100 years of BMW: The history of a global company

ultra modern and trailblazing technology innovation design and driving pleasure these are the driving factors that have made the bavarian manufacturer over 100 years into what it is today a global player moving confidently into the future [Music] to get there we need to go on a journey through time which begins in 1916. [Music] cars and motorbikes are the things for which the bmw brand has known the world over but its origins lie in the air bmw was founded to manufacture aircraft engines as early as 1917 the 3a engine was developed and presented immediately proving to be a good seller the young manufacturer is investing in a new market with massive business potential [Music] bmw historian manfred gronat knows the background to this it all took place during world war one which meant there was a strong demand from the military and that helped bmw to achieve a prominent position in the aircraft engine industry in the fluke industry become these early bmw engines are fitted on the fokker d7 biplane fighter amongst others a successor model to the famous fokker doctor one as flown by manfred von richthofen better known as the red baron for bmw engines were the starting point the basis of its business and today they are still one of the key pillars of the company aircraft engines not only form the foundations of the engineering but are also money makers in two world wars but engines also play a key role at bmw during the interwar years in 1923 the company decides to build motorbikes equipped with a revolutionary power unit the boxer engine [Music] is an expert on historic bmw vehicles and engines [Music] the special aspect of these two cylinder flat twin boxer engines is that the crankshaft is in line with the direction of travel so the force can be transferred directly to the rear axle via a carbon shaft and this principle is held firm up to today the most recent example is the gs 1200 which continues to be based on this fundamental principle boxer engines are therefore still very much in demand what started back then has continued up to the present whether it is an aircraft engine a boxer a six cylinder or now an electric engine researching and developing has been one of the pillars in the company's history part of the success story is the r32 which is simultaneously the founding stone of bmw motorbike engineering [Music] the dutch designers karol bayings and stefan scholten know the mood of the period i think they come from very dark [Music] periods and and somehow i think people in general come they came to life and that's what you celebrate in this decade being extravagant and showing your your identity with furniture with design or with your car was new and done very expressive so beautiful time actually aircraft engines motorbikes but one element is still missing in these early years the car today bmw produces and sells cars all around the world but in the early 1920s this segment still remained to be discovered as a business model the thing that bmw is best known for today is actually the last product to be added to its portfolio the opportunity arose in 1928 when the goto vaganfabri company was looking to sell its car production operations for example the production facility in eisenhower along with the facilities in eisenach bmw also acquires the license for cost favorable mass manufacture of an english small car initially the car continues to be marketed as the dixie and it is only from 1929 on that it is badged as a bmw the car era has now definitely begun for the company and sales are good the company sells 27 000 vehicles a very high figure for that time today bmw is a leading premium producer of cars their product range and sales are huge 2.25 million cars were sold worldwide in 2015. the early days of a few thousand cars sold per year are far in the past [Music] it's so nice to see this car like the landscape you want to drive there but it looks so sensual and round it's uh still very um an important aspect of the bmw brand in general i think it's all about the emotion and i mean the whole appearance and that's the reason why i said performance how you get in the car and out the car how you look how you dress everything should be matching and that's actually what it does a brand and using this type of car it's not it's not stopping with the car the 315 is not only sold as an everyday car but it is also used for racing it's a combination that will run through the company's entire history like a golden thread from that time up to the present sporty performance has been written large automotive historian wolfgang blaube knows about the racing successes of these early bmws because it was very reliable and very robust for example the two-stroke dkw with its 600 cubic centimeter engine were clearly faster but on the nubuck ring for instance they were quite commonly stranded after two to three laps with engine damage whereas the bmw 315 vacbook continued to put in the laps and masterfully won the 750 class time after time it is an era of records and not just on the roads in 1931 this rail zeppelin was powered by a bmw engine on its record run reaching a speed of 230 kilometers an hour one year later the same engine powers this flying boat on a flight around the world the plane covered over forty four thousand kilometers in two hundred and seventy flying hours after sheena in the luft and of the visits these successes also fuel the car construction segment the 328 launches in nineteen thirty six it is to become a milestone in automotive history in 1940 horschke von heinstein and vata buema win the millimeliana 328. overall four of the