Behold the M room. Compared to the cars from our prior post on the luxury room in the BMW Museum, these models are just as elegant but pack much more muscle.
As we entered the room, we saw the guy below moving slowly between the cars. He would examine each one, take out a polishing cloth and buff the car as needed. That was his job! (Notice the rag in his right hand and protective gloves?). I have a friend for whom that would be the perfect retirement work too (I'm looking at you, Matthew).
Here's the one that started it all. The BMW M1, only 455 made from 1978-1981. As you might guess from the styling, this came from an agreement with Lamborghini to make a production race car. Its twin-cam inline 6-cylinder provided 273hp, and was later modified and used in the first generation M6 and M5 as well (mid-eighties). Turbocharged versions used on the race circuit delivered a whopping 850hp!
The rear has something unusual - twin BMW logos set left & right (rather than a single logo in the middle)!
FYI: the BMW logo is based on the pattern and colors of the flag of Bavaria.
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In addition to the cars themselves, an entire section of the room was dedicated to the M-series engines throughout the years:
There were as many people in the engine area as with the cars themselves - a popular topic! Here is the M88 engine from the M1 pictured earlier in this post:
Logically, the BMW Racing ("motorsport" in German) room was located near the M series room. Racing motorcycles were in the motorcycle room - this was just the autos, and more focused on racing versions of production cars rather than Formula-1 machines.
You might notice that the paint jobs on this series of racing cars mirrors the tricolor M logo:
The racer below is the BMW 3.0 CSL, a 1972 variant of the E9. It is recognizable by the aerodynamics package: a spoiler across the edge of the roof (before the rear window), a large tail wing at the back, and prominent side air scoops. It was nicknamed the "batmobile" with all these extras.
in 1972, the 3.0 CSL notched a European Touring Car Championship plus a LeMans class victory. Then from 1975-1979, a 3.0 CSL won the European Touring Car Championship each year.
Also, the 3.0 CSL was used for the first two BMW "Art Cars"... these are coming in the next post from the BMW Museum...