1980 BMW Other for sale

The BMW M1 was the first production car from BMW Motorsport. Clad in Italian bodywork by Giorgetto Giugiaroand#44; and built by German specialty coachmaker Baurand#44; this example of the E26 was imported into the US on March 27and#44; 1980. DOT compliance testing soon followed in Los Angeles on May 25and#44;1980and#44; where it passed with flying colors.

Its first owner was Kenneth Lloyds of Key Biscayne FLand#44; who owned the car until 1986 when it was purchased by David Coffin of Sunapeeand#44; NH with only 8and#44;778 km (5and#44;454 miles) on odometer. Coffinand#44; a car aficionado and collectorand#44; used the car sparingly for the next ten years. In 1996 the car moved on to a new ownerand#44; Robert Greene of Santa Cruzand#44; CA with 12and#44;162 km (7and#44;557 miles) on odometer.

Knowing the collectable value of his M1and#44; Greene put the car away in storageand#44; only taking it out to have it inspected and smogged. The result of this careful preservation was that in 2012 this E26 had only 12and#44;237 km (7604 miles).

The M1 has spent the last three years in the private collection of a BMW dealer in Albuquerqueand#44; New Mexicoand#44; and has covered only 800 miles since 2012.

Designed by one of the worlds greatest automotive stylistsand#44; and built by handand#44; this amazing low mileage car is a clear window into a unique period of automotive history. This M1 comes with its toolsand#44; manualsand#44; spare and jack. Like all the automobiles at Canepaand#44; its been thoroughly assessed and detailedand#44; both cosmetically and mechanicallyand#44; to ensure it meets and exceeds the expectations of collectors that drive their cars.

The M1 is an iconic sports carand#44; and launched BMWs M motorsports division. BMW hand built just 453 M1sand#44; making it one of their rarest models. Of thoseand#44; only 399 were built for the street. The rest were destined for racing. The M1 was a mid-engine supercar. Its 3.5 liter four valveand#44; twin-cam inline six was good for 277 horsepower and 239 lb-ft of torque. The performance and handling were impressiveand#44; especially at speed. The handsome Giorgetto Giugiaro design successfully blended Teutonic and Italian machismo in a style thatand#44; 30 years laterand#44; still looks surprisingly current.

The E26 M1 project was approved by BMW AG in 1976 under the condition that it would not interfere with the production of any other BMW model. The M1 was developed to show that BMW was a legitimate manufacturer of sports cars that could compete with Porsche and Ferrari on the streetand#44; and to offer a purpose-built machine that could participate competitively in the Group 4 and Group 5 racing series.

BMW Motorsport initially contracted Lamborghini to assemble the cars with engines produced and shipped from Germany. Howeverand#44; severe financial troubles at Lamborghini forced BMW to terminate their agreement with the Italian supercar maker. Thusand#44; the production examples of the E26 M1 were partially assembled at Ital Design in Turin using fiberglass bodywork supplied by T.I.R and tubular spaceframes supplied by Marchesi. Final assembly was then conducted at the Baur coachworks in Stuttgartand#44; Germany. Each M1 was then given a final inspection at the BMW Motorsport facility in Munich before being delivered to its owner.

There are many conflicting production numbers regarding the E26 M1. The official BMW production figures show that 453 examples were produced in a three-year period between July 1978 and July 1981. Of theseand#44; between 54 were competition versionsand#44; while the remaining 399 examples constitute the road-going street cars. It is thought that the final street-legal M1 (non-Procar) was produced in February 1981.

Odometer at 13586 Kilometers = 8441 miles