One of only 428 built
1939 BMW 327/328 Sports Cabriolet

Footnotes

Introduced in 1938, the 327 sports-tourer used the shortened, boxed, ladder-type chassis of the 326 saloon. The gearbox was a Hurth four-speed manual unit with freewheel between 1st and 2nd gears, enabling clutch-less gear changes at low speeds, while there were hydraulic brakes all round.
BMW's pushrod six had by now been enlarged to 1,971cc and developed around 55bhp in the 327, which could also be ordered with the 328 sports car's 80bhp engine at extra cost. The 328's engine featured an ingenious new cylinder head, designed by Rudolf Schleicher, which incorporated hemispherical combustion chambers and inclined valves without recourse to overhead, or twin, camshafts. Instead, the engine's single, block-mounted camshaft and pushrod valve actuation were retained, thus avoiding an expensive redesign. Two rocker shafts were employed, one situated above each bank of valves, giving the engine an external appearance almost indistinguishable from that of a twin-overhead-cam design. Downdraft inlet ports contributed to the motor's deep breathing, and its tune-ability made it a popular choice for British racing car constructors, most notably Cooper, during the 1950s. The 328 engine produced 80bhp, an exemplary output for a normally aspirated 2.0-litre unit at that time, with more available in race trim.
Deploying the 328's state-of-the-art engine in a more civilised and comfortable package, the 327/328 is relatively rare, with only 428 completed up to 1940 when production ceased. All chassis numbers commence '74'. Autocar magazine had got its hands on a 328-engined Type 327 Sports Cabriolet in 1939, achieving the highly creditable maximum speed, for a 2-litre car, of 156km/h while testing the BMW at Brooklands.

BMW Group Classic and BMW Historic Motor Club UK have confirmed that this car was originally right-hand drive and was delivered to the UK finished in black with red interior. The first owner's name was Gumbrecht and the BMW was registered in 1939 as 'KMF 647'. In March 1939 the car passed to John Alcock of Biddulph, Staffordshire, who had it serviced and engine work done by T&T at Brooklands at around 4,000 miles. Lucas headlights were installed at the same time.
At some point early in its life car went to the USA, remaining there until relatively recently. The BMW was converted to left-hand drive before it left for the USA, destined for a Mr Bloomberg in New York. The original (rare) RHD steering box is still with the car.
The '328' returned to Europe with a Mr Eckardt of Suhl, Germany and then was sold to Prague (still with its US registration document). The current owner had the car completely restored with specialists in Prague between 2017 and this year. Costing a fortune, the no-expense-spared total restoration consumed some 2,500-3,000 man-hours and was carried out with attention to the finest detail. According to BMW Classic, the piping on the seats and interior was original, and the latter has been re-trimmed in an identical fashion. In addition, the (very difficult) woodwork was completely renewed during the rebuild (photographs on file).
'74440' retains matching numbers, and the last three digits of the body number are found on body parts such as the doors, windscreen frame, etc (photographs available). Only some 170 'shakedown' kilometres have been covered since the restoration's completion and the car still needs to be run in.
A joy to drive, the BMW 327/328 is especially loved by the regularity rally fraternity on account of its unmatched combination - for a 1930s 2-litre sporting car - of a powerful engine and advanced chassis, suspension and steering.

One of the fastest and most elegant of pre-war sports cars, this rare and highly desirable BMW 327/328 is offered with Belgian registration papers, and over 100 photographs of the restoration.