first six places in this race are filled by teams racing to 328 and bmw occupies a niche on the market as early as the 1930s the company was selling sports racing cars for everyday use on the roads and the success story continues there's a saying win on sunday sell on monday it's the best advertising you could possibly imagine in motorsports leaving the competition training in your work the product is the concurrence and the visual design too was groundbreaking as professor paulo tomenelli acknowledges this is the quality from the reaction the quality of the 328 in the sports version the car very much geared to efficiency was definitely that embellishment and superfluity we're dispensed with the focus is generally on developing a sports machine the 328 is also the first instance featuring the double kidney shape radiator open design although it looked very different from how it does today it is nevertheless typical and will remain a defining style element whether it's the 507 a design icon from the 1950s or today's i8 design has always been a pillar of the [Music] company [Music] in 1933 the nazi sees power germany re-arms and the military becomes increasingly important it changes every aspect of economic life in germany rearmament projects offer many companies a real commercial opportunity where they can profit and grow on a massive scale bmw 2 leaps at the opportunity if you want an air force you need aircraft engines and one of the major aircraft engine manufacturers at that time was bmw in other words from the mid 1930s bmw becomes an integral part in national socialist rearmament the nazis did ask for re-armament but the company itself participated in it and had an economic interest in selling to the luftwaffe [Music] aircraft engines are the specialist field of gerhard fishner aviation curator at the deutsche museum [Music] where the 132 was built from 1933 onwards by bmw for the junckers u-52 transport aircraft and the u-52 was then also used during the second world war as a transport aircraft the engine remained in production throughout the war in fact right to the very end [Music] [Music] thanks to aircraft engine production bmw grows very strongly but many of the predominantly male workforce are called to the front at first people try employing women to cover the shortage of labor only through using prisoners of war is bmw able to maintain aircraft engine production and can even triple their production through to 1944. [Music] well this engine served as the power unit primarily in the [ __ ] of all for 190 fighter when war broke out the demand for aircraft engines for a military aircraft increased massively and these engines were then built in large numbers in the case of this bmw 801 engine over 20 000 units it is a lucrative business and bmw can barely keep up with the demand civil production is halted but motorsports continue the motorsports team in hitler's germany the anes cacao or nazionazociolistashakaftvarakoa uses bmw cars which are also serviced in the company's racing department the bavarian car manufacturer took a fairly critical view of this arrangement because the nazis often did not pay their invoices or only paid after a long delay in the bmw racing department a kind of what i would call a creditor boycott came about in that people said to themselves okay but then the lads just won't be racing quite as fast we simply adjust the carburetor to burn a bit leaner but the valve's a little looser and then the cars simply won't have the performance as the war progresses bmw also launches its first jet engines which power fighter and reconnaissance aircraft but the growing production of goods for the war effort can only be attained with more additional workers from 1942 onwards concentration camp inmates were used in german industry and also at bmw the who point and the key point i see in judging bmw during this period is the recruitment of forced labor and concentration camp inmates people who were obliged to serve the regime and that's another celestial regime dr andreas roisla is co-author of the standard work on the use of forced labor in german industry it wasn't as if the ss or the state or the labor exchange came and said please bmw we have these workers available it was an idea which arose within bmw itself due to the shortage of labor which had become a major threat to production the concentration camp inmates working at bmw lived in a camp that was closely supervised under inhuman conditions the camps were specifically built for the needs of the large munich companies [Music] in the munich camp people got up at 4 30 a.m and went to bed at 10 p.m in between these hours it was simply roll calls and work um [Music] the living conditions were catastrophic particularly the hygiene conditions and of course the work itself too max manheim was forced to experience this physically exhausting work himself i left um certainly the work was such that we had to undertake manual labor so does fear like carrying metal reinforcing rods by the bundle yeah which was so heavy they took three of us to carry them we had nothing to protect our shoulders no padding or anything like that kind of kissed it as a it was heavy work we unloaded cement so it was hard physical labor fusion max manheim is just one of many people who are compelled to perform inhuman work as a forced laborer after the end of the war for a long time bmw did not speak about this dark chapter in its history although during the war years thousands of forced laborers were employed in the company it was only in the 1980s that the company began to deal with the issue in the early 1990s a foundation was set up to