BMW 318 IS - Super Tourism For sale
1994 SPA 24h Winning car
One private owner from 1994 to 2016
Still retains all of its original parts
Description
The highly desirable works 318 IS we offer is chassis CL2 0111 94. It was given to Bigazzi by BMW Motorsport and according to all the date labels on many components, it was built shortly before the 1994 Spa 24h. Bigazzi work’s BMW team entered it with the iconic Bastos /Fina deco scheme with number 4 and was driven by the great trio of Roberto Ravaglia - Thierry Tassin - Alexander Burgstaller. It should be noted it was then fitted with the beautiful « M3 GT » body kit, indeed back in 1994 the 318s benefited from a homologation extension to improve the aero. After qualifying second with an impressive time of 2.34min, it enjoyed an emphatic victory winning the race with a four lap margin. This would be the third victory at Spa for both Ravaglia and Tassin, whilst for Burgstaller it was his first.
After the race the glorious 318 went back to BMW Motorsport where it was acquired at the end of 1994 by Willy Maljean, a well known Belgian racer. Maljean had driven many BMWs since the 80s in Belcar and at Spa, developing over the years a close relationship with BMW Motorsport. Maljean entered the car in various supertourism championships from 1995 to 1999, including the Belcar series, and those in Spain and France. The Belgian managed to keep all of his BMW race cars until his death in 2016, maintaining them in perfect running condition. Apart from receiving the ’95 aero kit from the later 320 ST, the car has remained completely original and has never been structurally damaged. It is still fitted with all of its original components and is in perfect running order.
In 2022 the engine was rebuilt by S14 specialist "Lorrtec" in France and fitted with a Motec Management, bills totalling 25 000€. The car comes with the original « M3 GT » body kit and 2 sets of wheels. In the car’s file there are plenty of pictures from Spa but even more interestingly, some from the arrival at Maljean’s garage « Jumet Motors » still under the Spa colors.
This is an amazing opportunity to acquire a major BMW race car from the 1990s in original and untouched condition.
Model history
At the end of 1992 BMW announced its retirement from the DTM and decided to focus its touring car racing involvement on the new Super Tourism category. Indeed the DTM would turn to « Klass 1 » cars from 1993 which would result in unlimited budget needs to be competitive. Audi also retired at this point and both manufacturers would become leading players in the new championships for ST cars. The FIA - ST all new regulations would be based on 4 or 5 door saloon cars with 4 cylinders and 2.0 liter engines with a minimum production run of 20,000 units per year. Though the mechanical components would be relatively free of restrictions, the bodywork would be based on the road cars in its material and design.
BMW’s only eligible car was the 318 IS, however the FIA allowed it to be turned into a 2.0 liter. In 1995 for commercial purposes FIA would allow the car to be renamed « 320 ». This was an enormous step compared to the M3, as it had a much more advanced chassis and suspension design and was fitted with the well known S14 engine in a 2.0 liter specification and an upgraded version of the Holinger gearbox for sequential shifting.
The 318 IS - ST appeared in 1992 in BTCC but the real assault came in 1993 via Bigazzi and Schnitzer when the cars were entered in the main championships and races. To avoid direct competition between its factory teams, Karl-Heinz Kalbfeld head of BMW Motorsport attributed to Bigazzi the endurance programs ( Spa & Nurbugring 24h) and to Schnitzer the sprint championships ( BTCC, ADAC & Macau ).
Both teams were successful winning an amazing number of championships and endurance races, making the E36 STW one of the most fantastic touring cars ever.