what's so important about this bmw grill why is a bmw car nicknamed the baroque
angel also known as the angel of death and why
do we think camilo castiglione should have been a poker
player we'll answer these questions and more as
we take a drive through the eventful history of bmw
it's now 1921. the bmw name no longer exists
the former employees including franz and max now work for noor
brems a.g now remember we mentioned it was going to get complicated the
companies now get shuffled faster than cards in a poker game and camellio
castaglioni is the master dealer we'll back up a bit
to take it from the beginning let's watch the play rap motors works is
flipped to bmw bmw is bought by noor brentz did we
forget to mention previously that camilo is the shareholder of noir brent's as
well then camilio castiglioni buys bfw
this is the company that bought gustav julio's comp
it's also the company that bmw supplies with engines for its helios motorcycles
camilo receives a letter of support from no other than fran's joseph pop
in which franz describes bfw as a dead factory in a town
that is unfavorable for industrial activities seems franz and camilo are
still in close contact with each other camilo buys bmw
company name and engine construction operations along with employees
production facilities and company logo from nora brimps camilo
transfers everything's to bfw the employees moving to bfw's factory
buildings camilo changes the names from bayer s floog's
work to bearesque motor and work and with
that bmw is back it's a winning card without doubt and
definitely worth betting on now that they are back in business and
have inherited the helios brand frans asked mass to assess the motorcycles
max says that the best thing to do with elaih's motorcycles is to dump them
into the nearest lake they agree that they will start out with some
improvements to the existing helios motorcycles but that max
will begin designing all new motorcycles the result
is the bmw r32 which is the first motorcycle to receive the bmw
bad the bmw r32 is a breakthrough in vehicle technology
it uses the boxer twin shaft drive powertrain layout
still used in bmw today what's so important about boxer engine
it's about the way the engine is mounted the cylinders are transversely
positioned sticking out of the sides this means better cooling and allows for
a more compact bike max becomes a technical director and bmw
begins its meteoric rise to one of bavaria's and germany's big industrial
companies now it's six years later bmw purchases
the vehicle manufacturing factory for zuk for brick eisen this is a pretty
historic milestone as it marks bmw's entry into the automobile industry
the eisennach vehicle factory is amongst the earliest car manufacturers they
produced their first car the wartburg back in 1898 the factory in
eisenhock becomes the birthplace of bmw's car manufacturing business
bmw's first car is the existing dixie model but it's not
long before bmw manufactures their first all bmw car the bmw 3-20 ps
then the bmw 303 is released it is bmw's first six cylinder car
and the first car with a famous bmw kidney grille
it's the least expensive six-cylinder car at that time but also
underpowered its top speed is only 56 miles an hour let's talk about that
grill a moment because bmw without the point grille would be unthinkable
radiator grilles divided with the center bar are not uncommon in those days
but designer fris fielder goes further to improve the aerodynamics
he actually splits the grill into two kidney shapes and then angles them
outwards to improve airflow the elegant design with the rounding of the top and
bottom grille at the logo position at the top of the arches becomes iconic
to bmw later the grille can be smaller because
it isn't the only element used to cool the engine
you can see this the bmw 503 then later the grille goes horizontal in the bm507
roadster this is the first car to feature
horizontally positioned intakes again there are practical reasons for
this design chain the bmw 507 has a very flat hood and the grille
needs to be larger to cool the v8 engine but it seems it will remain even when
its original purpose is gone the i4 all-electric concept bmw features
a massive grille that isn't used for cooling
bmw calls it intelligent panel and behind it are sensors to the car's
electronic driver's aim it's actually a pretty neat way of
incorporating the massive amount of sensors that will be needed for
self-driving cars in the future does that mean that we'll see the grille
get even bigger in future cars who knows but what we do know is that
the grill is unlikely to disappear anytime soon
the height width shape and position may change but those who see it
know at a glance at the cars at bmw back to our story
camilo is now having financial difficulties and sells the holding of
bmw to a consortium of banks later he flees
to san marino in italy during world war ii and hides there disguised as a
monk france enters a license agreement with
the u.s american company pratt and whitney
enabling bmw to manufacture two air-cooled radial engines
