1973 BMW 3.0 CSL “Batmobile”
Schuco - 02197 (diecast)
Published 07/15/17
In 1968, BMW introduced the first of the so-called “E9 coupés”, the 2.8 CS. In 1971, the 2.8 was replaced by the 3.0 CS/CSi, but BMW needed a car homologated for Group 2 racing, specially for the European Touring Car Championships (ETCC). So in 1972 came the 3.0 CSL (Coupe Sport Leicht), that though visually looked exactly like the regular CS/CSi, because of a rigorous diet (aluminum for doors, boot and bonnet, thinner steel for the body and Perspex for side windows), was 136 kg lighter. In 1973 the inline-6 engine was enlarged to 3153 cm³, and with 24 valves and SOHC, it produced 206 hp (that could be tuned up to 300 hp). With the factory-fitted aerodynamic appendages, the famous Batmobile was born.
BMW only produced 39 units of the Batmobile. But at the time in Germany, you could not buy a car with such a huge external aero device. So to bypass the local laws, the iconic rear wing came loose inside the boot of new cars 😁. Crazy Germans… On race tracks the car was a success, and won five consecutive ETCC. With that, it’s the first of the long line of M performance cars.
A nice model from Schuco, but a mold that is showing it’s age. If I say that current Schuco models are Spark-good, I would say this older one is only Ixo-good. Definitively not Minichamps-good. Nice, but far from fantastic – look at the molded door handles. Spark also offers this model, but I didn’t find one in the iconic white that I wanted. I went the Schuco route, and in the end, though not a great model, I think I did okay.