Prototypes and Coachbuilt Models brings together the rarest, most unusual and often least well-known automobiles in BMW history — cars created as prototypes, small-series specials or in cooperation with independent coachbuilders. These are models that did not follow the normal logic of series production, but instead reflected experimentation, design boldness and technical exploration. It is through such cars that one can see the side branches of BMW history — ideas and forms that sometimes remained one-off exercises, yet still reveal much about the development of the marque.
Within this category, models of very different background come together. It includes pre-war aerodynamic experimental cars, post-war small-series roadsters, special bodies created by Italian design houses such as Frua, Michelotti, Ghia and Vignale, as well as later technical and stylistic studies. Some of these cars were built as single examples, others reached limited production, but almost all remained outside BMW’s main production path. That is precisely what makes them so interesting, because they show which alternative directions BMW considered in different eras and how the brand’s technical foundations allowed for very different interpretations.
This page presents models that offer a strong overview of BMW’s most individual and experimental side. Whether they are aerodynamic studies by Wendler, elegant coupés by Frua, design exercises by Michelotti and Vignale, or unusual creations linked to the Glas heritage, together these cars form one of the most fascinating and collector-valued branches of BMW history. They are not simply rare models, but often windows into possible BMW futures that might have taken the marque in very different directions.
Click on the model image or name to open the gallery and description
