The DTM (Deutsche Tourwagen Masters) is one of the world’s most important touring car races. It is hard to find a more prestigious event of its kind in Germany. It was in the DTM that the drivers who later became famous in Formula 1 – Ralf Schumacher, Mika Hakkinen or Robert Kubica – started their careers. The DTM racing series was initiated in 1984, with BMW as one of the six constructors involved in its first season. In 1995, the DTM ceased to exist for five years until the year 2000 when they announced its reactivation. BMW had to wait until the 2012 season for their return to this racing. But it was worth it, as they very soon realized. In the autumn of 2011, BMW announced that it was returning to the DTM, with Bruno Spengler, a Canadian racing driver of French descent, at the wheel. What hopes did the Bavarian company have for his return after almost two decades? It is difficult to know, although one can be certain that enthusiasm is the mildest word to describe the atmosphere that prevailed in Munich a bit later. One season was enough for BMW to win every trophy. We are talking about the manufacturers’ championship (BMW), the team championship (BMW Team Schnitzer) and the individual drivers’ championship (Bruno Spengler proved phenomenal). It really was a comeback!

What to celebrate if not successes? Such a triumph needed a unique way of commemoration. At BMW, it was well known that sporting achievements are particularly good for the image of car brands. There was nothing better to do than creating a unique BMW model to highlight the victory achieved. So, they launched the BMW M3 DTM Champion Edition on the market. They decided to limit the production to just fifty-four units – the number alluding to the 54 BMW DTM victories to date. To make the strongest possible reference to Bruno Spengler’s winning car, they painted each one in Frozen Black matt colour. They also ensured quite a few individual features common to all fifty-four pieces. A tri-colour stripe symbolising M Power run along the black bodywork, and a sticker with Spengler’s name adorned the side rear windows right next to the striking Canadian flag. Inside, the dashboard also features the winning driver’s signature and the number of the car, as befits a limited edition.

As part of the promotional campaign, Bruno Spengler travelled to many countries of the world accompanied by the M3 DTM with the number 1/54. If you did not have the chance to see the vehicle then, you can look at the photos and see it now. It was the promotional copy, originally belonging to Schnitzer, that fed the Bonaventura Classic Collection. Let the owner tell us himself how it came about.

– I received information that Schnitzer was liquidating its collection. My BMW colleagues told me clearly: hurry up because there will be a queue for this car. However, by the time the gates opened in the morning, Helmut was already there. I told him that this car had to go into the collection and that price was not an issue. He bought it cheaper than I expected. The odometer read 4950 km. I drove it a little, enough to get to 5000.

Driving this car is like driving the M1. Excitement mixes with fear of even the slightest damage. No wonder, given that the M3 DTM is in perfect condition, treated with respect and properly serviced from the very beginning. Everything here looks as if the car was bought new just an hour ago. Inside, the carbon trim really shows the number 1/54 and Spengler’s signature. You can eat off the floor mats, seats, and dashboard. Or rather, you cannot, although the sterility of the interior in theory allows it. The car came with the ZCP Competition package, consisting of black wheels, gloss black air intakes, a carbon spoiler at the rear and a carbon fairing under the front bumper. The 420-hp V8 engine allows the car to accelerate to one hundred in less than five seconds.

The official announcement of the M3 DTM Champion Edition came in 2012. At that time, the Company revealed that each car of this limited edition would cost €99000, or around $130000. The price included a BMW M Fascination Nordschleife course conducted by Bruno Spengler himself. If you think that the high purchase cost has scared off potential buyers, you are wrong. Such cars find their owners in no time, both when they are new and when they come back on the market afterwards.

He who said: ‘Hurry up, because there will be a queue for this car’, knew exactly what he was talking about. Taking a seat, closing the door, turning the key brings all the childhood posters to life. The engine roars again and the tyres squeal. But this time it is reality, not the product of imagination. The paper car from the poster hanging on a wall has come to life and pushes us into the arms of emotions we could only dream of years ago.

It is moments like these that, as they say, are more precious than money.