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2011 BMW 328 Hommage Concept

2011 BMW 328 Hommage Concept is considered the most successful and best-looking sports car of the 1930s. The BMW 328′s success was the result of its design parameters – through the use of systematic lightweight construction, aerodynamic lines, opti-mum engine types and outstanding suspension technology, it laid the foundation stone for a new vehicle concept, by which performance only leads to success if combined with perfect harmonisation of all parameters and maximum efficiency. With these characteristics, the BMW 328 was even then the embodiment of what the BMW brand still stands for today – dynamics, aesthetics and a high level of innovation.

In 2011 the dream sports car is celebrating its 75th birthday. The festivities will begin near Lake Como at the Mille Miglia. There, the main focus will be on the fascination of the 2011 BMW 328 Hommage Concept racing car. To this day, the award-winning vehicle BMW 328 Touring Coupé still holds the record for the highest average speed on the Mille Miglia circuit and, in 2010, was again able to win the historic revival of the race. A week later at the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este, the two-seater’s functional aesthetics will be the focus of attention. In this area of conflict be-tween tradition and modernity, the BMW Group is paying tribute to the BMW 328 on the occasion of its anniversary with a special model – the BMW 328 Hommage. “With the BMW 328 Hommage, we wish to pay homage to the passion and inventiveness of the fathers of the BMW 328″, explains Karl Bäumer, CEO of BMW Group Classic. “They created an icon, which is consid-ered a milestone in the history of the automobile.” The BMW 328 Hommage translates the principles and the character of the vehicle of that time into present times and offers a possible interpretation of how the designers of that time, Fritz Fiedler and Rudolf Schleicher, might have built 2011 BMW 328 Hommage Concept in the present day using current technology.

2011 BMW 328 Hommage Concept was also a special BMW insofar as the lightweight construction principle was systematically implemented on a BMW automobile for the very first time. Wherever possible, the lightest and at the same time most robust materials were used, thereby keeping the gross vehicle weight down to just 780 kilograms. In order to translate the idea of lightweight construction into this day and age, major parts of the exterior and interior of 2011 BMW 328 Hommage Concept are made of carbon fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP). Whilst in the old days they favoured the materials aluminium and magnesium, CFRP is now considered to offer the best ratio between weight and stability. The high-strength fibre fabric is lighter than aluminium, but also more stable. Wherever the material has been used on the BMW 328 Hommage, it is also visible. In this way, the BMW 328 Hommage not only reflects the lightweight construction principle functionally, but also visually. The BMW Group leads the way in the production and use of CFRP in automotive construction and already possesses many years of experience in the series production of CFRP roofs and structural components for the BMW M6 as well as CFRP roofs for the BMW M3.

The interior design of 2011 BMW 328 Hommage Concept comprises a number of details that are reminiscent of the successful motor racing history of BMW 328. For example, the slightly asymmetrically designed windscreen has a recess in the middle, similar to the windscreen design of earlier racing cars. Simultaneously, it marks the areas in which the driver and co-driver sit. Moreover, four wide leather straps run across the bonnet, which appear to dive under the side shoulder sur-faces to be continued on the side. This detail, which used to be considered an extremely sporty attribute, is also featured on the BMW 328 Hommage. Com-bined with the high-gloss aluminium safety buckles, the leather straps provide a touch of class in contrast to the very technical-looking carbon fibre. The modern quick-release fasteners for securing the bonnet bring racing of the past into the present. On the driver’s scoop a large silver “75″ as well as a small logo below it signify the reason for the 2011 BMW 328 Hommage Concept. Next to it, the integrated tank filler neck protruding from the right-hand side is a striking detail. Whilst it pro-trudes prominently from the body of the BMW 328, the BMW 328 Hommage features a version that is integrated slightly more into the bodywork.

The two-part light alloy wheels featured on 2011 BMW 328 Hommage Concept are a very special interpretation of the characteristic hole pattern of the original rims. The extremely concave high-gloss black aluminium rim boasts a contrasting silver-grey cover made of glass fibre. The insides of the angular milled holes have a high-gloss finish and are distinctively accentuated by a matt overlay. A black chrome butterfly nut bearing the BMW emblem completes the contemporary version of the wheel.