motioncars.com Tidbits Feature

Another innovation then was electronic control systems for the engine. The ECU in those days was “as big as a biscuit tin”, according to Brabham designer Gordon Murray, but it helped the engine keep itself together when others were expiring. The same engine powered Gerhard Berger, then in a Benetton-BMW to his first GP victory in Mexico, 1986. After introducing other innovations like engine telemetry, BMW bowed out of F1 just as the turbo era ended too.

The triumphs didn’t end there, though. Another significant victory was achieved in 1995, with the sister company of current Formula One rival McLaren-Mercedes. That company was McLaren Cars, founded to produce the ultimate road car, the McLaren F1. The definition of “ultimate” was on the terms of Gordon Murray. He wanted a no-compromise supercar that was still civilized enough to drive every day. Mr. Murray approached BMW and again, Paul Rosche, to produce the powerplant for his ultimate road car, asking for 550 bhp from a 6.1-liter normally aspirated V12. He instead received 627 bhp, churned out by one of the most fantastic road car engines ever made. It was as compact as a conventional V8, no more than 600 mm long, and weighed a mere 264 kg with exhaust and ancillaries attached. No expense was spared to create this masterpiece: its headers alone cost more than the entire V12 engine of a 750iL.

The ultimate road car soon found itself on the race track, where it routinely clobbered other sports cars like the Ferrari F50 and Lamborghini Diablo. The race tracks led to Le Mans and the 24-hour endurance race. In 1995, in what was essentially a road car fitted with a roll cage and rear spoiler, the McLaren F1 screamed to outright victory. It finished 1-3-4-5, thanks in no small part to the M Power engine at the heart of the car.

After its stint with the McLaren F1, BMW returned to Le Mans with the same engine, this time powering a car produced with Williams Grand Prix Engineering. This was no road car but an outright single-seater open car. Le Mans once again meant victory in 1999.

The partnership with Williams was a mere test bed for a more lofty goal: the return to F1. Retired F1 racer Gerhard Berger now headed the F1 program. The BMW V10 engine made its race debut in Australia 2000, and produced an astonishing third place for Ralf Schumacher. Thanks in part to the reliability of the engine, the Williams F1 team secured third place in the Constructors Championship in 2000. Though Honda was the engine being hyped up for a big F1 return, it was BMW that helped to deliver the points.

For 2001, BMW added sheer power to the reliability, and made the BMW-Williams the fastest car on the circuit in terms of top speed. Two victories and a strong third place in the Constructors is the team’s current standing. With that thundering 18000-rpm engine badged with the spinning propeller, the only place the BMW-Williams F1 team can go is to the top.

The success of its racing cousin spun off the first M3 road car. Like it's racing cousin it gets a high revving inline-4 engine.

A partnership with McLaren with the McLaren F1 super car project launched BMW into the realm of Le Mans as well, where the McLaren F1 won the 24-hour endurance race in its first outing.

Revising the McLaren F1 to fight with purpose built Le Man racers, the long-tailed F1 tried another Le Mans assault which it garnered a class victory (GT class) and a overall second place result.

A spectacular collaboration with Williams lead to another assault at Le Mans. Unlike the McLaren F1, this Williams-BMW collaboration was a single seater open racing car. It won the Le Mans in 1999.