BMW [PART 1]: THE WORKS ENTRY UNTIL 1970
BMW had started their Formula 2 operation back in 1967 with the 267 type. This car had got a 230 hp 1.6 litre 4 cylinder engine installed in a chassis made by British racing car manufacturer Lola. The engine had been designed by Austrian engineer Apfelbeck still on a production based block as demanded by the technical regulations of that time. In spite the car had got an excellent top speed on the straights, the acceleration from the middle sector revs was a real problem.
So it was no wonder, that BMW was in the need for a pretty long time, to sort the engine problems out. It was September 1968, shortly before the end of that year´s international motorsport season, when BMW brought their 268 type to the front. The cars, again with a Lola built chassis, were driven by Swiss Grand Prix ace Jo Siffert and German Hubert Hahne, who had got the reputation for being a touring car specialist. The 268 was quick, but not very reliable. And the Lola constructed chassis was not able to cope with the meanwhile 240 horse powers of the Munich made engine.
Fed up with the permanent chassis problems, BMW decided to construct one of theirown. This way technical support came from German aerospace company Dornier, who also had their headquarters in Bavaria. That was no surprise, because French aerospace group Matra had been the dominating Formula 2 chassis manufacturer since the inauguration of this class of single seater racing in 1964 and the monocoque construction had once got it´s origins in aviation. While Dornier produced the monocoque chasis made out of aluminum sheets, British engineer Len Terry designed the suspensions. BMW entered the 1969 European Formula 2 Championship again with Jo Siffert and Hubert Hahne, a little later German Gerhard Mitter and Austrian Dieter Quester, a touring car specialist, too, also joined the Munich based team. The 269, completely built in Bavaria, showed an astonishable good performance with several leads and some fine second places in the rounds of the European championship.
In spite that promising perspective, the acceleration problem out of slow curves still was not cured. Meanwhile the engine reached 250 hp at 10.500 rpm, what was an enormous level of performance at that time. Alex von Falkenhausen, BMW´s Formula 2 project manager and engine designer Paul Rosche decided to change the design of the engine´s cylinder head for the 270 type at the beginning of 1970. After Gerhard Mitter´s tragic death caused by a broken steering at the Formula 2 round of the 1969 German Grand Prix held at the Nuerburgring-Nordschleife, Ferrari works driver and 1967 European Formula 2 Champion (in a Tyrrell Matra Ford) Jacky Ickx from Belgium joined the team of Bavarian Motor Works.
1970 became the greatest season for the 100% BMW Formula 2 car. Hubert Hahne scored his and BMW´s maiden victory in front of their home crowd on the high speed track of Hockenheim. Jo Siffert was able to beat nearly the complete Grand Prix elite in French Rouen, Ickx won the Austrian rounds in Salzburg and on the air-field of Tulln-Langlebarn near Vienna. The most spectacular triumph was scored by Austrian driver Dieter Quester at the last round of the championship, once again held at Hockenheim. At the end of this slipstream battle Quester was able to brake out Swiss Tecno Ford driver and 1970 European Formula 2 Champion Clay Regazzoni at the entrance of the Motodrom stadium, but both cars collided to go off the track into the grass. Quester used a service road for getting back to the track quicker and scored his first Formula 2 victory. (For more informations about that race click here !). Later that year Quester also won the Grand Prix of Macau in the narrow streets of the Portuguese colony in China.
The future looked very bright after the 1970 season and so it was a real shock, that the BMW board of directors decided to retire their works cars from Formula 2 in winter 1970/71. But Quester, his father-in-law von Falkenhausen and engineer Rosche, head of the engine shop, remained together for 1971. Under the roof of German caravan manufacturer Eiffelland a March chassis was brought to the tracks, powered by a BMW engine, that was continuously developed to become the strongest engine of that year with up to 260 horse powers. Quester won the Lottery Grand Prix of Monza and scored five second places in the rounds of the European Formula 2 Championship. That brought him up to 3rd place in the final standings of 1971. The increase of the engines´ cubic capacity to 2.0 litres made BMW come to a one year´s break. At the beginning of 1972 they started developing their new 2000 cc unit. The testing began during the 1972 season first with a private entered 2 litre Chevron sportscar of Dieter Quester, that also was driven by German Grand Prix driver Rolf Stommelen and Dutch sports and touring car specialist Toine Hezemans. After being very successful with that sportscar, BMW signed a contract with March Engineering Ltd. to become their official engine supplier from 1973 on. During the winter of 1972 & 1973 the 2.0 litre Formula 2 engine got it´s final development in a March 735 sportscar in the Springbok Series in South Africa driven by Niki Lauda and Jody Scheckter.
The
first BMW was the 267 with a Lola chassis and an engine designed
by
Austrian engineer Apfelbeck in 1967.
The
269 had got an aluminum monocoque constructed by air-craft
company
Dornier and an engine designed by German engineer Paul Rosche.
The
beautiful looking BMW 270 of 1970 with a Dornier chassis and a
domestic
made engine again designed by Rosche.
Graphics: project * 2000
© 2002 by researchracing