"BMW" looks like a very young company compared to some big brothers in the car industry such as Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Ford, Mercedes-Benz, Peugeot, Renault, Rolls-Royce, etc. They are reminiscent of Jaguar, because they all have similar historical backgrounds and temperaments; however, the BMW factory, which has experienced nearly a century of vicissitudes, is more mature and stable than the younger Japanese car factory, and its story is more moving and exciting.
The predecessor of BMW was an aircraft factory. They were established on March 7, 1916. They were initially famous for manufacturing streamlined bi-wing reconnaissance aircraft. As for the name of this company, it is BFW (Bayerische FlugZeug- Worke), the "Bavarian Aircraft Factory", the company's founder was named Gustan Otto, whose father was the famous inventor of the four-stroke internal combustion engine. Gistan's high achievements in aviation led him to have great ambitions to build cars. His decision later wrote a glorious page in the history of cars, which is the German BMW factory that is loved by thousands of car fans today. .
On July 20, 1917, after the retirement of Gerstein Otto, the BFW company began to reorganize. It was officially named BMW (Bayerische Motoren-Worke). In English, it is the familiar Bavarian Motor Works. The car factory has Two new bosses were appointed. The first was Jacok Schapiro, and the other was Camilo Castigloni. Both of them were pivotal figures in the future development history of the BMW factory. , and this big businessman was one of the shareholders of the Daimler-Benz car factory.
The defeated country
In November 1918, for the first time. After the World War ended, Germany became a defeated nation. Their aircraft were listed as "weapons of war" by the "Treaty of Versailles" and were prohibited from production. However, the BMW factory would not be able to produce cars until 1923.
Five years later. , BMW can finally work hard for the future. They first sold the old factory building, then purchased BFW's factory and inventory, registered the BFW trademark, and the original BFW trademark is still used today, and finally purchased Xilio However, it was later discovered that Helios motorcycles were useless and almost brought down BMW. Fortunately, their outstanding achievements in aircraft engineering, with the help of the chief aircraft engineer Max Fritz, turned around the situation. In 1922, BMW developed the first motorcycle engine. Although it was not adopted, it set an important milestone for the car manufacturer. direction, and then re-manufactured an air-cooled 500ml two-cylinder motorcycle engine and R32 motorcycle at the Victoria-Worke factory in Nuremberg, and officially launched their business at the end of 1923. , they specially produced motorcycles in Munich, and the R32 motorcycle with the BMW trademark was sold on the market for the first time.
In 1925, BMW began to develop automobiles, and the prototype was also built at the same time. It laid the foundation for future entry into the automotive industry. At this time, the boss had to make an important decision about the future of BMW in Thurngia, a city in the Eisenach province in northern Germany, where his industrial kingdom is located. , in fact, he was producing cars as early as 1899, and it was called Axon Transport Industries. The car they produced was originally called Wartburg, and later changed its name to Dixi. At that time, Dixi's car sales were not good. , so he applied to the British Austin depot for the right to manufacture the Type 7 in Germany. It was officially put into production in 1927. The German-made Austin Type 7 was renamed Dixi 3/15 DAI (DA is the German version). The Anglo-German hybrids who were welcomed by German customers gave the car factory a new lease of life. In the eyes of this businessman, the merger of Accenture and BMW was the best opportunity to improve the brand. Finally, in 1928, the two merged.
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 and was used in new cars. A new rear bracket floating axle suspension system is installed, with a front and rear track of 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 showed their latest model 303, which was completed with the assistance of engineer Fritz Peidler. The car evolved from the 3/20 , equipped with a high-performance two-door four-seat car with 6 parallel cylinders, dual carburetors, a cylinder volume of 1,173ml, and a braking power of 22kW. The front cover occupies half of the body, and the ventilation partitions on both sides have the same design. Separated by the center line, the front and rear wheelbases are 2,365mm, and the cabin space is sufficient and comfortable.
The 303 type was later extended to the 315, 319, 320 and 3231 types. BMW’s creative source 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. .
In 1937, people saw that BMW began to manufacture the Touring Car market, which is today collectively known as a three-box and four-door RV, and achieved success. It was a 4/5-door RV named The 326 model is aimed at middle- and upper-class families. The 326 also uses dual carburetors and has a power of 37kW. A total of 16,000 units of this car were produced, 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 numbers in the BMW series often reflect the cylinder volume. For example, 315 represents 1.5 liters, and 319 represents 1.5 liters. ．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 It has 59kW, and the top speed is as high as 160km/h. It can be called a pure-blooded sports car, and it is also a BMW that can compete 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. Sunnis became part of East Germany, so it was naturally under its jurisdiction; as for the research center in Munich, all the facilities were blown to pieces by the Allied forces. It took several years to recover from the heavy damage. It was the second time that the country had experienced the war. BMW, but this time the recovery period will take up to 7 years before it can 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 BMW's full revival, from 1945 to 1947, BMW did three years of aircraft engine research and development work for an American company.
In 1948, enough funds were raised to rebuild a motorcycle factory. At the same time, we began to develop and develop the R51 motorcycle. With continuous efforts, the factory became a motorcycle manufacturer in just 5 years. 10 motorcycles were produced, so they could start racing 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 industrial revitalization action finally has a glimmer of hope...