Intro: The roots of this proud German car manufacturer reside in the aeronautical industry. The company’s founder, Gustav Otto, was the son of the inventor of the Otto four-stroke petrol engine, and he used to manufacture aero engines, hence the blue and white spinning ’propeller’ design of the BMW logo.
In 1928 car production was started, the company having already changed its name to BMW, which was fast gaining renown as a motorbike manufacturer. Its first car was the BMW Dixie, which was based on the 1928 Austin Seven. Car production continued until the late-1950s, at which point Herr Albert Quandt became a shareholder in a company that desperately needed to be rescued. The BMW 1500 was the start of the firm’s renaissance and through the 1960s it developed its current strong image as a producer of impeccable cars of character and high quality.
The company acquired the assets of Rover Group in the mid-1990s, but it was an ill-fated relationship, leading to innumerable conflicts between shareholders and company officers, until BMW shed what became known as its ’English Patient’. However, it retains the rights to several brands including Austin-Healey, Riley and Mini. BMW currently produces the New Mini at the former Rover Cowley plant, in Oxfordshire.
With 23 production and assembly plants, 27 sales subsidiaries and a research and development network the BMW Group is present in the worldwide markets. |
