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"\n\n If you recently heard something about BMW building a 328 Hommage and wondered why anyone is paying tribute to the entry-level luxury sedan in your neighbor's drive, you're probably not alone. That said, car nerds know that 328 was also the moniker for one of BMW's most successful race cars, a car voted as one of the 25 Greatest Cars of the Century by an international jury of auto journalists. So how did this car make it into the ranks of such watershed autos as the Ford Model T and Porsche 911?\n\n Well, by being one of the best racers of its era, for one. The 328 wasn't revealed at an auto show like most cars. Rather, BMW decided to take it straight to the track, giving it a dramatic public debut at the International Eifel Race at the legendary Nrburgring in Germany\u2014a race it won handily. Of the more than 200 victories the 328 racked up in a racing career stretching into the '50s, its shining moment came at the 1940 edition of the famed Mille Miglia, a thousand-mile race through the heart of Italy. In the 24-year history of the race, dominated by Italiano Ferraris and Alfa Romeos, it was won by outsiders just three times: each time by ze Germans, and once with the 328, which set the all-time race record with an average speed of 103.6 MPH\u2014this despite putting out just over 130 horsepower, or about 90 less than the supercharged Alfa 8C that won the previous race in '38.\n\n How? By being damned light: With a lightweight tubular space frame and the liberal use of aluminum and magnesium, the 328 weighed in almost thousand pounds less than the 8C. That, combined with superb aerodynamics, perfectly 50-50 weight distribution, and a pound-for-pound puncher of an engine, gave it superior traction and driving dynamics than its heavyweight competition. There wasn't a particular design feature or ground-breaking technology that made the 328 so good, rather a series of tweaks and advantages that made it simply the best car\u2014an all-around approach that remains part of the Ultimate Driving Machine's DNA to this day.\n\n The 328 Hommage, on the other hand, is a bit more flamboyant, featuring a sharp, angular body and an interior coated in leather and carbon fiber\u2014check out the dual iPhones serving as instrument gauges, for a kicker\u2014while still preserving the circular headlamps and \"kidney\" grille of its ancestor. And, by upgrading to cutting-edge carbon fiber throughout its construction, the Hommage manages to have nearly the same curb weight despite the bigger dimensions. How much power lies behind the prettiness is unspecified; but given that it's a passenger or two short of a Lotus Elise, we'd guess the power-to-weight ratio makes it plenty quick.\n\n Of course, such a thing would never make it into production these days\u2014like most concepts, the total lack of doors is probably the tip of the safety violations iceberg. Still, the Hommage is a blissful marriage of past and present, serving as a reminder of the beautiful things we could do by combining modern science with the cavalier attitude of the good ol' days...meaning, a reckless disregard for economy and safety. Good idea? Probably not, but it's nice to dream.\n\n"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.gq.com/story/car-of-the-week-bmw-328-concept>