2001 BMW E46 M3 GTR

PTG American Le Mans Series “F1 Air”

CHASSIS#: 002/2001

ENGINE  3.2-liter S54B32 inline six-cylinder

OUTPUT  450 hp, 330 lb-ft 

TRANSMISSION  6-speed Hewland manual

CURB WEIGHT  N/A

BUILD DATE  2001

COLOR  Alpine White II

OWNER  Lance White

OWNED SINCE  2020

LOCATION  Cincinnati, Ohio

BMW’s 2001 season in the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) was rife with controversy. Prototype Technology Group handled road racing for BMW of North America, while BMW Motorsport also ran cars in the series, partnering with Team Schnitzer to campaign a second team of E46 M3s. This was not a friendly rivalry—the teams were siloed from each other, each out to prove they were the best.

PTG and Schnitzer each opened the season with straight-six engines but soon swapped to a monster: the V-8-powered M3 GTR. For 2002, the GTRs were banned, and PTG and Motorsport left ALMS. 

It’s all a shame, not least because PTG’s engineers had no fear when it came to massaging the M3 to get the best out of it. Chassis 002/2001, now owned by Lance White and used by PTG as a spare in 2001, wears PTG-developed aerodynamic components. Sleeker and more slippery, those parts gave the American team an advantage over its German rivals.

Naturally, the factory wasn’t thrilled; the GTRs were not meant to be modified after team delivery. White has both aero packages.

“I have a whole different set of bodywork,” he says. “When [PTG driver] Bill Auberlen drove it, he said, ‘This is the car we should have.’” 

PTG continued prepping and racing cars for BMW NA for five more years, but the writing was on the wall. When the E92 M3 entered ALMS competition in 2009, IndyCar team Rahal Letterman Racing took PTG’s place. 

Our display chassis raced again; it was put back into service for the 2005 Grand-Am Series, where it competed with straight-six power in the hands of Kelly Collins and RJ Valentine. When the car’s racing career wrapped, Valentine purchased the chassis and put it on display at his karting facility in Boston. White acquired the car in summer of 2020.

“It was such a game changer,” he says. “And then,when they kept winning you’re like, oh, this is almost too good, break-up-the-Yankees sort of stuff. I’d love to have a V-8 car, but the GTR chassis is as close as I could get.”