The BMW 530 MLE is the forgotten M hero

There are two things you should know about MOTOR editor, Andy Enright. The first is that anyone he’s met almost everyone worth meeting in the automotive industry. And the second is that he’s humble. Consequently, it shouldn’t have been a surprise to hear him regale the story of getting into the back of a unicorn BMW 530 MLE at South Africa’s iconic Kyalami race track.

What’s more, former BMW M boss Markus Flasch is up front with the man responsible for not only building, but also restoring the car he’s in riding shotgun. It’s not only yet another cool ‘Andy story’, it’s also a significant car. In terms of BMW’s renowned Motorsport moniker, this is genesis.

Yet, no one knew it at the time – the M1 of 1978 is often touted as the beginning, but its premiere was two years after the E12 530 MLE.

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Due to apartheid, South Africa missed out on a lot of performance cars. So, it made its own. And with BMW SA’s desire to go racing in the Modified Production series, 100 road-ready homologation specials needed to be built. Between 105 and 110 were made, with donor E12 525 chassis’ being plucked off the production line at the Rosslyn plant in Pretoria.

From there they were hand-built into the 530 MLE, with holes cut into things like the parcel shelf, C-pillars and under the seats to bring the kerb weight down to 1233kg. The nature of the modifications also means than no two cars are identical.

For 1976, the MLE was special mechanically, too. The M30 engine received a hotted-up camshaft, higher-compression Mahle pistons and twin Zenith carbs. Raw figures sat at 147kW and 250Nm (which is believed to be underquoted), while 100km/h ticked over in 9.3 seconds.

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A BorgWarner dogleg five-speeder took care of the gears, while a BorgWarner LSD put the power down through skinny 195/70 R14 tyres (wrapping BBS wheels). Bilstein shocks with firmer springs and discs all-round made it a competent steerer.

All the initial Paul Bracq-designed cars were white, while the tricolour stripes that are now synonymous with BMW M happened by chance. On the inside, Scheel sports seats trimmed in blue velour features along with a wooden gear knob and a Italvolanti steering wheel. Ultimately, it’s the VIN plate that gives away the four-door’s important status, reading ‘530 M’. Oh, and if you’re wondering what Enright thought of the 530 MLE. Apparently, it “smelt great”.

Winning ways

To say that the MLE was a racing success is an understatement. It won 15 out of 15 races in its first season. An extra 100 units were built on top of the initial batch, but they were watered-down versions.

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BMW 530 MLE specifications