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When the conversation turns to BMW, people tend to think of large executive saloons tearing down the Autobahn at triple-digit speeds and high-performance coupes drifting around a track.
It’s not an unreasonable association; most of the brand’s best-received cars fall into either category. That doesn’t mean the Munich-based firm never explored the lower rungs of the automotive spectrum. As we welcome the unveiling of the company’s third-generation 1 Series model, join us for a look at the little BMWs that shaped the brand and, in some cases, helped it stay afloat:
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Dixi (1928)
BMW took its first steps in the automotive industry when it purchased Automobilwerk Eisenach in 1928. The deal included a license to build the Austin 7, which Eisenach bought the previous year. Named Dixi, the first BMW was a small British economy car with a German accent. It came in a wide variety of body styles including a coupe, a roadster (pictured) and a saloon.
The Munich-based firm made improvements to the Dixi until it stopped production in early 1932. In a quirk of history, at the end of the 20th century BMW ended up briefly owning Austin’s successor company, Rover.
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3/20 (1932)
Presumably tired of paying Austin royalties, BMW developed a new car named 3/20 to replace the 7-based Dixi. The 3/20 offered a more spacious interior than its predecessor and an upgraded four-cylinder engine. Through a quirk of history, Daimler-Benz manufactured the 3/20’s body in its Sindelfingen factory. Today, the facility churns out the Mercedes-AMG GT, among other models.
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Isetta 250/300 (1955)
While BMW continued making small cars after the 3/20, including the 309 launched in 1934, it quickly focused on larger models powered by a straight-six engine. It returned to the entry-level segment when it introduced the Isetta in 1955. Iso provided the car’s basic design but BMW made several notable changes, including installing a single-cylinder, air-cooled motorcycle engine.
Executives didn’t decide to branch out into the bubble car segment to boost the brand’s image. Instead, it was a last-ditch effort to keep the company afloat. And, somewhat miraculously, it worked.
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Isetta 600 (1957)
BMW stretched the Isetta to create the four-seater 600. It retained the Isetta’s refrigerator-like front-hinged door but it gained an additional side door that gave passengers access to the second row of seats. Power came from a rear-mounted two-cylinder engine borrowed from BMW’s motorcycle-building division and tweaked for use in a car.
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700 (1959)
With its finances looking a little better, BMW began the process of replacing the Isetta and the 600 with a more modern model. It introduced the Michelotti-designed 700 in 1959. Offered as a coupe and as a two-door saloon, the 700 came with a rear-mounted evolution of the R67 motorcycle’s air-cooled flat-twin. The 700 later spawned the LS (pictured), which came with a longer wheelbase and a bigger engine.
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02 series (1966)
The Neue Klasse (new class) line of cars arrived in 1962 with the launch of a four-door, Autobahn-storming saloon. BMW introduced a smaller two-door model, the 1600-2, at the 1966 Geneva motor show. The 02 quickly became one of BMW’s most successful cars, both in showrooms and on the track. It almost single-handedly rejuvenated the brand and helped it secure a foothold in America.
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1600 GT (1967)
The 1600 GT dropped into BMW’s lap when it purchased Glas in 1966. The company had little interest in most of the Glas-badged models; many were hopelessly outdated. Decision-makers saw a glimmer of potential in the GT so they pulled it out of the guillotine queue. It received the 1600’s 1.6-litre four-cylinder, suspension modifications, and a twin-kidney grille before getting jettisoned into the BMW line-up. Production lasted a little over a year.
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Z11 (1991)
Buoyed by the 02’s success, BMW continued moving upmarket during the 1970s. It focused on growing its portfolio of models towards the top by introducing cars like the 5 Series, the 6 Series and the 7 Series. It funnelled profits into its research and development department to launch advancements like ABS brakes and fuel-injection.
Meanwhile, BMW also explored the city car segment it left when it ended production of the Isetta. It finally showed its vision in 1991 when it unveiled the Z11 concept, an electric 2+2 as radical in terms of design as the Isetta was when it arrived.
The Z11 never reached production but BMW spent the next two decades bird-dogging the electric city car segment. The modern-day i3 launched in 2013 owes a lot to the Z11 – including its basic silhouette.
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Z13 (1993)
The Z13 showed what the commuter car of the future might look like. The design brief called for a personal car, so the team in charge of the project positioned the steering wheel front and centre. It needed to handle like a BMW, not like a neutered econobox. To that end, engineers made extensive use of aluminium and powered the Z13 with a rear-mounted 82hp petrol engine.
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Z15 (1993)
1993 brought yet another city car concept from BMW. Named Z15, it illustrated a potential evolution of the Z11 from 1992. It remained a four-seater, and it kept the rear-mounted electric motor, but it wore a slightly more conventional design. BMW abandoned the idea of adding a standalone model placed below the 3 Series and it put its electrification offensive on the back burner.
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3 Series Compact (1993)
None of the city car concepts BMW displayed in the early 1990s made the transition from the show floor to the showroom floor. Its efforts weren’t for naught, though. Inspired by the 2002 Touring, the brand introduced a shorter 3 Series with two doors and a hatch in 1993. It positioned the 3 Series Compact as its entry-level model, pricing it significantly below standard 3 Series saloon.
