Frua BMW-Glas 3000 V8 Fastback Coupé

Recently we reported about the history of the Glas 2600 V8 Coupé, which quickly became known as the ‘Glaserati’ thanks to its design. Pietro Frua had used similar lines for the very first Maserati Quattroporte. After BMW had taken over the small car factory of Hans Glas, Frua tried once again to sell a new design for a V8 Coupé to the much larger manufacturer. At the 1967 IAA (Frankfurt Motor Show), the BMW-Glas 3000 V8 Fastback Coupé was therefore presented with a significantly smoothed front end and a hatchback in which only the rear window serves as the boot lid. However, BMW was mainly interested in the production facilities and less in the model range of Glas. In addition, they already had a luxurious coupé in their portfolio with the 3.0 CS. Therefore it never came to a series production. Frua nevertheless exhibited the one-off car three more times. In October 1967 it shone in the limelight at the Paris Motor Show, in March 1968 the car was exhibited at the Geneva Motor Show and finally in 1969 at the Motor Show in Barcelona. For this last appearance the car had been repainted from the original silver-blue metallic to red.

After the Barcelona Motor Show the unique car was sold to an entrepreneur in Andalusia. He kept the Fastback Coupé until his death 20 years later. Afterwards a former employee took over the vehicle. He did an extensive restoration of all mechanical parts, which was only completed about five years ago. At the same time the interior was reupholstered and the body was painted in the original silver-blue metallic. In 2016 the current owner bought the Frua BMW-Glas and added it to his BMW collection. There the car continued to receive the best possible technical support. Now the auction house Bonhams is looking for a new owner for this extraordinary car during the Retromobile in Paris. A hammer price of between 250,000 and 350,000 € is expected.

Images: Bonhams