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We have a list of new exciting facts that we want to share with you about one of the kingpins of the automotive industry who with its round blue and white logo was able to carve its name into the minds of every automotive enthusiast
We’re talking about Bavarian motor works or BMW the world’s second most valuable brand at an estimated value of 27 billion dollars from its headquarters in the German state of Bavaria BMW took off one century ago in 1917 under its previous name Rapp motors which produced airplane engines during the first world war today the brand generates north of 90 billion euros per year in sales revenues with that being said.
Here are 15 things you didn’t know about BMW
1: BMW Built An Airplane Engine For The German Air Force In World War 1:
During the war, there was a need for airplane engines on the German side so a small company called arap motors merged with airplane maker Otto Burke in order to satisfy war needs the engines they made were called the greatest engine in World War 1 by the legendary German fighter Manfred von Richthofen popularly known as the Red Baron.
Rapp motor van Burke GmbH the aircraft engine manufacturer that resulted from this merger underwent several other mergers and changes to become in the end BMW AG.
2: The Treaty of Versailles Is The Reason BMW Got Into Cars In The First Place:
When Germany lost the first world war it was banned from producing any warplanes or war plane engines according to the Treaty of Versailles that was signed following the war since BMWs original business was producing war engines under the name Rapp motor and Burke its business was completely taken out it started to produce motorbikes at the same time but unsatisfied with being so limited it decided to diversify that is when it introduced its first car BMW 315 or as it was first named the dixie 315 it was a hit at the time and remains to this day an icon of classic automobiles.
3: The BMW Logo Was A Blend Of The Rap Motor Logo And The National Colours Of Bavaria:
The common notion that the iconic BMW logo is a spinning propeller is completely false when bwf was founded Rapp Motors was one of its main constituents when bwf turned into BMW in the year 1917 the Rapp motor logo was adopted along with the blue and white colours of the German state of Bavaria where the company was and still is based.
4: BMW Made The 1937 Record For The Fastest Motorcycle In The World:
Another iconic vehicle of BMWs was the aerodynamically deft and supercharged motorcycle that ran at 173 points seven miles per hour at that time such speed was a breakthrough in the automotive industry although the bodywork covered the rider and so a rider would be almost trapped in it in case of emergency it was still the fastest in its realm and is still remembered as one of the epic inventions of BMW.
5: The Most Expensive BMW Vehicle Is The Nazca M12:
Topping all the price tags ever put on a BMW production is the Nazca M12 with an estimated value of 1.1 million dollars the reason we say estimated is that this car has been surrounded by an aura of mystery akin to that around the Batmobile designed in 1991 the Nazca M12 can easily compete with any other BMW vehicle with an advantage of 26 years of technological advancement with its v12 engine the nazca hits the 200 miles per hour mark and can get from zero to 60 in less the four seconds so basically this vehicle was built in 1991 for the future as for its price there is no official tag to be set on it but rather collectors speculations are what set the nazca’s price in 2011 a collector put one on the market at a price of 1.1 million dollars but the speculations claimed an estimated value for this car that reaches the three million dollar mark at times also it has not been officially declared how many Nazca M 12s have been produced but again the speculations say there are about three of these bad boys out there if any of you a lexer spotter Nazca M12 rumbling in the vicinity that would make for one hot video.
6: BMW Made Its First All-Electric Car Back In 1972:
BMW debuted this all-electric version of its extremely popular car at the time 1602 at the 1972 Munich Olympics however the breakthrough was faded out by the famous tragedy that took place at the event the car had 12 batteries and drove up to 19 miles at a time, it wasn’t exactly a marketable product but rather an engineering exercise it basically carved its name on the first steps of the electric car development ladder.
7: The BMW Headquarters Is Designed In A Shape Of A BMW Engine:
The BMW headquarters has the shape of a four-cylinder engine which is a vital heritage of BMW these four-cylinder engines have been behind the production of every possible fuel-efficient car since BMW introduced them it’s the same engine that went into the plane the legendary Red Baron said carry the best engine in world war one isn’t it just astounding how much history BMW carries.
8: BMW Designs Train And Airplane Interiors:
There is no end to BMWs ability to provide luxury not limiting itself to cars and motorbikes BMW makes breathtaking interior designs for some of the top Airlines in the world a flight on one of the planes they designed internally for Singapore Airlines would show you the true meaning of flying in also the BART system that is planned to be installed in replacement to some of the trains in San Francisco will include some of BMWs fine interior design.
9: BMW Produced Its Own Lamborghini Vehicle:
In the 1970s BMW and Lamborghini agreed on building a race car as a joint project the deal went that BMW would provide the engine and a few suspension bits while Lamborghini would do the rest in a moment that still counts as historic in corporate dealings Lamborghini suddenly pulled out BMW decided to go on with the project solely so they hit the factory and came up with a legendary M1 the first in BMWs M series.
10: BMW produces Mini Cooper and Rolls-Royce Cars:
The automotive industry is one of the most vital industries you can come across one day this brand is with this company the next it’s with that company and it’s pretty tough to keep track in 1994 BMW acquired the MINI brand and 2 years later in 2002 it completely acquired the Rolls-Royce brand so that means that two of the biggest and most popular British car brands are actually made in Germany BMW had to pay 40 million dollars just for the rights to Rolls Royces iconic Spirit of Ecstasy hood ornament.
11: BMW Almost Became Part Of Mercedes in the 1950s:
BMW was about to go bankrupt in 1959 due to various reasons including the Cold War who else would make use of such a situation but its arch-nemesis Mercedes seeing the opportunity ripe to contain its rival Mercedes as parent company Daimler Benz decided to take over BMW BMW was determined not to let that happen so they decided to fight back people from each and every level of employees in the BMW organisation started buying back the shares a man named Herbert Quandt was able to save them by raising his shares to 50% and his family still owns a large portion of BMW it would not have been fun to lose the BMW Mercedes lovers a rivalry because of this takeover.
12: BMW Didn’t Design Its First Car:
The first BMW car the dixie was actually an English Austin it was built by Bantam in the US and Bide at Sun in Japan when Austin designed the car it intended for it to be used under license by various dealerships around the world we can say that BMW was the top dog among its global competitors.
13: BMW Parts Can Be Transferred From One Vehicle To Another Without Any Trouble:
BMW cars are considered similar to Legos since you can take apart from a BMW car and put it in another car from a completely different series and it would still be compatible.
14: BMW Has A Tradition Of Getting In On The April Fool’s Act:
BMW started its April foolery tradition in the 1980s since then it has been publishing strange and often hilarious adverts, particularly in the UK on April Fool’s Day sometimes even BMW Canada joins in on the fun.
15: The Signature Front Face Grills That We See On All BMWs Are Called Kidney Grilles:
Whenever we see face grilles on a car we know we’re looking at a BMW the kidney grilles debuted in 1933 and since then they have become instantly indicative of a BMW.
Photo by Artiom Vallat on Unsplash
