Rare 1968 BMW 1600 GT (w/ startup)

A rare 1968 BMW 1600 GT starting up and driving after Cars & Coffee at Singleton Classics. Based on the Glas 1300 GT and 1700 GT designed by Pietro Frua and produced by Maggiora, the 1600 GT was built by BMW after it acquired Hans Glas GmbH in 1966. It is powered by a 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine from the BMW 1600 and features improved suspension and updated bodywork with BMW's "twin kidney" grille and round taillights. This fully restored example, finished in its original shade of Granada Red, is one of 1,259 BMW 1600 GTs built from 1967 to 1968, none of which were officially sold in the United States. It is currently listed for sale at Singleton Classics with a price of $98,900.

Here's a Bimmer most people have never heard of. And that's because it started life as a car built by a company that even fewer people have heard of. I tried looking it up on Google and was repeatedly redirected to BMW's better-known and similarly named K 1600 GT motorcycle. I assume whoever named the bike either didn't know the car existed or didn't care about making it even harder to look up such an obscure model. The 1600 GT is one of the rare cases in which BMW built a car largely based on an existing model from another company. But it isn't just a Glas with a kidney grille slapped on the front thanks to the BMW engine and upgraded suspension. This car was eventually dropped from the lineup as BMW focused on building and improving its own models. But it represents a little-known part of the Bavarian automaker's history and a unique combination of Italian design and German engineering.

Would you pay $98,900 for this rare BMW? Leave a comment on YouTube and let me know!