BMW 328 Kamm Coupé returns

At this year’s Concorso D’Eleganza Villa d’Este, taking place on 23-25 of April, BMW will be showing once again a concept car out of competition. Celebrating the victory 70 years ago in the Mille Miglia, the brand will be showing its BMW 328 Mille Miglia Concept Coupé at Lake Como. The BMW 328 Kamm Coupé, a car that disappeared from sights nearly 60 years ago, will also be a special feature from BMW Classic at this year’s event.

The 328 Kamm Coupé racing car is a proof of how far the development of aerodynamics and lightweight construction had progressed at BMW by that time. “We are very proud to bring this milestone in motor racing history and vehicle aerodynamics back into the public spotlight,” said Karl Baumer, Director of BMW Group Classic. “Our tribute to the M1 at the Concorso two years ago showed how much inspiration the past can provide for the future. And the BMW 328 Kamm Coupé is an outstanding example of how far back the future at BMW stretches into the past.”

The Kamm Coupé was the only Mille Miglia BMW racing car that remained in Germany after the post-war period, having survived the wartime. At the time BMW Director of Racing Ernst Loof acquired the car for his personal use but the financial difficulties saw him selling it a few years later. The Kamm Coupé wouldn’t last many years with an accident in the early 1950s sending it to the scrapheap.

Since the mid-1990s efforts have been made to rebuild the car using documents from the BMW Group archive and private collectors, computer calculations carried out in the BMW development department, and the skilled hands of body experts and engine specialists. The Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este marks, according to Karl Baummer the unveilling of an incredible project: “We’ve come up against some major technical challenges, had many discussions and racked up countless hours of research, but when you see the car for the first time you can sense the passion and professionalism invested by all those involved – both all those years ago and today.”

As well as unveiling the 328 Kamm Coupé at the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este, BMW will also present a special exhibition of the brand’s cars preparing to line up for the Mille Miglia ten days later.