In the late 1930s, the BMW 328 ruled the 2-liter sports car racing class. One of Europe's toughest races was the grueling 100-mile Mille Miglia and for the running of the 1940 Mille Miglia, BMW prepared a team of aluminum-bodied, streamlined roadsters and coupes based on the 328. In addition to increasing the power of the 1,971-cc six-cylinder engine to 135 horsepower (a sensational value for this time period), the coach-building firm Touring of Milan, Italy, was hired to construct lightweight 'Supperleggera' aluminum bodies to take full advantage of the increasing understanding of aerodynamics. The lines of the roadsters were similar to the coupe that not only won the two-liter class, but the race overall.
This 328 Mille Miglia roadster was a further development, designed to compete in 1941 in the proposed Berlin to Rome race and the 1941 Mille Miglia, but was never fielded after both races were cancelled due to WWII.
61 years later, on the 75th anniversary of the Mille Miglia in 2002, the roadster fulfilled its mission. With the husband and wife team of Giuliano and Lucia Cane, the BMW Mobile Tradition-prepared 328 took the overall win at the Mille Miglia Historica. | |
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