That's right!  It's the M1 - the forbearer of the great M cars to come. And the model upon which the more recent M1 Homage concept was based (see story.)

The M1 project began in 1976 when BMW wanted to get into Group 4 and 5 racing.  In order to satisfy homologation rules, the company had to build 400 identical cars in 24 months.

Production delays and changes to Group 5 requirements precluded the M1 from racing in the Group 5 series and instead it competed in a new class, the Procar series.

The first car was completed on July 10, 1978.  The 455th car was the last one produced, on February 13, 1981.  Three hundred and ninety nine of those cars were for the street, and the other fifty six were pure race cars.

The car carried a mid-engine six cylinder engine with 3453 Cubic Centimeters, generating 277 horsepower and 243 lb/ft of torque.  Weighing just over 3100 pounds, the car could get up to 110 kmh in 5.6 seconds and had a top speed of 162 mph.