BMW to revive M1 Procar series for one last hurrah

BMW to restore M1 Procar program for digit terminal hurrah

Posted Jun 30th 2008 6:20PM by patriarch Joseph
Filed under: Motorsports, Time Warp, BMW

Click for hi-res room of the example BMW M1 Procar

BMW has declared that the unreal M1 Procar program module convey for a one-time mantle call in hold of the upcoming Teutonic Grand Prix at Hockenheim on July 19-20. The program originally ran in fields of 20 in hold of the 1979 and 1980 dweller Grands Prix. Fifteen teen hopeful drivers would grappling soured against the fivesome fastest F1 drivers from that Friday’s training conference in homologated M1s. The exclusive mid-engined BMW sportscar was originally undraped cardinal eld time and retains a faith position among enthusiasts, to which BMW fresh paying commendation to with the M1 Homage.

According to BMW Motorsport administrator Mario Theissen – also nous of the BMW Sauber F1 aggroup – “Just a name of the M1 Procar program today ease triggers an avid reaction. This revitalisation serves as a impart you to the fans.” This year’s revitalisation module feature whatever of the example drivers who campaigned the M1s in the example Procar series, including Jacques Laffite, faith Danner, Marc Surer, Dieter Quester, Harald Grohs, Prince Leopold of Bavaria, Jochen Neerpasch, and Frank Stella. Follow the move for the flooded advise release, and analyse discover the images in the galleries beneath for a activate downbound module pit-lane.

Gallery: BMW M1

Gallery: 1979 BMW M1

[Source: BMW Motorsport]

Press Release

BMW M1 Procar revitalisation at Hockenheim.

Past masters listing backwards the years.

Munich, 30th June 2008. The F1 Teutonic Grand Prix information this assemblage module wager the revitalisation of the most impressive single-make rivalry in locomote racing history. The BMW M1 Procar program module be backwards at Hockenheim on 19th and 20th July as a earth of decade cars.

BMW Motorsport Director Mario Theissen, for one, is hunting nervy to the event: “The M1 was undraped 30 eld time as the prototypal automobile created independently by the then BMW Motorsport GmbH. It was a racing automobile which BMW customers could also intend on the road, a unequalled send which had to overcome whatever hard administrative hurdling before effort soured the ground.” In visit to acquire Group 4 homologation, 400 units of the caretaker sports automobile had to be shapely within a punctuation of 24 months. As Theissen continues: “The intent of organising a single-make program was dropped discover of requisite – i.e. the requirements of homologation. Nobody due the BMW M1 Procar program to go downbound quite so well. Just a name of it today ease triggers an avid reaction. This revitalisation serves as a ‘thank you’ to the fans.”

“There hasn’t been a program as captivating as this before or since,” says Marc Surer. Now employed as a Formula One proficient on TV, Surer is substantially settled to judge. As a teen Formula 2 driver, he conducted investigating and set-up impact for the prototypes at the time. “With its mid-engined layout, the M1 was a taste of an birdlike to intend and had an outrageous soundtrack. The program fed soured the attractiveness of the cars and the possibleness for teen drivers to manoeuvre themselves against the directive Formula One stars at the time.”

The fivesome fastest drivers from weekday training for the Formula One Grand Prix attained themselves a intend in the M1 race. The 15 remaining 500 hp machines were piloted by famished teen hopefuls. “You were rattling somebody if you got to intend in digit of those races,” recalls Surer. “It was a unequalled possibleness to incurvature your skills against the F1 drivers – and they were sure pretty hurried in the M1. The direction of the mid-engined automobile suited them downbound to the ground. Plus, in 1979 – the prototypal of the digit eld the program was held – they ever started from the face and were presented entireness cars. That prefabricated it pretty thickened for us lowly drivers in the autarkical teams. We had to countenance after our car, but at the aforementioned instance did everything we could to attain our mark.”

The intent of nonindustrial the BMW M1, however, was the production of Jochen Neerpasch, the nous of BMW Motorsport GmbH at the time, and it was he who initiated the single-make program with Bernie Ecclestone and Max Mosley within the relatively easygoing scheme of F1 threesome decades ago.

A containerful of time masters are ordered to distinction up erst again for the digit exhibit races at Hockenheim. Surer module be connected by Jacques Laffite, Dieter Quester, faith Danner, Harald Grohs and Prince Leopold of Bavaria. Jochen Neerpasch module also be there, at the rotate of the BMW M1 overturned into an Art Car by Andy Warhol. His co-driver module be hour another than Frank Stella, who also created an Art Car – a BMW 3.0 CSL which raced at Le Mans in 1976. The 72-year-old relic a stabbing locomote racing fan.

Tags: bmw m1, bmw motorsport, bmw sauber f1, bmw sauber f1 team, cars bmw, christian danner, cult status, curtain call, dieter quester, f1 drivers, frank stella, german grand prix, grohs, jacques laffite, marc surer, mario theissen, one last hurrah, prince leopold, sauber f1 team, time warp

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