compensate the victims and the company's past was subjected to historical analysis following the end of the war in 1945 germany is divided up into four occupation zones economic life has collapsed the war has left its mark and destroyed businesses and infrastructure that damage also extends to bmw at bmw munich there is an initial ban on production of automobiles from 1945 on due to american forces pressure the aircraft engine works are closed and there are not enough machines to start in on more large-scale commercial manufacturing of products for civilian use initially it was emergency production that was permitted by the americans in munich we saw the manufacture of products such as bmw saucepans and dough making machines everything imaginable they even manufactured bicycles but at that time bmw has two manufacturing sites munich which was under american occupation and eisenhot in the east which is under soviet occupation as an attempt well after the war the situation was that germany was divided and bmw's previous automotive manufacturing operations had been located in eisenhower munich was home to the development department so bmw was split in two in terms of automotive construction and design and it seemed to make a lot of sense to continue with that twin track approach eisenhower continues to build pre-war car models following many legal disputes the eisenhower plant is renamed and the blue and white bmws become red and white emws in the years that follow east germany increasingly shuts itself off and bmws are rarely seen on east german roads olympic figure skating champion katarina bit recalls growing up in east germany cars were also in short supply and a complete luxury but because i was an olympic champion i had the privilege of being allowed to buy a car relatively quickly so i didn't have to wait 10 years also the year 1948 finally munich is again allowed to build production facilities and the market for it is there because following the war the population in germany needs an economical means of getting around the bmw motorbikes are a real hit for sales but the company also hankers after a re-entry into the car market since in poor post-war germany practically no one can afford a mid-range car bmw initially aims at building a car targeted for wealthy customers and for export thus promising high profit margins the 501 is a true luxury car featuring a v8 light alloy engine the car is ahead of its time in terms of engineering bmw is looking to make a name for itself in the luxury segment with the 501 the plan is to use the profits later on to fund construction of a mid-range model so bmw comes up with a design hybrid a car that actually could be modern where the company cannot forego a design featuring sweeping romantic curves the romantic curves are dated and are not well received by the public the car does not sell well since it has an old-fashioned look despite the conservative times in which it launches only a few customers can afford it that said the few baroque angels have a strong reputation the shape of the radiator grille caused the car to emit a high whistling sound at high speeds and at bmw that evolved into a kind of image factor the car that goes so fast that it starts to whistle so if a mercedes driver heard that whistle he knew look out here comes a bmw that pacey baroque angel so i'd better move into the slowly but the group of purchasers of luxury cars is simply too small and in post-war germany bmw only appeals to a rich minority with its baroque angel people were in need of a lot of products so it was not a time about okay i want to make a statement i want products i want good products because i need to build up a new life or i want to come up with a new environment setting in dire straits bmw buys up the license for the izetta an italian bubble car the bavarian constructors modify the isetta and install the reliable motorbike engine into it over time the design also slightly changes [Music] [Music] rather have an attractive motorbike than half a car and here you can see german culture in play with quite different values common sense function and basically practical values hence bmw fitting bmw engines into the izetta improving the chassis design and producing a car which was a germany-wide success deutsche invite and it's hard to believe but the isetta is even used in some races barely imaginable today given its 85 kilometers an hour top speed delivered by the 250 cc motorbike engine [Music] one very special car in the 100 year history of bmw is the 507. following the sales flop of the somewhat old-fashioned 501 baroque angel it was a massive leap towards the future of the automobile today the car is a design legend the performance even inside the 507 is a unique car unique because somehow being born of adversity it was intended to have incredible symbolic value and it still does so today because of the way it looks racing driver hans joachim stuck loves the 507 too his father owned one of the few made models for me as a young lad of 809 the 507 was an absolute highlight back in the day the car was mega cool ahead of its time and i associate a very special history with this car when my father was touring in his 507 we met elvis presley if only we'd known what a superstar he would become we would definitely have asked him for his autograph but sadly we missed the opportunity elvis was just as excited by the 507 as strz was about eldest he bought the car from streets father then and there and took it away with him back to the usa but where is the 507 today in the sunshine state a big discovery is made on a small farm in this barn there is a huge piece of bmw