It’s the spring of 1940. All attention is zoned in on bringing the Mille Miglia back to life following its absence in the year prior due to multiple accidents and mishaps. The legendary race had made a reputation for itself as one of the hardest in existence, and 1940 would see many changes from previous events. Most notably, the original route had been dropped in favour of a 167-kilometre triangular course between Brescia, Cremona and Mantua. The drivers would complete nine laps of the new circuit, a move warmly welcomed by the watching public, as during the previous events one would only witness the flash of cars a single time for the entire event. Within those flashes were a sea of BMWs, many of which have not shared the same space since that 1940 event, until now. BMW Classic brought together all body variants of the BMW 328 that crossed the finish line, including the race-winning Touring Coupé and the iconic “Trouser Crease Roadster”, creating a truly incredible spectacle among the always-impressive Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este.
Planning for the German entry in 1940 got under way long before the official event, where BMW racing boss Ernst Loof travelled to Italy with a group of drivers, the two Coupés, and a single Roadster to familiarise themselves with the route, work out a race strategy, and organise the building of their garage. After meticulous planning, a temporary garage was set up in Castiglione, some 25 kilometres outside of Brescia. This would be the refuelling point, as well as a place where Loof and the team could take the opportunity to pass on any necessary instructions to the drivers, a key component to success during this arduous event.
Of the 70 Italian car-and-driver duos, which included Fiats, Lancias, Alfa Romeos, as well as Enzo Ferrari’s debuting Auto Avio Costruzioni Tipo 815, five silver-painted German BMWs settled in among the sea of red. Of the five BMWs, three streamlined Roadsters, sporting numbers 71, 72 and 74, were all crewed by highly experienced drivers and navigators. The three teams were under instructions not to push too hard, but to maintain a good speed and look after their machinery, allowing the Coupés to push for the overall victory. BMW’s goal was to dominate the standings, creating a one-to-five lockout as the chequered flag was waved.
The two Coupés — one a Touring Coupé, the other a works Kamm Coupé — had their sights firmly set on out-right glory. While BMW had all the planning and resources nailed down, the Mille Miglia takes more than that to bring home the win; it’s a race that thrives off experience and a healthy dose hometown glory, and so brands such as Alfa Romeo had the upper hand as the race reached its later stages. As the Kamm Coupé was forced to retire towards the end of the race, all hopes for a win rested on the Touring Coupé driven by Fritz Huschke von Hanstein and Walter Bäumer, who showed relentless pace as the miles ticked by, setting the then fastest time ever recorded in a sports car race with an average speed of 174 km/h. This blistering pace would eventually lead the No.70 Touring Coupé to claim outright victory, silencing the thousands of adoring Italians who came out to witness a red car win once again. Incredibly, this wasn’t just a win by a few seconds, but by a whole 15 minutes, leaving the Italian fans with mouths-ajar in complete bewilderment at what had witnessed.
Whilst the result wasn’t the landslide victory BMW had hoped for, it was one heck of a statement of their determination, engineering ability, and passion for success. The 328s would claim first, third, fifth, and sixth in the 1940 event, with only the Kamm Coupé retiring from the race. This historical moment from BMW’s vast history in motorsport will forever be held in high regard, making this moment during this year’s Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este even more special. Some 85 years may have passed since that gruelling race, but the cars remain as proud and utterly breath-taking as they were in-period, affirming the 328’s place in history as one of BMW’s greatest racing machines!
