TODAY 6 FEB Exclusive BMW News

...one in Brescia on 28 April, they had achieved what few had dared to expect: overall victory, team victory, and third, fifth and sixth place in the rankings. That April day witnessed BMW’s greatest racing success so far on four wheels – and one which continues to define the character of the brand today. “The victory in the 1940 Mille Miglia remains a milestone in the history of the BMW brand,” says Dr Klaus Draeger, member of the BMW Group Board of Management responsible for development. “It is evidence not only of extraordinary technical expertise but also of the passion shared by all those involved at BMW.” The 1940 Mille Miglia was the climax of a journey that had begun with the design and presentation of the BMW 328. The BMW 328 was not only one of the most beautiful sports cars of the prewar era, it was also the most successful sports car on the race tracks of Europe in the 1930s. A combination of outstanding roadholding and impressive engine power made it an object of desire for many racing drivers and offered private customers a taste of what undiluted roadster driving was all about.

A car for the friends of the company

A small brochure circulated among a select group of people in late 1935 revealed the existence of a new 2-litre sports car to be known as the “Typ 328”. The description of the car was deliberately low-key and avoided giving any performance or speed figures. The brochure was intended purely as an appetiser for “friends of the company”; there was no announcement in the press.

Journalists were left open-mouthed when they set eyes on the car for the first time in the Nürburgring paddock on 13 June 1936. There, Ernst Henne was preparing to race the 328 in the International Eifel Race the following day. The motorcycle world record holder roared away from his rivals off the start line and soon left the rest of the field trailing in his wake with a phenomenal average speed of 101.5 km/h. This show of strength from the 328 had commentators purring about the future of the German sports car. However, few could have guessed that they were witnessing the dawn of a new era.

Few observers are likely to have fully grasped what was unfolding in front of them that day. In an earlier press release BMW had itself downplayed the new model as a “2-litre sports car with a slightly more streamlined body”, lulling some journalists – who referred only to its “2-litre V engine with twin camshafts” – into a misplaced sense of the ordinary. The understated approach might well have been a tactic on BMW’s part to avoid raising hopes too high, too quickly; after all, by that point only three prototypes had been built.

The wins keep coming

The second victory for the 328 arrived in August, with British BMW importer H.J. Aldington sweeping all before him in the Schleißheimer Dreiecksrennen race. Aldington then persuaded the powers-that-be at BMW to give the car another run outside Germany. The three prototypes duly made their way to Ireland for the Tourist Trophy sporting green Frazer-Nash-BMW livery – and cantered to a 1-2-3. The 328 had got the ball rolling and several more victories followed over the ensuing months. However, it was still the three pre-production cars taking it in turns to rack up the wins, with various drivers at the wheel.

Private customers were forced to play the waiting game, as production was slow to get off the ground; the first cars were not delivered to customers until late April 1937. And so it was exactly a year since Henne’s debut outing before the first private owner of a BMW 328 had the chance to test his new purchase in race action.

At the 1937 Eifel Race it was left to the nine BMW 328 racers on the grid to fight it out for victory. Over the years that followed only a handful of cowed attempts were made by other cars to take on the hot-heeled BMWs. These intrepid lone rangers were doomed to failure as the BMW 328 quickly took Germany’s race tracks by storm.

Reports of victories continued to rain into Munich from every corner of Europe. And it wasn’t only class wins that the car was amassing so effortlessly, as much more powerfully-engined cars also succumbed to its irresistible will. The small 2-litre sports car was building a handsome collection of overall victories over once superior rivals.

Top of the class

The weather for the race could hardly have been more perfect. Brescia had been basking in spring warmth for several days already, and only at the start of the race was there a slight chill in the air.

The centre of Brescia was alive with anticipation over the night from 2–3 April. Thousands of excited onlookers had gathered at the start and lined the roads leading into the city to witness the unfolding of this extraordinary event. At 2.00 a.m. the first cars in the smallest-capacity section of the national class were waved on their way. The cars started at 30-second or one-minute intervals, according to the class. The long list of entrants meant that the first test for the drivers of the larger cars was one of patience. At least they could relax in the knowledge that they would be driving in daylight, although that also meant they would have a lot of overtaking to do.

By contrast, darkness had yet to yield when the cars in the 2-litre class were called to the starting line. Prince Schaumburg was the first to set off into the Italian night, on the stroke of 4.30 a.m., followed by Uli Richter, the three non-BMW cars, Fane and von der Mühle-Eckart. The BMW racers wasted no time in setting a withering pace, showing enviable confidence in the durability of their beautifully prepared race engines. By the time they reached Rome they had already seen off the challenge of two of the other manufacturers in their category, and the third was forced to retire shortly afterwards. But the BMWs were not about to slow down to celebrate. Quite the opposite, in fact. With their class rivals out of the picture, they were free to launch an attack on the more powerful cars. The Germans were driving with clockwork precision, and only a few minutes separated them at any one time.

The fastest drivers arrived back in Brescia in the late afternoon. Less than 12 hours after crossing the start line, the powerful supercharged Alfa Romeos, the Delahayes and the Talbots were back at base, as expected. The big surprise, though, was still to come; Fane steered his BMW 328 to eighth place in the overall classification, winning the 2-litre class and leaving a considerable number of supercharged cars in his wake in the process. Fane’s fellow-BMW 328s followed him home in 10th, 11th and 12th overall, securing 2nd, 3rd and 4th places in their class and rounding off a spectacular race for BMW. Added to which, they also won the team prize for consistency and the award for the best foreign entrant.