. I only saw it from afar so I can’t say exactly what color it was, though I know it was bright – something along the lines of Zinnoberrot I’d guess. Of course the 1M isn’t quite to the E30’s stature, at least not yet, but it was smaller and better proportioned than its siblings and that definitely was a step in the right direction. But whereas the E30 possesses a litheness to its design, the 1M is all muscle and with 335 hp it packs plenty of punch to backup that sculpted appearance. There is an Alpine White 1M that runs around where I live and for a white car it’s pretty darn sexy, but ultimately I come back to that first M3 and look for something a little brighter like this Valencia Orange 2011 BMW 1M Coupe, located in Illinois, with 32,250 miles on it.
