Tag: Procar

Tuner Tuesday: 1979 BMW M1 AHG Studie

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While it’s safe to say that all of the legendary BMW M1s have an interesting history, some are a bit more traveled than others. It would be simple to suggest that modifying one of the few M1s produced would be sacrilegious, but in the 1980s anything was fair game in the tuning scene, and let’s not forget that the M1 was a bit of a flop originally. In fact, until very recently the M1 was generally overlooked as a future collectable; prices were higher considering the rarity and provenance of the original M car, but like the Audi Sport Quattro they enjoyed relative obscurity in the general public. So, it’s not much of a surprise that some were modified in period, and AHG was the most famous of the tuners of the M1. Taking the base car to the next level, they customized the interiors and upped the power nearly 30%, along with fitting aero tweaks that were a reminder that the M1 was intended for the track. Looking much like a street worthy Procar, the only thing that was missing were the celebrity race drivers and crashes. Not missing was the high price tag, something that’s back today:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1979 BMW M1 AHG Studie on Hemmings

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Tuner Tuesday: 1980 BMW M1 AHG Studie – REVISIT

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After failing to sell at auction for the estimated $600,000 – $800,000 projection, the AHG Studie modified M1 is back and now on eBay. Bidding as of writing is sitting around $300,000 – a steal for even a poor condition M1 these days. While it’s not likely to remain there or meet reserve, it will be interesting to see where the pricing ends up!

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1980 BMW M1 AHG Studie on eBay

The below post originally appeared on our site July 29, 2014:

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Tuner Tuesday: 1980 BMW M1 AHG Studie

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I won’t bore you with an attempt to fully recount the storied history of the M1 here. But there are some interesting developments that helped create this halo car, changed its purpose and created the car that you see here. The M1 is a legendary car that, like the 959, 190E 2.3-16V Cosworth, RS200 and some other notable historic cars was born into a world that had already passed it by. It seems that often these ultimate cars have come about when the series rules have changed, and the M1 was part of that. The 959 moved from Group B to Le Mans, running high overall both attempts that it ran. The 190E took to the race track instead of rally, creating a new motorsports legend in the process – who can forget the images of Senna in the 190E? The RS200 moved towards the popular European sport of Rallycross, where it was extremely successful. And the M1? Well, the M1 was a bit lost; BMW had to build 400 of the expensive machines in a bit of a global recession, so they decided to make a one-make race series called the Procar series. Of course, it didn’t hurt that BMW was attempting to get its foot in the door with F1 management as an engine supplier, and the promise of the spectacle of F1 drivers let loose in supercars before the real race sure sounded appealing. What it was, most of the time, was a train wreck of crashes – but it was entertaining for sure, and they ended up building enough M1s to go racing where the car was intended, in Group 5 racing. While BMWs interests and technology passed by the M1 in the early 1980s, there was nevertheless a group of individuals who wanted their M1s turned up in the style of the wild winged, wide fendered and massive wheeled Procars. The result were the 10 AHG Studie cars:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1980 BMW M1 AHG Studie on EBAY

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Widebody 1981 BMW M1 for sale

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We listed this car almost exactly one year ago and it is still up for sale. The BMW M1 is such a magnificent anomaly.  Never before, nor since, has BMW made a mid-engined supercar (in fact, how many have come out of Germany period?), but when they did, they did it right.  Sharp and exotic, it still looks irrefutably German, especially in white like our example today.  It just sweats engineering excellence and Teutonic rightness, as though Kraftwerk is the only music the Blaupunkt is capable of playing.  And while it’s held in high regard on its own merits, perhaps the M1’s greatest legacy is the fantastic inline-6 it later passed on to the E24 M6 and first two M5s.  Today’s example is extra special with the Procar bodykit, mimicking the aggressive, flared look of the M1 race series and installed by none other than AC Schnitzer.

The clean white with black accents emphasizes the Germanness of this beefed-up M1.  With about 23k miles, it’s a beautiful car with “no known issues.”  It’s not perfect; the headers are very patina’d and the original paint doesn’t sparkle, but that’s ok.  I kind of like that this is a badass time machine that doesn’t look like it has to sit in a showroom for the rest of its life.  The $135,000 asking price is steep, but this is a rarity of a rarity and one of just 456.  German exoticar pr0n, widebody M1 is thy name.

-NR

4 BMW M1s for the 4th of July

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With July 4th being this weekend, a little red, white, and blue, is in order. So my thoughts were immediately drawn to some of the great BMWs that raced under the Motorsport tri-color livery. What better way to illustrate this than with a 1979 M1 in the proper Motorsport colors.

Red, White, and Blue 1979 BMW M1 on Craigslist

1979 BMW M1

This Craigslist offering from Munich Evolution, in Seattle seems to fit the bill perfectly. The seller says this vehicle has unique history, and if you are going to spend $175,000 a little unique history would be nice. The Procar body, this was a single make race series M1s raced under, on this M1 and the great color scheme enhance the value. If you really want BMW’s arguably first and only true supercar they can be had for less (see below), but this seems a fair ask price. The seller mentions that more info will be added about the car soon.

1981 White M1 Procar Widebody on eBay.

1981 BMW M1 A11981 BMW M1 A21981 BMW M1 A31981 BMW M1 A41981 BMW M1 A51981 BMW M1 A61981 BMW M1 A71981 BMW M1 A81981 BMW M1 A91981 BMW M1 A101981 BMW M1 A11

If the patriotic paint scheme is not your thing, than why not start with a blank slate in this all white 1981 M1 widebody currently offered on eBay. $150,000 gets you a AC Schnitzer installed Procar bodied M1 with 22k on the clock. It looks pretty clean and check out that vintage Blaupunkt equalizer.

Lastly, two non-Procar M1s are available through Motorcar Gallery Inc in Fort Lauderdale Florida. Perhaps an homage to Michael Jackson we have a black 1980 model and a white 1981 model. They have the white one listed on Hemmings for $173,500.

1980 BMW M1

1981 BMW M1 B

All else being the same the Motorsport colors look the best to me and the black looks better than the white. Ah decisions.

Only 456 M1s hit the market. The rear mounted 3.5 liter 273 horse power engine makes the thrumming sound that comes from a big inline six. It is a bit more raucous sounding than the deep cabin cruiser yacht sound you hear from the 1st gen M5. This nice clip shows an M1 at Nürburgring with no silly music or voice over to wreck the exhaust note.

In race tune, where up to 850 horse power could be had, the sound is powerful, as witnessed by this M1 at Lime Rock Park.

Do you have examples of some patriotic U.S./German automotive collaborations to help us celebrate the 4th?

Happy BBQing.
~Evan