The underrated supercar

On paper it was never going to stack up against the Ferraris and Lamborghinis to which it was inevitably going to be compared. Its 3.5-litre engine was too small, lacked the requisite cylinder count and, at 273bhp, wasn’t even that powerful. Yes, its interior was a mess as were those of its Italian rivals, but at least they had some design flair and character. The charmless black dash and dim dials offered by BMW had none.

It didn’t add up on paper either. A 0-60mph time of 5.5sec and a top speed of 161mph just wasn’t going to cut it among the hyper-inflated figures claimed for the Italians of the time. Lacking their name, apparent speed, cylinder count and, yes, even their looks, it doesn’t surprise me at all that it failed to talk people out of their traditional supercars. In the end it took three years to sell just 457 cars before BMW pulled the plug.

It’s a shame more people didn’t actually get to drive one because, if they had, I think sales may have been somewhat easier to score. It might not shout about it, but an M1 is a wonderful driving machine. The six- cylinder BMW Motorsport engine is a marvel and the five-speed dogleg gearbox a fun thing to use, but it is the car’s handling that, to me, puts it on a different plane to anything coming out of Italy at the time.

I’ve only driven one, but the way it would adjust its line through corners according to throttle setting made it feel more like a super-civilised Caterham than a conventional mid-engined supercar. The steering was superb and its limit behaviour entirely viceless. Which is why, given the money, l’d have one over any Ferrari or Lambo of the same era. If there is a supercar that was more underrated than this, I’ve not driven it.