BMW Mille Miglia Concept, Rose Bronze Metallic

Between 1927 and 1957 the Mille Miglia was run 24 times, a thousand-mile race from Brescia to Rome and back over ordinary roads lined with spectators. It drew Nuvolari, Caracciola, Moss and Fangio, and it was as dangerous as it was glamorous: a fatal accident near Bologna in 1938 led to a ban on racing over open roads, and the crash at Guidizzolo in 1957 ended the original race. In between came the 1940 edition, run on a closed triangle of roads, which BMW won outright with the 328 Touring Coupé. Since 1977 the Mille Miglia has lived on as a regularity run for the kinds of car that raced in the original, and it was there, in Brescia in 2006, that BMW presented this concept.

This piece is finished in a rose bronze metallic, a soft pinkish metal tone with a fine sparkle that turns to warm taupe as the body curves away from the light. The cabin is light grey, with ribbed seats, black harness straps and a silver dashboard with two dials, while the gills behind the front wheels carry pale inserts. Up front, frosted round lamps flank a mesh kidney grille above a red tow eye, and a slim red lamp strip crosses the tail. The grey stitched base carries a black plaque with the BMW roundel and the word Limited. Built at 1:18.