Enjoy these gorgeous photos of the BMW 328 at the 2015 Mille Miglia

Italy’s most stunning road race in living color

The Mille Miglia -- the all-out race that ran between 1927 and 1957, not the modern revival -- is one of those events that we often catch ourselves imagining in black and white. This is especially ridiculous considering that the Ferraris, Maseratis, Alfa Romeos and Mercedes-Benzes that participated in the 1000-mile race were flamboyant sports cars often wearing vibrant paint colors.

Fortunately, the modern Mille Miglia provides ample opportunity to set the photographic record straight. Re-established in 1977, it’s now a time-speed-distance rally rather than an outright race to the finish, but that doesn’t seem to have made it any less photogenic.

The original Mille Miglia, we've just learned, was not actually conducted in black and white. This BMW was caught mid-corner at the 1940 race. Photo by BMW

It’s also a great excuse for automakers to dust off their vintage metal, as BMW did this year with a quintet of classic 328s. Though we often associate Italian marques with the road race, the 2.0-liter inline-six-powered BMW 328 has seen a fair amount of success in the event; a 328 won its class in 1938 and was the outright victor in 1940. Further, the 1940 car went on to win the 2004 Mille Miglia -- the only car to date that has triumphed in both incarnations of the race.

There's a time-speed-distance competition element to the new Mille Miglia, but we see it mostly as an excuse to hold a giant moving car show. Photo by BMW

For the 2015 Mille Miglia, BMW fielded the following teams. None managed to carve out a spot on the podium, but it looks like everyone was having too much fun to care. See if you can spot them in the above gallery, which is chock-full of stunning photos in living color:

Ian Robertson and Jim Holder, BMW 328 Berlin-Rome Touring Roadster, number 133

Alexander Bilgeri and Scott Hughes, BMW 328 Mille Miglia Roadster, number 146

Ulrich Sanne and Wang Wei, BMW 328, number 125     

Peter van Binsbergen and Wolfgang Wieland, BMW 328, number 123     

Sergio Solero and Michele Lupi, BMW 328, number 132

No Instagram filter necessary. Photo by BMW

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