This ‘prototype’ 850 CSi is up for auction

Here’s a fun Friday question for you: how many people have raced in the highest echelons of two- and four-wheeled motorsport? Not testing, not ‘in talks’, not swapping machines for some kind of promotional stunt – bona fide qualifying and competing in both motorcycle and Formula One grands prix. We count three. Three. John Surtees, Mike Hailwood, and Johnny Cecotto. Seriously, more people have been to the moon. 

We’re guessing that most of you have heard of the first two, but perhaps may have overlooked Cecotto. Much like, to draw a pretty large bow, BMW’s early-Nineties, V12-powered grand touring sports car. 

After all, the 850 CSi had a 5.6-litre version of BMW’s first-ever V12, with a patent-leather smooth 380bhp and 400lb ft. This meant that even with a six-speed manual, the truly beefy 850 CSi could run the nought to 60 dash in less than six seconds. And while we’re fans of the E31 in general, road-going 8 Series never looked as good as the CSi.

But for whatever reason (the recession probably had something to do with it), only 1,510 CSis ever found their way to customers, and the S70B56 engine that powered them would become one of the rarest BMW engines ever made. A fact we’re sure won’t be overlooked when this CSi comes up for sale at RM Sotheby’s upcoming Munich auction in November.

Pulled from the production line as a ‘development vehicle’ – mmm, sure you didn’t just pluck one to drive around yourselves, guys? – this particular CSi is a wonderful reminder that in the Nineties, you really had to try to make a BMW ugly. Those mustard-yellow interiors were... something else. 

And, finding another largish bow to draw, so was Cecotto. In 1975, at just 19, he won the 350cc Grand Prix championship – and came fourth in the 250cc division. This was back when the GP had five separate categories – 125, 250, 350 and 500cc, as well as a separate one for sidecars. A different time, no? 

In 1980, two years after his second and final world championship, Cecotto retired from motorcycle racing at just 24 years old... and immediately finished equal first in Formula Two. Moving up to Formula One was a fairly logical step, then, where he scored points in his second-ever race. Oh, and was teammate to some dude called Ayrton something or other. 

Well, he was, right up until he broke both legs during qualifying for the British Grand Prix in 1984, ending his F1 career. Clearly all done with racing, Cecotto... er, took second place at both the Spa 24 Hours and the Bathurst 1000 in 1985. And then just kept racing. 

Wins in both the Spa and Nurburgring 24 Hours followed in the Nineties – two decades after his first racing victories – as well as a series of touring car wins in various divisions, all the way through to the early 2000s. 

Somewhere in the Nineties – likely not far away from wins at two of the world’s biggest endurance events – Cecotto bought this 850 CSi and had it shipped to his home country, Venezuela. And, as we’ve just pointed out, he clearly had one or two things going on elsewhere, because this 32-year-old, stone-cold classic has just 8,700km on the odometer. That’s not even 5,500 miles. 

Which means Cecotto’s race distance in any given year is more than the total odometer reading on a three-decade-old car. Then again, when it comes to total race distance, we’re pretty sure Cecotto could have gone to the moon and back by now.