Rebirth in Dingolfing - The BMW 1600 GT Convertible
- 6 years ago
The vehicle collection of BMW Group Classic is now richer by another unique special. This is all thanks to the vocational training team at the BMW plant in Dingolfing. The apprentices restored the BMW 1600 GT convertible in a project lasting several years under the guidance of their trainers. The four-seater painted in silver has a red hood and its unusual history makes it a revealing representative of the time when the company BMW made the transition from being a niche automaker to a mass-production car manufacturer enjoying steady growth in success and an international reputation.
The classic car now radiates a new lustre. It is the only surviving example of originally two prototypes that BMW commissioned from the Italian bodywork designer Pietro Frua. In autumn of 1967, both automobiles left the production buildings in Dingolfing for the first time. The test drives for one of the vehicles came to an end with an accident and the vehicle was then scrapped. The second car was granted a special honour. The BMW 1600 GT convertible was handed over to the major shareholder in BMW AG at the time, Herbert Quandt. It remained in the hands of the family for many years and was then passed on to other private owners. A fashion model from Munich enjoyed the wind coursing through her hair as she drove along in the open-top BMW and the rare treasure was then acquired by a businessman from Fürth in Franconia, and subsequently found a new home at the Munich-based Allianz Centre for Engineering.
The classic car now radiates a new lustre. It is the only surviving example of originally two prototypes that BMW commissioned from the Italian bodywork designer Pietro Frua. In autumn of 1967, both automobiles left the production buildings in Dingolfing for the first time. The test drives for one of the vehicles came to an end with an accident and the vehicle was then scrapped. The second car was granted a special honour. The BMW 1600 GT convertible was handed over to the major shareholder in BMW AG at the time, Herbert Quandt. It remained in the hands of the family for many years and was then passed on to other private owners. A fashion model from Munich enjoyed the wind coursing through her hair as she drove along in the open-top BMW and the rare treasure was then acquired by a businessman from Fürth in Franconia, and subsequently found a new home at the Munich-based Allianz Centre for Engineering.