history vintage car collector jack castor tells about the day he bought the mangled car that was a good feeling at least even if the car was a mess at least i was into with the the car this vintage car looks as if it's come from the scrap yard which is not surprising since it has a long history behind it it belonged to the racing driver legend stuk and then elvis presley before being forgotten about it's more special to me that hunch drove the car then then that elvis had his hands on it i have a lot of respect for lunch but the car didn't look like this back then it was in poor condition the engine was missing and there was rust everywhere i had a choice i'd like to keep it but uh i want to see this car restored and all of them really and uh i can't afford to do it and so i'm happy about that it's it's what's good for the car is very important jack asked bmw for help and he gets it the barn find is set to be restored to its former glory the 507 with the unique history is collected and taken to germany for restoration [Music] arriving in germany the car is restored from the bottom up and the first step is to remove the paint because originally the car was not red at all when elvis presley was stationed in germany as a soldier and bought it the 507 was still white but as he became increasingly famous he had the car repainted the reason too many female fans were leaving red lipstick marks on the white vehicle now the car is to be restored to its original condition and soon the iconic car will have all of its former glamour and appeal restored the bmw 507 was and is a legend one reason for this back then was the advanced engineering the 507 was already fitted with a v8 light alloy engine offering 150 horsepower but his looks are still delighting designers today imagining yourself with this car you you suddenly imagine a totally different way of living and i think this freedom and and this look and feel is really what of course everyone everyone would aim for if they could afford it so i think that's that's a great uh yeah and really new step ahead in in car design the 507 also attracts the film industry in the film glace in monaco at the end of the 1950s the car found its way onto the big screen magnetically drawing envious eyes to it and told us [Music] [Applause] [Music] the 507 was built to ride relatively high on classic 50s narrow tall tires and then you had this shape which was really much too short at the front and the rear somehow you could see from underneath and see how the chassis combines with the bodywork i'd say that's the case particularly from behind a bit like a woman wearing a proper mini skirt even before there were any mini skirts so you have the impression you can catch a glimpse of the underwear and that makes the car so incredibly sexy sexy and so cinema superstar alain de long motor racing legend john certis and bond girl usola andres are all found driving a 507. when i was 9 years old my mother made me be an author boy dad and i weren't interested at all but he picked me up on the dot of seven when the mass had ended outside the church in the 507 sounding the horn that irritated the priest so much that he chucked me out that was the end of being an artist and you could say that our wishes were granted that's i will never forget at the end of the 1950s bmw's lacking one thing above all a mid-range car because up until then the azanta was only able to service the bottom price segment with the baroque angel in the 507 satisfying demand from its wealthiest clientele commercially bmw was in deep trouble as a decreaser where the crisis at bmw really started with the downturn that is also the view taken in 1959 there is criticism daimler doesn't suffer from these problems because the brand benefited significantly from the economic miracle and is now even set to expand the banks put up a proposed deal daimler should take over bmw the company's locations offer advantages due to proximity and the plant is attractive because it was only recently rebuilt and staffed with trained specialists the decision on the sale to daimler was to be made at the general meeting in 1959 the executive and supervisory board present the plan to the shareholders i believe it's quite unique in the history of the german stock corporation act that such a proposal did not result in a sale the dealer representatives and small shareholders residently blocked the kingdom decision is deferred and following this general meeting daimler loses interest in the acquisition but it means that the future remains uncertain it is only with the entry of the industrialist habit [ __ ] that a solution appears he invests and becomes the main shareholder in the company it marks the definitive end of the takeover and in good quality but what would the automotive world look like today if these small shareholders had not held out and fund had not stepped in the automobile world would have certainly been much the poorer i also believe that the competitive fight between mercedes-benz and bmw conducted over decades in a fair sporting rivalry albeit with a fierceness which should not be underestimated as in sport competition simply moves you forward so there's always someone who wants to be first with an innovation of some special creativity and the competition is also definitely about who is the quickest to market bmw is now saved but there has been no change in the difficult economic situation the profit-generating mid-range car was still missing the first step in that direction is taken in 1959 with the bmw 700 which despite having only a two-cylinder boxer engine can still deliver high performance [Music] that's the