BRM was caught off-guard by 1961 regulations limiting engines to 1.5 litres. With their proprietary V8 engine not ready for competition, the team utilized the Coventry Climax 4-cylinder unit as a stopgap. This was installed in a spaceframe chassis designed by Tony Rudd, based on the 1960 BRM P48 Mark II. The chassis abandoned the single rear disc brake of the P25 in favor of a conventional two-disc rear layout. At 450 kg, the car was heavier than its British rivals, and the Climax engine was uncompetitive against the V6-powered Ferrari 156.
The definitive version of the car, the P578, retained the tubular spaceframe and suspension of the 1961 model but replaced the Climax engine with BRM's own V8. This new engine produced 190 horsepower and featured a Lucas fuel injection system. While its power output was similar to the Climax, the BRM V8 could reach 11,000 rpm—3,500 rpm faster than the unit it replaced.
A distinctive visual feature of the early 1962 car was its "stack pipe" exhaust system, consisting of eight vertical pipes. However, these were prone to working loose and were eventually replaced by a more conventional horizontal layout. The team also initially attempted to use a new Colotti six-speed gearbox, but reliability issues forced a reversion to BRM's older five-speed unit for much of the championship season.
Because a new model was not ready for the start of the 1963 season, the P57 was updated with a six-speed gearbox and a new injection system to remain competitive against the newer monocoque designs appearing on the grid.
In 1961, the car was driven by Graham Hill and Tony Brooks. It proved durable enough to last Grand Prix distances but lacked the pace to be competitive. The team did not score points until the fourth race of the season at the French Grand Prix. Brooks and Hill finished third and fifth respectively at the season finale at Watkins Glen, though this result was aided by Ferrari's withdrawal following the death of Wolfgang von Trips. BRM finished the year fifth in the Constructors' Championship.
For 1962, Richie Ginther replaced the retiring Brooks. The season developed into a year-long battle between Hill’s reliable P57 and Jim Clark’s revolutionary but fragile monocoque Lotus 25. Hill won the opening race in the Netherlands and finished every race of the season. The championship was decided at the final round in South Africa; Clark led from pole position and appeared to have the title secured until a late-race oil leak forced his Lotus to retire. Hill drove past the stationary Lotus to take the victory and the Drivers' Championship. With Hill winning three of the final four races, BRM secured their only Constructors' title.
In 1963, Hill won the Monaco Grand Prix—the first of his five career victories there—after Clark’s Lotus broke while leading from pole. Although BRM attempted to introduce the monocoque P61 during the season, persistent technical problems forced the team to revert to the P57 for the German and Italian Grands Prix. Hill and Ginther achieved a combined ten podiums, finishing second and third in the drivers' standings behind Clark.
The P261 succeeded the car in 1964, but privateer teams, such as Scuderia Centro Sud, continued to campaign P57s until the end of the 1.5-litre era in 1965.
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