BMW’s predecessor was an aircraft factory. They were established on March 7, 1916. They were initially famous for manufacturing streamlined biplane reconnaissance aircraft. As for the name of this company, it is BFW (Bayerische FlugZeug-Worke). ), "Bavaria Aircraft Factory", the company's founder is Gustan Otto, whose father is the famous inventor of the four-stroke internal combustion engine.
Gistan's high achievements in aviation made him have great ambitions to build cars. His later decision wrote a glorious page in the history of cars, which is influenced by thousands of cars today. I am a fan of the beloved German car manufacturer BMW.
On July 20, 1917, after Gerstein Otto retired, the BFW company began to reorganize. It was officially named BMW (Bayerische Motoren Werke). In English, it was the familiar Bavarian Motor Works. The car factory had The two new bosses, the first is Jacok Schapiro, and the other is Camilo Castigloni, both of whom will be pivotal figures in the future development history of the BMW factory. This big businessman was one of the shareholders of the Daimler-Benz car factory. In November 1918, when the First World War ended, Germany became a defeated country, and their aircraft were "defeated." The Treaty of Versailles banned production as a "weapon of war", and the BMW factory could not produce cars until 1923.
After five years of itch, BMW can finally work hard for the future. They first Sold the old factory building, then purchased the BFW factory and inventory, registered the BFW trademark, and the original BFW trademark is still in use today, and finally purchased the manufacturing rights of the Helios motorcycle factory, but later discovered Helios's motorcycles were useless and almost brought down BMW. Fortunately, their outstanding achievements in aircraft engineering, and the assistance of chief aircraft engineer Max Fritz, reversed the disadvantage and led BMW to brilliant achievements from the beginning. Beginning.
In 1922, BMW developed the first motorcycle engine. Although it was not adopted, it set an important direction for the car factory. Later, in Nuremberg (Nuremberg) Victoria- The Worke factory re-manufactured an air-cooled 500ml two-cylinder motorcycle engine and R32 motorcycle, and officially launched their business at the end of 1923. They specially produced motorcycles in Munich, and the R32 bore the BMW trademark. Motorcycles were sold on the market for the first time. In 1925, BMW began to develop cars, and the prototype was also built at the same time. It laid the foundation for its future entry into the automobile industry. At this time, the boss was eager to make an important decision about BMW's future. It is located in the city of Thurngia in the Eisenach province in northern Germany, where his industrial kingdom is located. In fact, he was producing cars as early as 1899, named Eisenach Transport Industry. The first car they produced was named Hua. Wartburg, later renamed Dixi. At that time, Dixi's car sales were not good, so it applied to the British Austin depot for the right to manufacture the Model 7 in Germany. It was officially put into production in 1927. Germany The Austin 7 model produced was renamed Dixi 3/15 DAI (DA is the German version). The Anglo-German hybrid model was popular with German customers and changed the car factory's vitality. In the eyes of this businessman, the merger of Exxon and BMW was the most important thing. The best opportunity for brand improvement was the merger of the two companies in 1928.
In July 1929, BMW launched its first car, which was a renamed Dixi 3/15 produced at the beginning of the year. However, experts do not agree that DiXi 3/15 is BMW’s first car. They believe that 303 It truly belongs to BMW.
How about without wheels? BMW's 3/15 was produced until the end of 1932, which lasted nearly 6 years. In March 1932, the 3/2O improved by the factory from the DA23/15 was born. It was equipped with a 782ml overhead valve type (modified from the L cylinder top) engine. The new car also used a new rear bracket floating axle. Suspension system, front and rear track 2,115mm. The new car begins to have its own personality and direction, and the braking power is increased from 11 to 15kW. In 1933, at the Berlin Motor Show in Germany, BMW displayed their latest model 303. It was completed with the assistance of engineer Fritz Peidler. The car evolved from the 3/20 and was equipped with a parallel 6 Cylinder, dual carburetors, cylinder volume 1,173ml, braking power of 22kW, high-performance two-door four-seat car. The front cover occupies half of the body. The ventilation partitions on both sides have the same design, separated by the center line, and the front and rear wheelbases 2,365mm, the cabin space is sufficient and comfortable. After the 303 type, it was extended to the 315, 319, 320 and 3231 types. The source of BMW's creation is continuing. In addition, it seems that BMW has a special liking for sports cars. After their improvement, the braking power of their 315 model has been increased to 29kW. It looks more like a sports car and has a top speed of 130km/h. This car is also known for its low fuel consumption and safety. It is famous for its ease of operation and ease of use.