legendary bmw 700 sport in which my father became king of the mountains in 1960. it's not the original car but i do have dan's original steering wheel and i'm very proud to have it with 40 horsepower and weighing 650 kilos this small car achieves driving performance comparable to a mercedes 190 which has an engine twice that size but consequently weighs much more as a result the 700 emerges as a true talent on the racetrack 20 seconds from not to 100 kilometers per hour back then that was a real statement and it meant that the car was very much in the map it was highly successful in motorsports and was used by privateers including many running with special body work i did my first lapse of the nurburgring in a bmw 700 age 13 i should add dad was sitting next to me and of course he was terrified about it he was a dreadful passenger just as i am today the bmw 700 could be produced at relatively low cost sells well and brings in good profits for the manufacturer bmw is able to reinvest the profits made and they decided to use the proceeds from the bmw 700 to market the new class and this model went down very well with the market and effectively saved bmw from actually going into insolvency in 1961 the 1500 is unveiled at the iae international automotive trade fair in frankfurt taking bmw out of this crisis situation now the munich-based manufacturer finally has a sporty mid-range car just five years after this near bankruptcy bmw pays its shareholders a dividend of six percent following this success the company launches further mid-range cars the 1600 1800 and 2000 models are introduced they are known collectively as the new class in 1965 the one hundred thousandth car rolls off the production line [Music] magazine [Music] [Music] but the bmw engineers developed the new class further giving birth to the o2 series thanks to its favorable construction costs and high sales figures it is probably the most important car in the brand's survival [Music] imagine 47 years ago that was my first racing car how fabulous is that dustin a bmw tuner discovers the talent of the young stoke and wants to see him on the racing circuit and that's my thing and that was a very difficult decision for my father he only has to say yes once and i'm hooked so then i'm driving my first race at 18 in the caption bmw 2002 ti over 300 kilometers at the nurburgring i did pretty well there finishing third laying the foundation for a very long and successful career you could say as so often a bmw success on the racing circuit boosts sales to private customers in 1972 the summer olympics come to munich an event that turns the whole city upside down it means that the whole city once again experiences a massive push for development in just a few years and the munich we know and love today would really have been unimaginable without this olympic games project bmw 2 contributes significantly to this urban development towards the end of the 1960s construction begins on the bmw tower also known as the four cylinder on account of its shape later it will become the company's headquarters which remains to this day but bmw wants to attract attention during the olympic games in other ways too and arouse the curiosity of an international audience it succeeds in this by building a car which for that time is truly unusual we converted a bmw 1600 into an electric car it was packed with lead batteries and there were very simple reasons for this the car guided the marathon runners around the course and because it had no exhaust gases it meant it was very sensible to use an electric car for this electromobile and the bright orange car fits perfectly with this flower power era in which the hip youth wants to enjoy life and have fun but is also starting to think for the first time about a clean future in the 1970s the company's employees are however concerned with quite different things in 1970 there are changes on the executive board and the new chairman eberhard von kunheim sees himself facing a number of challenges just fighting a good site and that was a special time it was a time of expansion today the whole world is open to us and in business terms we can go anywhere but back then we were still just an upper bavarian company and we needed to grow beyond the constraints of being an upper bavarian company one challenge lies in differentiating the groups of vehicles more clearly and in establishing a new order just three numbers and everyone understands which class and engines are involved it's an arrangement which has prevailed through to the present [Music] escapement there was always a clear orientation you know right from the beginning where this car fits in on the one hand in terms of size but naturally also in terms of price this system is therefore proved to be highly future-proofed and as a result we have maintained very clear positioning of our cars the design language that bmw has already instilled with the new class now develops into a homogeneous cross series concept and most elements can still be found today in bmw's typical design [Music] fundamentally it's the first time that an automotive product is given something like a corporate design and the power of that idea was massive because suddenly people were talking about a brand in a completely different sense and it was understood immediately and manufactured so far 1972 marks the first appearance of the 520 the first 5 series bmw and thus the first car using the new numerical naming system three years after this the three series follows series is really the heart of the brand it stands for a truly compact sports saloon with plenty of performance up to 125 horsepower packaged in