History of BMW

BMW:  Bayerische Motoren Werke (OR) English - Bavarian Motor Works

The Founder of BMW  - Karl Friedrich Rapp

   BMW is a German auto mobile company. BMW is a Motorcycle and engine manufacturing company founded in 1916. BMW headquarter in Munich, Bavaria, Germany.  In 2012, the BMW Group produced 1,845,186 automobiles and 117,109 motorcycles across all of its brands. BMW is part of the "German Big 3" luxury automakers, along with Audi and Mercedes-Benz, which are the three best-selling luxury automakers in the world.

   BMW AG is a German company and one of the leading manufacturers of automobiles and motorcycles in the world. Founded in 1916 and based in Munich (state capital of Bavaria), Germany, BMW is also the parent company of the MINI and Rolls-Royce car brands. BMW AG stands for Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft, or Bavarian Motor Works.

1922 - After the end of the war, railway brakes and inboard engines were manufactured following the prohibition on the production of aero-engines. After the company was sold to Knorr Bremse AG in 1920, financier Camillo Castiglioni acquired engine production along with the workforce and production facilities. That same year the company relocated to the production facilities of BFW at Munich’s Oberwiesenfeld airfield. 

1923 - BMW announced its first motorcycle, the R 32, in 1923. Until then the company had only supplied engines rather than complete vehicles. The basic concept of the original BMW Motor rad model – a boxer engine with longitudinally positioned cylinders and shaft drive – is so sound, that it continues to be employed in the company’s motorcycles to this day.

1934 - Starting in 1933, aircraft construction in Germany received substantial financial support from the government. In 1934, BMW AG hived off its aero-engine division to BMW Flugmotorenbau GmbH. Two years later Flugmotorenfabrik Eisenach GmbH was established jointly by the AG (public limited company) and the GmbH (private limited company) and the letters BMW were included in the name in 1939

1941 - During the Second World War, BMW was classified as a German armaments and war materials manufacturer, and devoted its resources almost exclusively to building aircraft engines for the German Air Force. Other plants were opened in addition to those in Munich and Eisenach.

1942 - BMW takes on its first foreign workers in 1940, employing them on the factory floor. From 1942, convicts, Eastern European prisoners of war, and predominantly Western European forced laborers are made to work at BMW alongside concentration camp prisoners. As in the majority of German industries, the company’s management has a technocratic approach and is focused on efficiency. The use of forced labor is tacitly approved and accepted. During the Third Reich, forced laborers must work in deeply distressing conditions. Today, BMW is painfully aware of the great human suffering caused by this, and deeply regrets the fate of the forced laborers.

1948 - The first BMW vehicle to take to the road after 1945 was the R 24 motorcycle, introduced in March 1948; it was a developed version of the pre-war R 23 model. Shortages of materials and machinery delayed series production until December 1948, but the sales success of the R 24 then exceeded all expectations, and 9,144 were sold in 1949 alone.

1951 - BMW's first post-war automobile was the 501, built from 1952 onwards. A large saloon capable of seating up to six people, it was powered by a developed version of the six-cylinder engine used in the pre-war BMW 326. As a luxury car, the BMW 501 was not a commercial success, but it none the less restored BMW's status as a manufacturer of high-quality, technically exciting cars.

1961 - BMW exhibited the 1500 model at the 1961 German Motor Show, and with it penetrated a gap in the market. This was the model that re-established BMW as a successful, modern car maker. The design of the four-door touring car immediately generates excitement, and orders far exceed production capacities. By 1963, the company is able to record a profit once more.

1967 - In the mid-1960s, the BMW Munich plant reached the limit of its capacity. BMW initially drew up plans for the construction of new facilities but then purchased crisis-ridden automotive company Hans Glass GmbH together with its locations in Din golfing and Land shut. Both sites were restructured and the biggest BMW plant in the world was created at Din golfing in the subsequent decades.

1972 - In 1972, BMW brings together all of its various motor racing activities within a new wholly owned subsidiary – BMW Motorsport GmbH. With the BMW Motorsport GmbH , BMW lays the foundations for BMW M GmbH.

1973 - Starting in 1970, BMW began to build an administrative tower block in the north of Munich. Its unusual shape soon led to it being described as the "four-cylinder building", and it is now a notable landmark in the city's architecture. The BMW Museum was installed next to it in a bowl-shaped building that has remained unique of its kind. The new building complex was officially opened on 18 May 1973.

1973 - Sales Director Bob Lutz initiated a policy at BMW to take sales responsibility for all the major markets from the current importers from 1973 onward. This responsibility was gradually transferred to dedicated subsidiary companies. France was the first country where BMW established its own sales company in 1973.

1987 - The Munich BMW plant was now only building the 3 Series and a decision to build a new plant in Regensburg was taken on 26 November 1982. This was intended to meet the growing demand for this model and relieve the pressure on the BMW plant in Munich. The foundation stone was laid in the neighbouring community of Obertraubling in 1984 and the Regensburg plant was opened in 1987.

1990 - In 1986, BMW brings together all research and development work under one roof at the Forschungs- und Innovationszentrum (Research and Innovation Centre, or FIZ) in Munich. It is the first automotive manufacturer to establish such an institution, which houses around 7,000 scientists, engineers, designers, managers and technicians, working together as part of an integrated team. The facility was officially opened on 27 April 1990. In 2004, the FIZ is expanded with the Projekthaus building.