In 1936, the 319 model, which had the same appearance as the old model but increased the cylinder volume to 1911ml, was launched. The power was increased to 40kW, the top speed was also increased to 140km/h, and the compression ratio was 5.6:1. 1937 In 2001, people saw that BMW began to manufacture the Touring Car market, which is today collectively referred to as a three-box four-door RV, and achieved success. It was a 4/5-door RV named Model 326, targeting the middle and upper classes. family, the 326 also uses dual carburetors and has a power of 37kW. This car produced 16,000 units, which was a rare number before World War II. Before the war, BMW's production line was in the factory in Asunli, while Munich was an office building and was only responsible for design and mechanical research. If we talk about the originators of BMW passenger cars, they are the 315 and 319. The ten-digit number in the BMW series often reflects its cylinder volume. For example, 315 represents 1.5 liters and 319 represents 1.9 liters.
In 1936, BMW's entire 4-cylinder engine design was changed to a 6-cylinder engine design, and the 309 model using a 4-cylinder engine was also discontinued at the same time. The 326 type soon became the main force of BMW's 6-cylinder touring car, which also included the 320 type (1937-1938) and the 321 series (1939-1941) that had poor sales.
The last touring cars before World War II were the 325 and the extended version of the 326 series. The latter was equipped with a 3.5-liter engine, but only 410 were built. During World War II, both Type 325 and Type 326 were requisitioned by the Nazis for military use. During the war, all civilian cars were stopped. But the most evocative before the war are the Type 327 and Type 328 sports cars. The most historic representative is the Type 319 with a unique sports car style. This car won the competition held in Nuerburg, Germany in June 1936, and even won in After the war, the car was still produced for a long time.
The 327 and 328 sports cars are indispensable for BMW's success. The bodies of the two cars are very slim, and the two-seat design is improved from the 319. The front and rear wheelbase is only 775kg, and the maximum power is With a power of 59kW and a top speed of 160km/h, it can be called a pure-blooded sports car and a BMW that can race at any time.
In the summer of 1939, the 325 sports car was launched on the market, making the "young" BMW even more famous. Unfortunately, the most brutal war in human history was being staged on the European continent. A science and technology center was established in 2001, using their advantages in aircraft engineering to prepare to bring this into the automotive industry. They are working hard to expand their research work on aerodynamics. They developed the system based on Professor Kamm's theory. A prototype of an extremely streamlined car. In fact, that prototype was recognized by the world as the first truly aerodynamic car design, making BMW's car design proud of its peers at that time. However, in a ruthless war, everything was destroyed. Destroyed. Split into East and West Germany In 1945, at the end of World War II, Germany accepted unconditional surrender. In addition, as a defeated country, the land was brutally divided and split into East and West Germany. Eisenhower became part of East Germany and naturally fell under its jurisdiction. ; As for the research center in Munich, all facilities were blown to pieces by the Allied forces. It will take several years to recover from this heavy damage. This is the second time BMW has experienced the war, but this time the recovery period will take as long as 7 years. It would take a long time before it could be put into production again. At that time, BMW's vitality still seemed very fragile.
After the war, the vanished West Germany was punished for launching the war. The citizens worked hard and silently to survive. At that time, West Germany suffered from severe shortages of materials and gasoline. It was the car factory that manufactured motorcycles and tricycles. It is imperative that they are consistent with the low purchasing power of contemporary German citizens. But people are eager to see BMW cars again, and all aspects are working hard to rekindle BMW's life. First, former BMW engineers revitalized the BMW automobile industry at the Baden Baden reconstruction factory and recreated the 328 sports car. In addition, the strange thing is that the British also love the 328 sports car and they can't wait for BMW to recover and develop it.
In 1945, the United Kingdom rebuilt the Type 328, and the Type 326 was also revived. It is also strange that the Americans also like the Type 328. They purchased the engine from the UK, redesigned the body and increased the power to 97kW. Then shipped to the US market for sale.
Before its full revival, BMW conducted aircraft engine research and development work for an American company for three years from 1945 to 1947. In 1948, enough funds were raised to rebuild a motorcycle factory. At the same time, the work of developing and developing the R51 motorcycle was started. With continuous efforts, the factory produced 10 motorcycles in just 5 years. So they can start running towards their car dream again.
In October 1952, BMW finally started producing cars again. The car it manufactured was the pre-war 501 series four-door saloon car. It continued to use the 6-cylinder 2-liter engine with a single carburetor and a power of 48kW. As for other The equipment is brand new and has received unanimous praise for its performance and durability.
In 1954, BMW launched the 502 model four-door car, which was improved from the 501 model. It used a new V-8 cylinder engine. It was a breakthrough for the car factory after the war. After the recovery, BMW was determined to be in the luxury market. Build a career in passenger cars and coupes and motorcycles. BMW's action to revitalize the industry finally has a glimmer of hope...
BMW was founded in 1916 as an aircraft manufacturer. It began producing cars in 1928, and it was called Dixie at the time. During World War II During the period, the factory was destroyed and rebuilt after the war, and aircraft technology was applied to cars, thus developing rapidly. At present, BMW cars are on par with Mercedes-Benz cars in terms of quality, and even surpass Mercedes-Benz in many areas such as engines. BMW and Mercedes-Benz have both become the pride of German cars.