such a small circle it was extremely successful bmw made the breakthrough with the second model in the three series it made its market launch in the early 1980s internally bmw calls the new 3 series car the e30 with the new 3 series the company looks to offer a range of models and accordingly the car is available with many different engine options it's a principle which continues to be further refined in which makes the 3 series the most popular car from bmw up to the present the latest generation of the 3 series sees bmw continuing its success story with numerous triumphs during the 1930s bmw established its reputation as a manufacturer of sports vehicles the company re-engaged with his reputation in the mid-1960s and succeeded in breaking through in touring car sports in 1972 bmw therefore brought all motorsports activities together into one operation the limited liability company bnb motorsport in bihar was formed and jochen nebash joined the company as head of motorsports was really the first person to recognize that fitness and concentration are very closely related that you need to be healthy and fit for that which we achieved through altitude training in st moritz with elements such as cross-country skiing endurance training and power training if you look at today's formula one drivers or wc rally drivers every one of them has his own personal trainer and nutritionist and so on that was effectively invented back in the day by yahoo near paschen by bmw under jochen nepash motorsport bmw was organized in a more professional pudding and also with a more international outlook at the same time the 3.0 csl was being developed the l stands for lightweight in the 1960s lightweight construction was in principle a simple concept and just meant losing weight to that extent the thinking was limited the distinctive and key aspects of the csl were the aerodynamic elements such as the spoilers which also gave the car its famous nickname batman the batmobile stuck becomes a works driver and starts in the 3.0 csl in races all over the world but what was his fondest memory from this period i was born i was 24 when bmw decided to go to america to show the people over there that bmw was not british motor works but batharian multi-works and setting off at 24 for a year in the us was a massive step into the wider world and what we experienced during these two bmw is the first team to set up a junior team for motorsports young drivers like manfred winterhalt mark max and eddie cheever help to build their cars themselves and are taught how to train this early support and encouragement pays off they all become successful racing drivers in 1978 the first in the line of m models arrives the m1 a racing car that can also be driven on regular roads with a futuristic design someone unusual for a company which is otherwise known for its modest looks the shape is so different that bmw is faced with a challenge the question was where to put the bmw emblem so that it could show off its brand allegiance maybe no one wanted to argue with jujaro the shape needed to be adjusted and for that reason two badges were used to right and left at the rear of these wings which is naturally a curious way to dodge a vehicle however the innovative concept of the m1 initially puts customers off and bmw attempts to create an incentive to purchase the m1 pro car series comes about active touring car drivers and current formula one professionals race against one another you can then see who is the best driver because no one can point to the car as an excuse every driver starts in an m1 it is a brand trophy which is the stuff of legends even today [Music] and these races if i managed to defeat mr louder or mr regatzoni that was absolutely the greatest thing ever beating those guys all that combined with good prize money meant a one-time show which hasn't been matched since i won the pro series once in the privateer classification but i had to share the first prize which was a bmw m1 with the team boss manfred grizzani as i didn't have the 50 000 deutsche marks i would have needed to pay him but that was a serious mistake i still regret it the m1 is followed by the m3 with a 2-liter four-cylinder engine the m3 becomes the most successful bmw touring car [Music] the loyal farmer for automobile is [Music] [Music] at the noble ring he sees the body work of his m3 or his m1 or his coupe putting a laps down on the track i believe it was very important for the brand and that's why bmw was so successful today because motorsports effectively committed the fans to these cars which also drive on regular roads and that positively influenced the development of the bmw bracket and in other areas too bmw motorsport proves to be outstandingly successful the year 1983 marks the high point of this period of success the brabham bmw bt52 is fitted with a turbo engine nelson piki drives it in formula one and wins the world championship its success is ongoing the company is no longer a small manufacturer based in bavaria but a global player in the early 1970s bmw opens its first foreign plant in south africa and that is just a first step and that's how you start to make plans ultimately in spartanburg the u.s plant opens in 1994 it is the first plant outside germany where bmw manufactures the product itself from the first crew through to the paintwork nowadays spartanburg is bmw's biggest production plant since the 1950s the bmw product range has also featured top-end models in 1986 bmw unveils its new 7-series car setting new standards in luxury class above all with the 12-cylinder engine [Music] in 1997 the successful james bond film tomorrow never