This 1977 BMW M1 (chassis BMW 26E/1) is claimed to be the very first prototype built, and has been sitting in what’s described as a “dry barn” for 30 years. Now in need of full restoration, the car was converted to Procar spec at some point, though the seller seems to believe that it could be returned to original road car spec. Find it here on eBay in Bad Aibling, Germany with reserve not met.

Shown above prior to its race car conversion, the mess of spattered bugs and road debris low on the nose suggests it may have been performing some sort of reliability testing. We’re not able to identify who appears to be the test driver, but it doesn’t seem to be Lamborghini’s Bob Wallace. Many will recall that the Italian firm played a convoluted but inseparable role in the M1’s development.

Here’s the car today, wearing Procar bodywork and having been stored indoors for the past three decades. Though listed on eBay’s US site, the ad is (very briefly) written in German. We’re not 100% sure it’s legit, but the seller has all positive feedback and has been active for several years. A handful of additional, random snapshots are viewable in the listing’s full gallery, but their low quality and odd composition means they’re of little help. Whether this is the real deal has yet to be determined, but we’ll definitely be watching closely in the meantime.