The BMW M1 Hommage

Studies and vehicle concepts from BMW and BMW M have always been spectacular. The very first concept car from Munich, the 1972 BMW Turbo, created by Paul Bracq, is a vehicle that still fascinates today. Its handling, safety technologies and BMW design language pointed the way to the future. And these strong genes could be clearly seen in Giorgio Giugiaro’s design of the BMW M1, which was produced from 1978 onwards. The uncompromising super sports car soon became a legend.

BMW M1 Hommage, BMW M1, BMW Turbo — Legends meeting at Lake Como: BMW M1 Hommage, BMW M1 und BMW Turbo.

Let’s turn the clock forward a few decades – three, to be precise: In 2008, the BMW M1 Hommage took up the basic concept of the mid-engined sports car again – the archetypal super sports car, as it were. Created by the BMW head of design of the time Chris Bangle, the unique prototype was present on the 30th anniversary of the BMW M1 at the Concorso d’Eleganza on Lake Como.

If the BMW M1 was a super sports car full of uncompromising passion, its predecessor the BMW Turbo offered innovative technological solutions, expressed in emotional design. And it was precisely this combination – technology and design, rationality and passion – that the BMW M1 Hommage embodied in one vehicle.

5 POWERFUL FACTS.

New interpretation of a BMW M mid-engined sports car
Design by Chris Bangle and Adrian van Hooydonk
Hommage to the legendary BMW M1
Unique one-off model
Forerunner of the BMW i8, produced from 2013

The BMW M1 Hommage showcases the creativity and potential of the BMW design team. A project like this is a valuable source of inspiration for our daily work.

Adrian van Hooydonk, former Head of Design BMW automobiles, today Head of Design BMW Group

FASCINATING DESIGN.

The design of the BMW M1 Hommage is function-driven and both innovative and retrospective: elements that worked well in the BMW M1, like the ultra-slim headlights and bonnet slats, also work well on the Hommage. M1 fans also knew the special wheels from the original, even if on the Hommage design concept they were highly polished and several inches chunkier. The swung lines and smooth surfaces on the other hand speak a more modern language. The roof line of the BMW M1 Hommage is flat and slopes gently to the tail and around it, thus describing a continuous line and bringing the two sides of the vehicle together. The characteristic BMW double emblem is on this line in the tail above the rear lights.

At the front, the oversized kidney not just a typical BMW distinguishing feature, but on the M1 Hommage also part of the sophisticated aerodynamics: It serves to direct air to the engine cooling and is also the front of a crash-box – similar to a Formula 1 racing car’s monocoque chassis. A further highlight is the engine covering, which seems to float thanks to the optical continuation of the window line – a new interpretation of the original’s ventilation gills. In terms of functionality, this feature has forfeited nothing: The backset groove creates the space for the cooling air flow for the engine. Small slats and openings direct the airstream into the engine compartment and ensure a sufficient air supply.

TREND-SETTER LIQUID ORANGE.

A LOOK AHEAD TO THE NEXT DECADE.

And beyond: the BMW M1 Hommage had elements which were a foretaste of the design of BMW and BMW M models in the 2010s. The shape of the four light tubes in the headlights, the form of the diffusor element and the side sills, along with the BMW kidney: already back in 2008, the BMW M1 Hommage paved the way for the successful design of models to come.

POWER UNIT – NOT ENVISAGED.

BMW i8 – REINCARNATION OF THE M1 HOMMAGE?

The BMW M1 Hommage never went into series production. But there was one vehicle whose development it heavily influenced: the BMW i8. This extremely advanced hybrid sports car, produced between 2013 and 2020, took on numerous design features and innovations from the 2008 study. With the i8, the BMW Group design team under Adrian van Hooydonk developed an impressive technological masterpiece: The sophisticated aerodynamics and modern hybrid drive with a performance of 275 kW (374 hp) made the BMW i8 probably the most efficient sports car of its time.

TO BE CONTINUED.

Even more dynamic, even more uncompromising and with the driver centre stage: The vehicle concept of the BMW M1 Hommage was taken up again in 2019 with the BMW Vision M Next. The study of a mid-engined hybrid sports car continued BMW’s tradition of spectacular sports car studies and wowed both fans and experts at numerous fairs and auto salons.

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