classic cars - Driving BMW 507

classic cars - Driving BMW 507, Outside, it’s typically overcast but with a special menace in the air. Five classic BMWs of varying sentimental and financial worth are lined up like prized debutants at a ball: Z8, 2002tii, E36 M3 Cab, 840i and 507. Perhaps it’s the foreboding sky that convinces fellow journalists to skilfully sidestep the priceless 507 (900 000 Euros at last count), granting me the first dance.
Tentatively I open the door. It swings without the complication of a modern hinge and thuds shut again with practised precision. With the fabric hood on roof duty, it feels slightly cramped, but only because of the proximity of the upright screen and the selfish side glass. Slim seats and a sparsely populated cabin compensate. I’m confronted by an anaemic white rim and an all-black metal dash, punctuated by six ivory-hued knobs that long ago ceased to advertise their job description. I fiddle around under the seat for a lever, and slide it forward. Everything’s in super nick, and even though I realise BMW has more precious 507s squirreled away and that this one is driven regularly, I wind down the windows and nudge the indicator’s spindly stalk as gently as if I was playing baseball with a porcelain bat.

 A prod on the accelerator to lift the revs in stall prevention and I ease off the light clutch and point the 507V8 engine’s throb – a heady mix of Harley Davidson at idle and Wagner on cam – pulses through the tight cabin. I ask myself, ‘Has there ever been a better mid-range soundtrack on Munich's streets?’ Second slots home easily and the torque is instantly apparent. Finding third is trickier as the gate on the four-speeder is far wider than the six-speed ’boxes we’re used to today. Typically old school brakes require more heft than deft. Two corners in, and the indicator’s fused out. Somehow sticking your arm out the window in a 507 just looks less daft. As it turns out, taking gaps is easy, as 335s make way in quiet, patient reverence.
 
Year made                           1958
Quantity built                  251 (1956-1959)
Original price                  DM 26 500    
Technical data
Engine                           Eight-cylinder V configuration
Displacement                  3168cc
Bore x stroke                  82x75mm
Power output                  150bhp (112kW) at 5000rpm
Transmission                  Four-speed, central shift
Front brakes                           Hydraulic duplex brakes with servo
Rear brakes                           Hydraulic simplex brakes with servo
Dimensions (L/W/H)          4380/1650/1260mm
Unladen weight                  1220kg
Max. speed                           205kph

By: Wayne Batty