dies is filmed and in the starring role not only is there pierce brosnan but also the third generation of the bmw 7 series in the film the car exhibits truly magical powers it drives as if by magic but a glimpse behind the scenes reveals what is actually going on but what was simply a vision back then becomes a reality only a few years later latest generation bmws keep in lane without the driver intervening avoid collisions maintain a safe distance and brake independently the current 7 series bmw can park itself at the press of a button no driver required the james bond vision has become a reality commercially too there are visions during the 1990s in 1994 bmw acquires the rover group and with it brands such as land rover mini triumph mg and rover the aim for bmw is to service the mass market better at first the collaboration with rover group develops well but it is not sustained for long [Music] after taking over the rover group bmw realized fairly quickly that it had negotiated its way into a disastrous situation and to that extent the company did well to fend it off again at the same time however bmw keeps the mini brand automotive experts initially take a critical view of that decision but the bavarian owners succeed in moving the cult of the old mini into a new age [Music] the failure with rover cost billions and at first looks like a major crisis but bmw finds the answer to this challenge at the structural level in 1999 the bmw group is formed from which now on will plan and manage all its brands centrally the picture is rounded off with the purchase of rolls royce and the launch of the x series the bmw suvs at the start of 2000 bmw is a firmly established presence practically all over the world and only the asian market is lagging behind in 2003 they start a joint venture with the chinese manufacturer brilliance and start car assembly operations in china and the next challenge lies in weight progress is needed on environmental protection if you want to position yourself credibly with an electric car project you have to show it on a new car i know it's automobile the idea of taking a golf and installing an electric engine and batteries it may work from the technical point of view but it's not the car of tomorrow it's automobile it's like taking a carriage 100 years ago ditching the horses and sticking an engine onto it so now a new design was needed designs the answer to this is the i3 and i8 the electric bmws are mainly manufactured using carbon fiber materials thus revolutionizing automotive construction sustainability begins right from the start of the manufacturing process a carbon plant in the north of the usa manufactures the high-tech material it is much lighter and more stable than the iron or aluminum sheeting conventionally used in car construction carbon is used for the bodywork or for individual components on a growing number of models two hydroelectricity stations provide the power for carbon production and in germany too there is a strong emphasis on protecting the environment at the works and leipzig here all the energy needed to produce the electric bmws is generated using wind turbines as a result annual co2 emissions are being reduced by some 210 000 tons i also think that this is the right direction that there is consistency in looking to market an electric car and an eco-friendly car that there's a solid basis behind it and from the smallest screw to the end product the manufacturing process is right for its over its life cycle the i3 uses up to 50 percent less energy than a comparable conventional car and the customer wants even more change in mobility the answer lies in car sharing personal cars are increasingly being replaced by mobility concepts these technical and social innovations are also a major theme for the general director of the deutsche museum people are often saying that young people don't value ownership of a vehicle these days but rather the use of which means you also have to create models social models ultimately at bmw that address mobility preferences and the aspirations of young people and people in general for the future the i3 features in the car sharing fleet drive now this is a higher car project whereby people can spontaneously hire a car on the street the billing is on a minute-by-minute basis another forward-looking mobility concept is the i8 the i8 was developed at the same time a sports car which is not a pure electric car but a plug-in hybrid so it has a three-cylinder combustion engine on the one hand along with very powerful electric drives and that produces this work of art which is called i8 combined with a highly futuristic design which is clearly the route we are taking as we head into the future to be able to continue as a successful global player in the future bmw needs to capitalize on the experience it has gained in over 100 years of history no one knows what the next 100 years will look like but the munich-based global group has already set down a marker fueled by its vision [Music] you

Channel: wocomoMOTORS

Views: 94,481

Keywords: Documentary, BMW, history, Germany, Bavaria, BMW 507, Mini, Rover, Daimler, New Class, Baroque-Angel, Fokker, The Red Baron, aircraft, engines, electric, Dixi, racing, Ernst Henne, Boxer, 328, Rearmament, military, aviation, forced labor, Charlotte Knobloch, Manfred Grunert, Munich, Eisenach, East Germany, EMW, Katarina Witt, 501, Isetta, 507, Elvis Presley, Strietzel, Hans Stuck, 700, 1500, Nürburgring, Eberhard von Kuenheim, BMW Motorsport GmbH, Jochen Neerpasch, James Bond, Rolls Royce, SUV, i3, sustainable

Id: ANgjl5JhYaQ

Length: 52min 29sec (3149 seconds)

Published: Thu Jun 24 2021