VIN: the works / Helmut Marko - Walter Maurer ‘Münchner Wirte’ BMW M1 Procar chassis 4301036
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HISTORY OF CHASSIS 4301036
Chassis 4301036 was one of the M1 Procars reserved for use by the official BMW Motorsport team in 1979.
It first appeared at Hockenheim (round five) in the hands of promising German, Hans-Georg Burger, who had been having a very successful time driving a GS Tuning BMW 320 in the DRM and a few other big races thus far in 1979.
Burger was a BMW-contracted driver and the star of the show at Hockenheim; he started from sixth on the grid and went on to finish third behind winner, Niki Lauda, and runner up, Hans-Joachim Stuck.
At Zeltweg (round six), Burger qualified eighth and finished sixth. He would return for the 1980 Procar season with a GS Tuning M1.
Chassis 4301036 was subsequently wheeled out for one more Procar race in 1979: the season-ending contest at Monza. Here it was entered for upcoming young Italian, Teo Fabi.
Fabi qualified tenth, but his race ended on lap one with a broken water pipe.
Chassis 4301036 was then sold to Austrian ex-F1 racer, Helmut Marko.
During the ‘79 Procar season, Marko had managed chassis 4301041 on behalf of Gerhard Schneider (GS Tuning) for Markus Hottinger (another BMW-contracted driver).
Now in the red and white colours of Marko’s long-term sponsor, Marlboro, chassis 4301036 contested the non-championship 1979 Kyalami 1000km race in South Africa where it was driven by Burger and Hottinger. Having qualified fourth, they unfortunately retired with a broken fuel-injection pump drive.
For the 1980 Procar Championship, Helmut Marko had anticipated that Hottinger (a fellow Austrian) would be behind the wheel of 4301036. However, Hottinger was unfortunately killed during a Formula 2 race at Hockenheim two weeks before the Procar campaign began.
As a result, Marko brought in talented Austrian youngster, Jo Gartner, who dovetailed his appearances in the Procar series with a Formula 2 campaign.
Gartner finished fourth in the exciting season-opener at Donington, but thereafter results were patchy. He took sixth at Imola, eighth at Brands Hatch, posted five DNFs and failed to start at the Norisring having ripped away the right front suspension during a practice crash.
Chassis 4301036 then made one final appearance in period; it was wheeled out to compete at the 1981 Le Mans 24 Hours for which it had been given a special new colour scheme by German artist, Walter Maurer.
Maurer painted several M1 Procars between 1980 and 1982. Thanks to his unique lacquered painting technique, he was also contracted by BMW to collaborate on the Art Cars by Alexander Calder, Frank Stella, Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol, Ernst Fuchs, Cesar Manrique and A.R. Penck.
For the 1981 Le Mans race, Maurer adorned chassis 4301036 with a ‘Münchner Wirte’ livery that celebrated a variety of Munich institutions and landmarks. The car incorporated Bavarian-style facade painting with traditional blue and white twisted chords.
4301036 was driven at la Sarthe by Prince Leopold of Bavaria, Peter Oberndorfer and BMW protégé, Christian Danner. They qualified fastest of the Group 4 entries in 41st, but retired from the race after 49 laps with a broken crankshaft damper.
Today, chassis 1036 forms part of the BMW Classic collection.
Notable History
BMW Motorsport GmbH
28/07/1979 PRO Hockenheim (H.G. Burger) 3rd oa (#90)
12/08/1979 PRO Zeltweg (H.G. Burger) 6th oa (#90)
09/09/1979 PRO Monza (T. Fabi) DNF (#90)
Sold to Helmut Marko (Marko Rennsport Management)
Red & White Marlboro livery
30/11/1979 IND Kyalami 1000km (M. Hottinger / H.G. Burger) DNF (#11)
26/04/1980 PRO Donington (J. Gartner) 4th oa (#88)
11/05/1980 PRO Avus (J. Gartner) DNF (#88)
17/05/1980 PRO Monaco (J. Gartner) DNF (#88)
22/06/1980 PRO Norisring (J. Gartner) DNS (#88)
12/07/1980 PRO Brands Hatch (J. Watson) 8th oa (#88)
09/08/1980 PRO Hockenheim (J. Gartner) DNF (#88)
16/08/1980 PRO Zeltweg (J. Gartner) DNF (#88)
31/08/1980 PRO Zandvoort (J. Gartner) DNF (#88)
14/09/1980 PRO Imola (J. Gartner) 6th oa (#88)
Walter Maurer ‘Münchner Wirte‘ livery
14/06/1981 WSC Le Mans 24 Hours (C. Danner / L. von Bayern / P. Oberndorfer) DNF (#71)
Retained by BMW Classic
Text copyright: Supercar Nostalgia
Photo copyright: BMW - https://www.bmw.com
