Germany · First shown in 1955 · individual production from late 1956 · revised Series II followed in 1957

BMW 507 Series I

An aluminium two-seat roadster wrapped BMW's light-alloy V8 in a shape drawn for an international luxury audience.

Sports cars

Exterior · Photo shows Documented 1957 BMW 507 Series I survivor with factory hardtop; exact early-series identity but one year later than the 1956 profile. representative-or-limited
BMW_507_Serie_I_Roadster_(1957)_(52561204385).jpg · Charles from Port Chester, New York · CC BY 2.0

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A matching completed auction sale has not been verified for this exact year, body, trim, engine, transmission and market.

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A place in vehicle history

More than a set of wheels.

BMW showed the 507 publicly at Frankfurt in September 1955 and built it individually from late 1956. U.S. importer Max Hoffman had encouraged BMW to create a glamorous roadster, while designer Albrecht Graf Goertz gave it a low aluminium body and a new interpretation of BMW's kidney grille. This profile stops at the early Series I arrangement: BMW says a revised second series arrived in 1957 with a fuel flap at the rear right and a higher dashboard better suited to a radio.

Look a little closer.

Each aluminium body was hand-finished, so two surviving 507s can show tiny differences even when they belong to the same series.

Photos show an example of the model or generation. The pictured vehicle’s year, equipment, or modifications can differ from the specification described here.

A design brief that crossed the Atlantic

BMW's archive connects the project to American importer Max Hoffman, but the car was engineered and built in Germany. Goertz's body translated that export ambition into a shape with a low waist, vertical kidney grille and side vents that became the 507's signature.

Source: BMW Group Classic · BMW 507 ↗

Series I is more than an early date

BMW identifies the later Series II by its right-rear tank flap and higher dashboard. That makes the original tank and dashboard packaging central to this 1956 Series I identity. Later-car photographs and cabin details should not be silently treated as exact matches.

Source: BMW Group Classic · BMW 507 Roadster ↗

Where these facts come from

Selected facts checked for this edition. Some source pages link to broader model families. Last reviewed 2026-10-01.

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