In photos: BMW celebrates 100 years with special museum exhibit
Below are scenes from the BMW Museum in Munich, presently housing a "100 Masterpieces" temporary exhibit to mark the company’s centenary, in addition to a permanent exhibit.
Bayerische Motoren Werke started in 1916 as an aircraft company. A six-cylinder engine built between 1917 and 1927 delivered 185 horsepower consistently to 2,000 metres. Engineer Max Friz designed the innovative engine to be “over-sized and over-compressed”.Tom Maloney/The Globe and Mail
Launched as a maker of aircraft materials on March 7, 1916, BMW had to diversify after the First World War, as the Treaty of Versailles banned airplane manufacturing in Germany. In 1923, the R 23 became the first motorcycle to be manufactured with a twin-cylinder Boxer engine, gearbox bolted to the engine and power transmission along the shaft opposed to a chain or belt. The design holds to present day.Tom Maloney/The Globe and Mail
Roadsters gallery: 1936 328 (green), 1930 3/15 PS (off-white), 1988 M Z1 (red), 1996 Z3 (blue), 1999 Z8 (silver). The 328 is from the original model year. The 3/15 was named after a castle above the town of Eisenach. Engineers would bump horsepower in its 750-cc, four-cylinder engine to 18 from 15 by using a copper induction manifold and twin exhaust. There’s a bench seat for two, clutch, brake, accelerator, wood steering wheel and not much else. Its unique design features a rectangular grille in front and a rear moulded in the form of a submarine.Tom Maloney/The Globe and Mail
Housed in the BMW Museum’s bowl, on the left-front is a black 328 Roadster from 1937. It’s paired with a 328 Hommage, presented at the Villa D’Este in 2011 to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the 328. The motorcycles are a R9T and R 35, the latter built between 1937 and 1940 with a four-stroke, single-cylinder engine generating 14 horsepower.Tom Maloney/The Globe and Mail
In 1940, BMW won the Mille Miglia, an open-road endurance race in Italy contested on 24 dates until 1957. To this day, the company considers the overall victory by the touring coupe to have been a historic stepping stone into motorsports. For the race, the company produced five silver cars -- two coupes, three roadsters -- based on the 328. They featured light tubular frames, aerodynamically designed aluminum bodies and engines capable of 135 horsepower.Tom Maloney/The Globe and Mail
BMW struggled to make a profitable car following the Second World War (1939-46). In 1961, the BMW 1500, a four-door mid-range saloon, launched the pivotal “New Class” of cars, breathing life into automotive operations for the first time since the 1930s. It ran on four cylinders, generated 80 horsepower and needed high-test gasoline. Two years later, the company had returned to profitability and the slogan, “the ultimate driving machine” would appear. In 11 years, BMW sold 350,000 New Class cars.Tom Maloney/The Globe and Mail
The 3.0 Coupe, one of the first to pair the dual headlamp and dual kidney grille, was manufactured between 1971 and 1975. The curator of the company’s museum in Munich describes it as “one of the most beautiful cars BMW has ever produced”. Meant to match a sporty drive with luxury feel, the 3.0’s six-cylinder engine could produce speed of 200 km/h, and inside the car had then-modern conveniences such as power windows and air conditioning.Tom Maloney/The Globe and Mail
The Turbo concept, inspired by the M1 and built for the 1972 Munich Summer Games, had a mid-mounted engine and gullwing doors. Also in time for the Olympics, BMW erected the shell of its “Four Cylinders” headquarters in Munich.Tom Maloney/The Globe and Mail
The 3 Series remains the bedrock of BMW’s automotive business, selling more than any other vehicle. The Museum is displaying the 1981 323i, 1986 325i, 1989 325 iX, 1996 328i, 2000 316g, 1999 323i, 2006 335i.Tom Maloney/The Globe and Mail
The Mini dates to 1956 as a small four-seater targeted to the British middle classes. It became a cult car three years later. BMW received rights to the car in 1994 with its takeover of the Rover Group, and presented the new Mini at the Paris Motor Show in September of 2000. Designer: Frank Stephenson.Tom Maloney/The Globe and Mail
James Bond’s vehicle of choice in the 1995 film Golden Eye, the Z3 Roadster would be manufactured exclusively in the United States, at the Spartanburg plant. With engineering based on the 3 Series, it had a range of engines producing up to 325 horsepower. BMW produced 300,000 Z3s.Tom Maloney/The Globe and Mail
The X Coupe, a concept brought to the Detroit auto show 15 years ago, is on the fifth platform of the 100 Masterpieces temporary exhibit, along with, among other vehicles a s1000rr motorcycle, an i3 electric vehicle, the 2012 Dakar Rally champ Mini Countryman and a Rolls-Royce. In 1999, anticipating a move away from minivans, the company introduced the X5, its first in the sports activity vehicle segment. Today in Canada, there are five models in the X lineup, the 1-3-4-5-6.Tom Maloney/The Globe and Mail