Looking for a new set of wheels? Then consider this vintage BMW. Its USP? It was once owned by the late John Surtees, and it’ll go on sale for the first time at this year’s Festival of Speed.
The one-owner 1957 BMW 507 Roadster currently has a pre-sale guide between £2m – £2.2m and comes directly from the estate of the former F1 and Grand Prix motorcycle legend. When he acquired the car in 1957, Surtees was the reigning 500cc Motorcycle World Champion, and, according to auction house Bonhams, fell in love with the model when he spotted then-BMW engineering director Alexander von Falkenhausen driving one at Hockenheim. “He saw me looking at it, and said to try it,’’ Surtees recalled. “I came back thinking ‘that’s rather nice’.’’
The car was eventually gifted to Surtees by Count Domenico Agusta as a reward for his World Championship success (Surtees was riding for the Count’s factory team, MV Agusta), but because it warranted a high price tag of £3,000, both men decided to go halves on it. Surtees drove the elegant beauty throughout Europe, but early on in his ownership he contacted BMW to complain that his model wasn’t as powerful as the one he test-drove, nor did it have the same braking ability.
As a result, BMW carried out the required modifications and “breathed upon” his car’s V8 engine, enhancing its power and torque, and also invited him to carry out brake testing in Birmingham with Dunlop, who fitted his car with four-wheel disc brakes.
Surtees kept the car until he passed away in 2017, and now this 507 – complete with rare factory hardtop – will be offered at public auction in July. For all the petrolheads out there, this is an essential.
Want more car content? Check out the Speedback Silverstone Edition, the jet-inspired car your garage is missing,
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