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M3 Compact prototype (1996)
Motorists who drove stately BMW saloons and sporty coupes stared defiantly at the 3 Series Compact. BMW considered boosting the model’s credibility by transforming it into a more affordable M3. It built a one-off prototype equipped with the E36-generation M3’s 3.2-litre, 321hp straight-six engine. The few who tested it loved it but officials ultimately canned the project.
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CS1 Concept (2002)
BMW kicked off the 2000s the same way it started the 1990s: with a concept car that previewed an entry-level model. This time, the design study had already received the proverbial green light for production. Named CS1, it accurately previewed the first-ever 1 Series.
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1 Series (2004)
BMW could take one of two paths to the entry-level segment. It could save money and share components with another auto-maker, or it could start from scratch and create a true BMW. It wisely chose the second route. The original 1 Series arrived on the market in 2004 as the only rear-wheel drive model in its competitive set, which included the Audi A3 and the Alfa Romeo 147.
At launch, the 1 Series line-up consisted of two- and four-door hatchbacks. BMW later added coupe and convertible variants, including high-performance variants powered by a straight-six engine.
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1 Series tii Concept (2007)
Placing a straight-six under the bonnet made the 1 Series a formidable sports car. BMW saw more potential in the car, and it illustrated one of the possibilities by showing a concept named 1 Series tii at the 2007 Tokyo motor show. It received weight-shaving carbon fibre and an array of aerodynamic upgrades. BMW stuffed a turbocharged four-cylinder engine between the front wings.
Some predicted the design study previewed the M-badged 1 Series. They were right in the sense that BMW had already secretly slotted the model in its product plan; they were wrong in assuming it would arrive as a toned-down variant of the tii concept.
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1 Series M Coupe (2011)
The 1 Series partially came to life to make up for the fact the 3 Series had grown significantly since its inception. This inevitably meant the M3 had gotten bigger, too, and the nimble 1 coupe gave BMW M the golden opportunity to recapture the spirit of the original M3. Wider and lower than the standard car, it arrived with a turbocharged straight-six engine tuned to deliver 335hp.
BMW planned on limiting production to 2700 examples worldwide. Things didn’t go according to plan. In some markets, the wildly popular 1 Series M Coupe sold out before the first cars reached showrooms. BMW ultimately built about 6300 examples of car.
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i3 Concept (2011)
BMW previewed the i3 with a close-to-production concept car introduced at the 2011 Frankfurt motor show. Though extremely futuristic, the design study gave accurate insight into a model that was well on its way to production behind the scenes. The four-door layout remained at the concept stage, however.
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i3 Concept Coupe (2012)
BMW brought the i3 one step closer to production when it unveiled the i3 Concept Coupe. It looked less 22nd century-esque than the previous year’s concept, though the general proportions and key design cues on both ends remained. The 2012 concept arrived as a two-door, a configuration which created rumours claiming BMW would offer two- and four-door variants of the i3.
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i3 (2013)
The regular-production i3 made its debut at the 2013 Frankfurt auto show. Its forward-thinking design hardly came as a surprise, we’d already seen it twice before, but it broke all ties with other members of the BMW family. Design director Adrian van Hooydonk told Autocar his team even considered ditching the twin-kidney grille up front, though they ultimately voted in favour of keeping it to ensure the i3 remained recognizable as a BMW.
Envisioned as an electric car from the get-go, the i3 launched with advanced carbon fibre construction normally reserved for much more expensive machines and a zero-emissions drivetrain.
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2 Series (2014)
The coupe and convertible variants of the second-generation 1 Series adopted the 2 Series nameplate when they broke cover at the 2014 Detroit motor show. BMW re-named both body styles to bring them in line with its then-new naming structure, which – in theory – paired even numbers with two-door cars and odd numbers with four-door models.
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M2 (2015)
BMW dug deep into the depths of its motorsport heritage to develop a replacement for the 1 Series M. The task was easier said than done; the hot-rodded 1 Series still stands out as one of BMW’s best M cars. Named M2, the successor arrived in 2015 with a turbocharged straight-six engine rated at 365hp.
BMW’s efforts paid off. ‘The smallest M car is also the best,’ Autocar concluded after putting the M2 through its paces. We gave it a 4.5-star rating.
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What’s next? (2019 and beyond)
And so we come to the new, third-generation 1 Series. It represents a paradigm shift, as it rides on a brand-new front-wheel drive platform named Frontantriebsarchitektur (FAAR), which it shares with the Mini Countryman, and BMWs X1 and X2 SUVs.
Despite the switch, product manager Jochen Schmalholz said BMW was determined to ensure the car offered a dynamic driving experience, especially for the range-topping M135i hot hatch. “We put a lot of effort into producing a car that combined both advantages, and still drove and handled like BMW customers would expect,” Schmalholz said.
Slightly shorter (at 4319mm (170in)) but wider (at at 1799mm (71in)) than the previous generation car, deliveries start in September 2019. Sorry America, but you're not getting it; the car is deemed, well, still too small for the US market.
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