1:18 BMW M3 – JPS Team BMW – Richards/Longhurst – Class Winners Bathurst 1000 Km 1987

Description

About the Car

The BMW M3 was introduced in 1986.  It is a high-performance version of the 3 series and has been produced for every generation since first production. The initial model had a coupe body, a convertible body was added later.  Since 2014 the M3 has only been in a sedan body with the coupe and convertible going to the 4 series. The M3 used an BMW S14 2.3-2.5 litre four-cylinder engine with a five-speed manual transmission.

The Bathurst 1000 is held annually on the Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia.  It is a 1000-kilometer touring car race first held in 1960.  The race winners are given the Peter Brock Trophy which was introduced in 2006 to commemorate the death of Peter Brock.  Peter Brock was the most successful racer, winning nine times.

A former Australian motor racing team, JPS Team BMW ran from 1981-1987.  The team was under the management of Frank Gardner, a former British Touring Car Champion and Formula One driver.  In 1987 he retired the BMW 635 CSI and replaced it with the BMW M3 powered by a 2.3 litre, 4cyl Formula 2 engine.  Six were built for that racing year.  Jim Richards and Tony Longhurst drove the cars with Richards coming 1^st at the Australian Touring Car Championship Class 2 and Tony Longhurst coming in 4^th at the Bathurst 1000.

About the Brand

BMW is a German multinational company, founded in 1916 as a manufacturer of aircraft engines. BMW

produces luxury vehicles and motorcycles. Its headquarters are in Germany’s capital, Munich,

and supplies the vehicles worldwide. A major emphasis of BMW is based on product innovation and

development, and quality and reliability.

About the Manufacturer

Minichamps was founded in 1990 as a die-cast car producer in Aachen, Germany under the name of Paul’s Model Art GmbH.   The original company was the Danhausen, a trade company that made 1:43 scale models and sold them over the counter and mail order.  From 1971 to 1993 the company published the famous Danhausen World Model Car Book.  Danhausen was owned by the grandsons of Emma Danhausen – Hans Peter and Paul Gunter Lang.  There was a dispute between the brothers in the late 1980’s.  That is when Paul formed the Paul’s Model Art.  Diecast models were made more for the adult clientele and holding their value was a big question that needed to be answered.  Minichamps’ excellent quality has been noticed by Mercedes-Benz, Audi, Porsche, Volkswagen, Opel, and BMW.