1994 - BMW decided to build an automobile production facility in the USA in 1989. This move highlighted its position as a global player. The plant in Spartanburg (South Carolina) was specially designed for production of the BMW Z3 Roadster and opened in 1994. The Z3 was exported from Spartanburg all over the world.

1998 - In July 1998, BMW acquires a piece of automotive history. Following long negotiations, the company obtains the brand and naming rights for Rolls-Royce motor cars from Rolls-Royce plc. Rolls-Royce is held entirely by Volkswagen until the end of 2002, when BMW takes on full responsibility for Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, along with all rights. The new Rolls-Royce plant and a new company headquarters are then built in Goodwood, in southern England. This is the sixth facility constructed since 1904.

2000 - The realignment of Group strategy in 2000 strengthened the BMW Group and made it fit for the future. From the year 2000, the company resolved to focus solely on the premium segment in the international automobile market with the brands BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. The entire model range was expanded by new series and versions. Alongside the Sports Activity Vehicles in the X Series, the company also developed the first BMW in the premium segment of the compact class with the BMW 1 Series from 2004.

2001 - The MINI Hatch made a start in 2001 – and by 2011 the MINI family had grown to six model versions, with the MINI Convertible, MINI Clubman, MINI Countryman, MINI Coupé and MINI Roadster.

2007 - The BMW Welt opened on the site to the west of the BMW Tower in October 2007. This forward-looking building designed by Viennese architect’s practice Coop Himmelb(l)au forms the portal for the brand and the delivery centre for BMW automobiles. BMW Welt, the plant tour and the BMW Museum create the ensemble of experience presenting the history, reality and vision of the BMW brand.

BMW logo History:

BMW Logo

   From 1917, each of the company’s products proudly displays the BMW emblem, which incorporates the state colours of Bavaria. At the end of the 1920s, the emblem makes its first appearance in the company’s advertising as a rotating propeller – taking a form that will be used as the logo long into the future.

   The BMW logo consists of a thick black ring encircled by a silver lining. The letters ‘BMW’ are inscribed in a non-serif font in the top half of the black ring.  The gap within the ring is divided into four equal alternative blue and white quarters. The BMW logo, commonly known as "roundel", was created and registered in 1917. The created logo design is remarkably simple and projects an identity that is smart, clear, sporty and image-conscious. It is one of the most distinctive logo designs in the world, speaking highly of a brand-led company. The 1929 Dixi was the first vehicle to carry the famous BMW logo. The BMW logo has been altered very rarely and minutely and has maintained its original look throughout the company's history. Here are some of the logos that have been used since 1917.

   One version of the ‘sky blue and white checker box’ BMW logo myth connects it with a shining silver/white rotating propeller that the engineers of BMW were working on. The other relates the BMW logo to Bavaria as the place where the products of the company are manufactured and with the national colors of Bavaria.

Engine:

   Digital Motor Electronics (DME) is a microprocessor-based system that controls the ignition, the fuel injection, the oxygen sensor and numerous ancillary functions. DME provides raw data to an on-board computer that uses an alphanumeric display to provide you with information such as the average fuel consumption, the distance you can still cover with fuel in the tank, an average speed, outside temperature and more.

DME operates by continually monitoring such factors as engine temperature, speed, intake airflow, exhaust gas composition, and even the altitude. DME then literally fine-tunes the engine hundreds of times a second to provide maximum performance and efficiency. DME has a fail-safe program in the event of certain electrical faults. Current DME versions also have on-board diagnostics (OBD).

How it's working?

   The two main tasks DME has to perform are (1) injecting the right amount of fuel and (2) providing a spark at the correct time. In order to do this, the system needs to know things about the engine's current state. DME can track dozens of different sensors, but every system needs to know three basic things: 

1.     how much air is coming in

2.     the position of the throttle, and 

3.     how fast the engine is running.

Anti-lock Brake System (ABS):

BMW ABS Break system

   Even when applying the full force of braking power, the vehicle remains under your complete control thanks to the Anti-lock Brake System. It uses precise regulation of the braking pressure on the individual wheels to ensure that the vehicle can always be steered easily. ABS prevents the wheels from locking, regardless of the road surface’s friction coefficient and the applied brake pressure.

   Unexpected obstacles on the lane ahead, a pedestrian suddenly stepping on the road, an abrupt change in traffic or driving conditions: there are many moments when a driver reacts quickly with intense application of the brakes.
At these moments, ABS assists the driver by preventing the wheels from completely locking and applying the optimum braking pressure to the individual wheels, thus ensuring the vehicle can still be steered and shortening braking distances on slippery surfaces. The driver may sense that ABS is functioning by the slight pulsing movement of the brake pedal.
   ABS regulates the force of brake pressure on each wheel to provide both maximum braking effectiveness while still allowing the wheel to continue rotating in a controlled way. If the system recognizes that a wheel is locked or almost locked, it momentarily reduces the brake force, letting the wheel rotate, regain traction and thus allowing the vehicle to be steered.
   ABS then reapplies the brake pressure. Thanks to modern electronics and intelligent control algorithms, ABS does this with such remarkable speed and smoothness that both braking and steering are simultaneously effective throughout the braking process - and the driver stays in control of the vehicle.

Feature:

   We can expect coupe, convertible and M3 variants of the new 3 Series in the next couple of years, most likely in that order. In 2014, we will possibly see the i3, BMW’s full electric city car, followed a year or so later by the i8, a sporty plug-in hybrid. Both use lithium-ion batteries and share materials technology that includes a carbon-fibre passenger cell and aluminium chassis.