BMW 3 Series, 1975 - 1983
The BMW E21 is the first of the compact third-series BMW to replace the successful iconic BMW 02 series. Launched in 1975, the new BMW had only a two-door sedan / coupe body and four-cylinder petrol engines. Fuel-injected engines were introduced in late 1975, and 6-cylinder engines in 1977. Later, between 1978 and 1981, Baur produced versions with convertible bodies. The car's gin was similar to the first BMW "five" that appeared a little earlier in 1972 - a sharp-shaped body with two or four separate headlights, a "shark's nose" and a sloping trunk that looked aggressive and attractive. Two headlights were fitted in the versions with weaker engines, while versions 2.0 L and larger had a front with four headlights. The E21 generation did not yet have a BMW M3, but there were several limited-edition versions produced with a 323i engine with the largest displacement in the six-cylinder line, with a mechanical fuel injection system developed by Bosch. Inside, the BMW E21 had little space - it could barely accommodate four adult passengers. The Archaic dashboard was tilted towards the driver and was fitted with a tachometer or analogue clock, depending on the engine version. The car was produced with a standard 4 or 5-speed manual transmission, and some engine variants were also offered with a 3-speed automatic. In the early 1970s, the motorsport industry was full of Italian, British, French and German cars, and even the Swedes had something to offer. Many of them focused on large and powerful coupe cars, GT series or so-called "supercars". But BMW cleverly developed small sports cars that could be both competitive sports cars and great everyday cars. Such were the BMW 02 series and of course the new third series BMW. The BMW 320, ready for Group 5 racing, was introduced in 1977 and replaced the much larger BMW 3.0 CSL. Named “flying brick” for its angular design, the tiny BMW was powered by a Formula 2 engine with 225 kW (302 hp). The car was built in just over 12 weeks without any technical drawings. BMW Motorsport engineers installed the engine and other equipment directly in the car until it took on the final shape known to everyone. The little BMW won its first race in 1977 in Zolder with Marc Surer at the wheel, he also won the 1981 and 1982 Guia Race of Macau. The car was also used by the McLaren team in the American International Motor Sports Association series.