IN THIS FEATURE Early days First true BMW On the motorsport map Wartime work Motoring for the masses The "New Class" and 02 Success in the Seventies M is for Motorsport Eighties updates Further expansion Into this new millennium Useful links

The first complete car to be built by BMW Motorsport was a high-performance coupe, logically called M1. Developed initially for the FIA GT championships, delays to a series-production version meant that it did not qualify, so the head of the Motorsport Division created a new race championship, the ProCar series, to be the supporting race for the 1979/80 F1 Championships. Engineered especially for these events, the M1 was powered by a 3.5-litre straight-six; the road-going examples developed 277bhp and accelerated 0-60mph in under six seconds, making it a credible alternative to the Italian supercars of the time.

It looked the part, too: although like the 6-Series it was influenced by Bracq's turbo coupe concept, its finished design was the work of Giugiaro at ItalDesign. Another Italian connection - body supply by Lamborghini - was rejected, however, with Stuttgart-based Bauer eventually making the plastic bodyshells. Constructed around a tubular spaceframe chassis, the rear-engined M1 was nonetheless a usable road car, though that was rather missing its point. Competition versions produced 470bhp and were capable of 186mph; later twin-turbo versions could develop between 850bhp and 950bhp.