Bmw E12 530 Mle

An in-depth historical and technical appraisal of BMW Motorsport's E12 530 MLE homologation special produced from 1976. Most people think that the legendary M1 was BMW's first M car, but they would be wrong. That honor is actually reserved for the BMW 530 MLE (Motorsport Limited Edition).

In the mid-1970s, BMW South Africa wanted to compete in the country's Modified Production racing series. There was only one problem - they needed a competitive car, which didn't exist at the time. Needing to homologate a more powerful 5 Series to go racing with, BMW South Africa built a short run of 530 MLEs The German firm shipped the tooling for the Glas 1700 saloon out to Pretoria and, with a change of engines and badges, produced the BMW 1800 and 2000 (later renamed 1804 and 2004) solely for South Africa until 1974.

The Rosslyn BMW works then switched to producing the new E12 5. There was not even a special owner's hand book, the standard E12 book merely used. The use of the "M" emblem for Motorsport-derived cars was first officially used by BMW with the M1, although the 530 MLE was a product of the BMW M division, using the inaugural motorsport logo, and the German modifications of Rosche and the Schnitzer brothers.

The rules stated that BMW South Africa needed to build and sell at least 100, so it's thought it built between 105 and 110 MLE versions. Standard E12 525s were plucked from the assembly line in Pretoria before being whisked away to BMW South Africa's secret racing facility. Yet, no one knew it at the time - the M1 of 1978 is often touted as the beginning, but its premiere was two years after the E12 530 MLE.

The result was the BMW 530 MLE - based on the first generation, E12 5 Series. BMW 530 MLE (1976) BMW 530 MLE When BMW South Africa wanted to go racing in the mid-1970s, the company sought out famous racing driver and Head of BMW Motorsport Jochen Neerpasch. Shortly thereafter, two of the first generation BMW 5-Series (E12) race cars were prepared to compete in the flagship Modified Production Series in South Africa.

The BMW 530 Motorsport Limited Edition was a special E12 5 Series with an upgraded 3.0. The exquisitely restored BMW 530 MLE was showcased for the first time at BMW Group Plant Rosslyn. The event was made even more special with the presence of four BMW Group South Africa employees who had contributed to the construction of the original vehicle over forty years ago.

The restoration, led by Luis Malhou of Custom Restorations, benefitted immensely from the invaluable insights and.