the expertise they gain allows bmw to produce its own
and soon it gains a monopoly for the production of air-cooled aircraft
engines in germany it also expands its aircraft
capabilities with new manufacturing facilities
this makes bmw a key strategic company for the german aviation industry
who have begun to secretly rearm the third reich's emerging air force
franz is skeptical of this direction while aircraft engine production
is good for the company financially it will make the group dependent on the
national socialist regime he will not be able to run the company
autonomously and autocratic and he feels it will suppress innovation he keeps his
distance from the party but joins in 1933 to prevent his removal as general
director of bmw then bmw undergoes a fundamental change
it becomes one of the most important companies in the german
armaments industry the german air force uses bmw
to conceal the huge increase in the volume of aero engines that will be used
to re-arm the loofah the german air force but the company
isn't able to meet the volumes demanded by the reich especially since production
is happening alongside the production of motorcycles and automobiles
so the government supports the construction of two plants known as
shadow or forest plants these are camouflaged right from the
start and employ forced labor a local group leader tries to
exclude france from the national socialist party
they accuse him of allowing his family to be treated by a jewish doctor despite
multiple warnings once again fran's compliance now it's
june 1940 franz writes to the chairman of bmw's supervisory board
explaining that there is a setback in aircraft engine production
the very existence of bmw could be threatened there are setbacks
production falls behind as the war progresses there are shortages in labor
and raw material and the factory does not meet the targets
franz is accused of refusing to perform his duty and of sabotage
he is granted leave of absence in 1942 but remains on the supervisory board
with little or no influence on the running of the company the war
ends franz is arrested by the allies because he is the title
military economic leader granted during the course of the war he
is designated as a normal member of the nazi party but
appeals and is finally classified as untainted
he attempts to rejoin the bmw board but is unsuccessful max ii resigns after the
war allied forces occupy germany bmw
factories lie in room and are dismantled the east german
facilities are lost behind the iron curtain when part of germany is put
under russian jurisdiction germany is banned
from producing vehicles or aircrafts greater than
110 cc bmw survives by making pots and pants from leftover engine parts
as well as small motorcycles motorcycle manufacturing is especially hard hit
during the war motorcycle manufacturing was relocated
to the eisennock plant for capacity reasons together with spare parts and
machine tools these are now behind the iron curtain
they might as well be on the move it's now 1948 the ban is lifted to allow
250 cc motors and prohibition on car manufacturing is
lifted bmw releases the r-24 it's almost identical
to its predecessor the r-23 which was released so many years
previously the chrome has disappeared due to
shortages it also needs to be produced more cheaply so the plunger suspension
isn't used it's relatively inexpensive and
practical for everyday life much cheaper than a new car which is the
only other option since the second-hand car market is virtually non-existent
in germany after the war bmw restarts car production
in the only surviving factory in munich the bmw
501 rules off the factory floor and establishes the image of bmw as a
manufacturer of fast innovative and luxurious salon
cars it's a completely new platform and meets
safety requirements that haven't even been made official yet the steering
column is shorter to prevent injuries to the driver during an accident
the petrol tank is under the rear seat which might seem obvious today but back
then petrol tanks were installed near the
engine it is nicknamed baroque angel by the german public but
it almost becomes the angel of death for bmw there
are delays in manufacturing and the car is too expensive for the
average german at the time the company is on the edge of bankruptcy
bmw scrambles for a way to recover it licenses the little italian isetta
and re-engineers much of the car to include a bmw one-stone their
four-stroke 247 cc motorcycle engine
the azada became a sensation because it is unlike any
car that has gone before with its egg shape and bubble windows
the entire front end of the car unhinges outwards to allow entry
and the inventor crash driver and passenger exit through the canvas
sunroof the car is not a typical bmw but it
sells and today they are amazing collectible
lights going for small fortunes then comes the bmw
700 another small economy car which successfully launches in august
but all this may be too little to save the company it's three months later
daimler benz puts out a bid to buy bmw