Here in this corner of the Home Counties, tailgating seems to be the order of the day, as does aggressive overtaking. Yet we are too chilled to care. It’s steamily hot in here, but everything else is cool. It isn’t every day that you get to drive a concept car.
This is a BMW 6-series, the prototype for a string of conversions that didn’t happen, but it was every bit the media magnet in its day. The Observer Coupé may not resonate in the here and now, but there was a time when it was considered cutting edge.
The car was conceived by design engineer Mike Gibbs, whose CV included spells in the defence industry prior to acting as an agent for freelance clay modellers. He formed the MGA design consultancy in 1979, a Coventry start-up that initially acted as a master model maker for manufacturers. A big-picture man, Gibbs was keen to make the leap to creating a one-stop shop for mainstream carmakers, taking a project from rendering to finished article. A show car would act as a calling card, and the idea for ‘Special Project M3’ formed in March 1982.
Gibbs envisaged a car based on a 6-series BMW,, was approached first. It would have been a logical fit given that Anstey had been something of a mouthpiece for car design and technology, having persuaded the publisher to fund construction of the Bertone Pirana in 1967. It also sponsored a stand at the British International Motor Show, which promoted independent stylists for much of the 1970s.
