BMW Brings Back Classic Logo, Historic Colors for M Division’s 50th Anniversary

• For the 50th anniversary of the M brand, which started as BMW Motorsport, BMW will bring back a classic logo for some models as well as 50 old colors including Daytona Violet and Macao Blue.
• The “BMW Motorsport” emblem puts three specific semicircles in blue, violet, and red around the BMW roundel to represent how the automaker is connected to racing.
• These new old features will be available by request starting in January, and the first models built with the old logos will come off the line in March.

UPDATE 11/27/21, 4 p.m.: In the U.S., BMW will make the newly announced anniversary badging standard on its M division high-performance models including the M3 and M4, and it will be an option on M340i, M440i, and other M models. However, unlike in other markets, vehicles with the M Sport package are not eligible for the historic badging, a BMW spokesperson said today.

BMW is bringing back a performance logo from its racing past along with a large number of old-school paint colors to celebrate the 50th anniversary of BMW Motorsport. The actual anniversary date won’t happen until May 24, 2022, but when you want to look backward, it doesn’t hurt to start early.

BMW

BMW announced this week it will once again offer the classic BMW Motorsport emblem on selected models next year, but you’ll have to be the kind of person who asks for it. First, the new old logo will only be available by request. Second, you will have to buy a new M model. Whatever you choose, only orders for new BMWs placed starting at the end of January 2022 will be able to be outfitted with the new old emblem, and the first cars built with the classic logo will be built starting in March.

The new emblem—inspired by the classic BMW Motorsport logo—will replace the standard blue and white roundel on the vehicle’s front and rear and on the wheel hubs. The BMW Motorsport logo surrounds the brand’s standard logo with blue, violet, and red semicircle lines. This version was first used in 1973 on BMW Motorsport’s racing cars. BMW says the colors represent BMW (blue), racing (red), and the way the two are connected (violet).

On top of the trip to the history books for the way its new vehicles will look, BMW said 2022 will be an exciting year. Exactly what that encompasses has not yet been revealed.
“We have a great year ahead of us, which will be celebrated with unique product highlights and exciting performances,” said Franciscus van Meel, chairman of the board of management of BMW M, in a statement. “The M has long been considered the strongest letter in the world, and in our company’s anniversary year it is stronger than ever.”

When it comes to exterior paint options, BMW said it will reintroduce what it calls “50 iconic and historically significant BMW M paint finishes” on selected models next year. The list includes Dakar Yellow, Fire Orange, Daytona Violet, Macao Blue, Imola Red, and Frozen Marina Bay Blue. These old paint options will be available on some new options next year, including the first M3 Touring model and the M4 Coupé series.

At some point in 2022, BMW will also introduce the successor to the M2, and it will launch the “first electrified high-performance model in the history of BMW M GmbH.”

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Sebastian Blanco

Contributing Editor

Sebastian Blanco has been writing about electric vehicles, hybrids, and hydrogen cars since 2006. His articles and car reviews have appeared in the New York Times, Automotive News, Reuters, SAE, Autoblog, InsideEVs, Trucks.com, Car Talk, and other outlets. His first green-car media event was the launch of the Tesla Roadster, and since then he has been tracking the shift away from gasoline-powered vehicles and discovering the new technology’s importance not just for the auto industry, but for the world as a whole. Throw in the recent shift to autonomous vehicles, and there are more interesting changes happening now than most people can wrap their heads around. You can find him on Twitter or, on good days, behind the wheel of a new EV.