Wiesmann is back! And back using BMW engines. The niche German hand-built sports car company started in 1988 went out of business in 2014, but was then purchased by a pair of Indian investors in 2015. The investors, Roheen and Sahir Berry, were already Wiesmann customers and wanted to see the company continue its tradition, so they continue to work closely with the founders (brothers Friedhelm and Martin Wiesmann) and are keeping production in Wiesmann's original home of Dülmen.
Wiesmann is currently led by Mercedes-Benz veteran Mario Spitzner and on Tuesday the company inked a deal to source V8 engines from BMW M for its all-new sports car, which will be powered by BMW's V8 turbo S63 engine. The same engine provides 600HP in the new F90 M5.
"Signing this contract with our preferred partner BMW is a milestone for Wiesmann Sports Cars. In the pre-development phase, which has now been concluded, we worked together extremely well and we are delighted to be able to collaborate with our reliable top partner BMW Group," said Spitzner.
"Our co-operation with BMW AG is an important foundation for successfully developing and positioning Wiesmann Sports Cars," Spitzner said in a statement. "The exact date when the new Wiesmann model will go on sale will be announced at a later point."
Wiesmanns have been powered by BMW M engines since 1993 so the announcement of the latest engine deal carries on this tradition.
Wiesmann's resurrection will focus on reaching more markets. This means Wiesmann's latest cars will be offered in both left-hand and right-hand drive for the first time. The original company had planned to begin exporting vehicles to the USA by 2010, but poor exchange rates and the high costs of homologating for the US thwarted those efforts. This time around, we hope the cars finally make it to the US!
*Car pictured above is the Wiesmann GT MF5, first produced in 2009