1969 Opel Commodore With A BMW E46 M3 Engine

Heikki Mattila is the owner/builder of this 1969 Opel Commodore and contacted us to share about this purpose built race car from Finland.

Since this was built purely for racing everything in the car that didn’t help with forward momentum has been removed giving the car a weight of 2,396 lb (1,087 kg).

Looking at the car you can tell the body has been modified for racing. The fenders were flared to provide more space for wider tires and a custom front spoiler provide a lot more down force than this classic cruiser was ever intended to have.

The suspension is comprised of a customized Honda S2000 front, Mazda RX-7 rear, Ohlins shocks, H&R Springs and the car brakes thanks to Alcon calipers and discs.

Under the hood sits a BMW S54B32 inline-six from a E46 M3 with a dry sump oil system. The rest of the drivetrain is made up of a E30 M3 Getrag transmission, Tilton clutch, and Mazda RX-7 diff. If you would like to hear the engine run you can view the projects Facebook videos here (Facebook embeds are horrible).

While researching I found Speedhunters covered this project in a previous build state in 2012. Back then the car was running a BMW M20B25 inline-six.

Source: Racecommo Facebook page and Build Gallery (A LOT of nice photos) via Owner/Builder Heikki Mattila

Original: Engine Swap Depot