BMW M1 spotted during cold weather testing (and official teaser images)

[Jaguar66]

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[Spartikus]

Originally Posted by RobMason

Maybe I am missing something. People who are calling this a M1 mule must know something I don't know or can't see. As far as it looks from these photos, someone put some wide wheels and riveted some fiberglass wheel arches on a 1 series, and that is all. What gives?

Maybe you didnt read the entire thread. Plenty of things suggest that it is. Even if you discount all those as trivial, Scott26 says it is. Those of us that know his record are happy enough with that.

[jeremyc74]

Originally Posted by RobMason

Maybe I am missing something. People who are calling this a M1 mule must know something I don't know or can't see. As far as it looks from these photos, someone put some wide wheels and riveted some fiberglass wheel arches on a 1 series, and that is all. What gives?

They're factory CSL wheels, and they're on the car to clear a massive set of brakes that can clearly be seen in the earlier pictures.

[Jaguar66]

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[Imola.ZHP]

Maybe the MFG plate and location of the spotting?

[JasonCSU]

Originally Posted by RobMason

OK, perhaps so. So someone added some massive rear brakes, larger tires and wheels (CSLs ), and ugly wheel arches. And this makes it an M1 mule? Obviously we don't see the engine. My question is how can we assume it is a future M1? Is there someone on the inside feeding us this information? How accurate is the spy? Just curious.

There is also black tape over the Roundels and over the openings for the headlight sprayer nozzles.

[Robert]

Originally Posted by RobMason

Maybe I am missing something. People who are calling this a M1 mule must know something I don't know or can't see. As far as it looks from these photos, someone put some wide wheels and riveted some fiberglass wheel arches on a 1 series, and that is all. What gives?

http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=311113

[jeremyc74]

Originally Posted by Imola.ZHP

Maybe the MFG plate and location of the spotting?

Originally Posted by JasonCSU

There is also black tape over the Roundels and over the openings for the headlight sprayer nozzles.

Yep. It was spotted right outside where the M division is located, and then again where BMW is known to do cold weather testing.
Not to mention it had a 1 Series vert in front of it, and another coupe behind it.

There's no doubt at all that this is a factory test mule, and given the M1 rumors, the oversized brakes, and the flared fenders, it's the most logical answer.

[Imola.ZHP]

^ and not to mention why on earth would anyone do that to their 1er just to try to fool some photographers? That person would really have to not have a life...

[SCOTT26]

JOY IN ACTION

http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/Secret-...012-spy-video/

[southlight]

Originally Posted by SCOTT26

JOY IN ACTION

http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/Secret-...012-spy-video/

Thanks a lot, I added the link to my post.


Best regards,
south

[TunedM2C]

Originally Posted by SCOTT26

JOY IN ACTION

http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/Secret-...012-spy-video/

Sounds great!

[Driver72]

Interesting.
As much as I think it would be cool to have an M1 made, and these pics and video look to be a special 1 series, it seems odd that BMW would make an M1 considering the 4.0 V8 is going to be a short lived M engine.

Further, in those spy shots of the car on the road, it looks like the car has an intercooler in the lower front grill, same spot the 135i has. You can see what looks like silver deep inside the lower fascia opening.
That would not indicate a V8 in there.

I'd be interested to know how BMW is going to get the near 50/50 weight distribution in the 1 series with the 4.0 V8 engine in there too.
The 135i is already more front heavy than the 335i, and I'd have to imagine there was a bit more room in the 3 series front end to put the 4.0 V8 in there and move it aft a bit to keep close to a 50/50 weight distribution.

The video of the car blasting around that frozen lake sort of sounds like the V8 though, but it's hard to tell from that far out.

Isn't the new TT 6 M3 scheduled for 2013?
Would seem weird to make an M1 with the V8 for only 2-3 years.

But again, if they do and it's priced at low $50's to start, that would be a pretty sweet ride.
Any chance that test mule car is a 135is with a beefed up N54 engine and some M wheels/brakes/exhaust?

[lacrosse]

Liked the sound of it!

[SCOTT26]

The M1 will not feature a V8 that remains exclusive to the M3.
The engine is based on the updated N55 Six cylinder but reconfigured by the M Division. to accomodate Twin-Turbo and a high performance intercooler.
PS Output is at 345PS again not to tread on the toes of the M3.

[SoCali E36]

that was an awesome video!

[Smokey]

Originally Posted by SCOTT26

The M1 will not feature a V8 that remains exclusive to the M3.
The engine is based on the updated N55 Six cylinder but reconfigured by the M Division. to accomodate Twin-Turbo and a high performance intercooler.
PS Output is at 345PS again not to tread on the toes of the M3.

Thanks for the updated info on the engine specs-- sign me up as long as there's little to no discernible turbo lag and the handling is on par with other M cars.

[moveswiftly]

damn that exhaust sounded pretty good

[Driver72]

Originally Posted by SCOTT26

The M1 will not feature a V8 that remains exclusive to the M3.
The engine is based on the updated N55 Six cylinder but reconfigured by the M Division. to accomodate Twin-Turbo and a high performance intercooler.
PS Output is at 345PS again not to tread on the toes of the M3.

Interesting. That would explain the intercooler I saw in the pics.
Too bad the N55 more than likely won't be nearly as tunable as the N54, so this M1 would still have a whooping applied to it (in a straight line) by anybody with a 135i or 335i who spent a measly $300-550 for a tune only on their car.
I know though, M cars are more than just about straight line speed, but still the fact remains that a vast majority of M car owners (like all other performance car owners) are many times more likely to use the car for straight line speed than for track duties.

When is this M1 due out?
And without the V8 engine, I'd think (and hope) that it would not be priced more than $48k to start.

Oh and I'll go on record now and say based on the 345 hp rumor this car will do
12.8-12.9 @ 111+ mph in the 1/4 mile
It can't really be any faster than that, otherwise it will equal the M3

[lacrosse]

I think that 370/380 hp is not out of the question. That still leaves a 40/30 hp gap to the M3's 414.

[DOUT]

The driver of this "m1" is the same guy who was driving the M3 GTS in BMW's promotional video

[ZER0_C00L]

i can understand how they don't want the m1 to put out more HP than the m3, but why not make a lightweight performance car, a car which utilizes like weight and small size for performance... in a nutshell, make it like a lotus!