All language subtitles for 100.Years.Of.BMW.-.The.History.Of.A.Global.Company.2016.720p.WEBRip.x264.AAC-[YTS.MX]

(fast, rhythmic rock music)

- [Narrator] Ultra-modern
and trailblazing technology,

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innovation, design, and driving pleasure.

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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.

(rhythmic, upbeat music)

To get there, we need to go
on a journey through time,

which begins in 1916.

(rhythmic, upbeat music)

Cars and motorbikes are the things

for which the BMW brand
is known the world over,

but its origins lie in the air.

(slow, rhythmic music)

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.

BMW historian, Manfred Grunert,

knows the background to this.

- [Translator] It also
placed during World War I,

which meant there was a strong
demand from the military,

and that helped BMW to
achieve a prominent position

in the aircraft engine industry.

- [Narrator] These early BMW engines

are fitted on the Fokker
D.VII Biplane fighter,

amongst others, a successor
model to the famous

Fokker Dr.I, as flown by
Manfred von Richthofen,

better known as The Red Barron.

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.

(peaceful piano music)

Ulrich Knieps is an expert

on historic BMW vehicles and engines.

- [Translator] The special aspect of these

two-cylinder flat twin boxer engines,

is that the crank shaft is in line

with the direction of travel,

so the force can be transferred directly

to the rear axle via cardan shaft,

and this principle has
held firm up to today.

The most recent example is the GS 1200,

which continues to be based
on this fundamental principle.

- [Narrator] 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.

The Dutch designers Carole
Baijings and Stefan Scholten

know the mood of the period.

- I think they come
from very dark periods,

and somehow I think people in
general, they came to life,

and that's what you
celebrate in this decade.

The extravagance and showing your identity

with furniture, or with
design, or with a car,

was new and done very expressive,

a beautiful time, actually.

- [Narrator] 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.

- [Translator] 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 Gothaer Waggonfabrik company

was looking to sell its
car production operations,

for example, the production
facility in Eisenach.

- [Narrator] 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 Dixi, 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.

The 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.

- It's so nice to see this car,

the landscape, you wanna drive there,

but it looks so sensual and round.

- But it's still very, an important aspect

of the BMW brand in general
I think is all about emotion,

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, it brands,

and in choosing this type of car,

it's not stopping with the car.

- [Narrator] 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.

- [Translator] 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 Nurburgring, for instance,

they were quite commonly
stranded after two to three laps

with engine damage.

Whereas the BMW 315 Watbook
continued to put in the laps

and masterfully won the
750 class time after time.

- [Narrator] It is 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 this same
engine powers this flying boat

on a flight around the world.

The plane covered over 44,000 kilometers

in 270 flying hours.

(video narrator speaking foreign language)

These successes also fueled
the car construction segment.

The 328 launches in 1936.

It is to become a milestone
in automotive history.

In 1940, Huschke von
Hanstein and Walter Baumer

won the Millie Miglia in a 328.

Overall, four of the first
six places in this race

are filled by teams racing the 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.

- [Translator] There's a saying,

win on Sunday, sin on Monday.

It's the best advertising

you could possibly imagine in motorsports,

leaving the competition
trailing in your wake.

- [Narrator] And the visual
design too was groundbreaking,

as Professor Paolo
Tumminelli acknowledges.

- [Translator] The quality of the 328

in the sports version, a car
very much geared to efficiency,

was definitely that
embellishment and superfluity

were dispensed with.

The focus is generally on
developing a sports machine.

- [Narrator] The 328 is
also the first instance

featuring the double kidney-shaped
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 company.

(grand string music)

(slow, noble music)

In 1933, the Nazis seized power.

Germany rearms 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 too, leaps at the opportunity.

- [Translator] 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 rearmament,

but the company itself participated in it,

and had an economic interest
in setting to the Luftwaffe,

which then if fact, it did.

(video narrator speaking foreign language)

- [Narrator] Aircraft engines
are the specialist field

of Gerhard Filchner, aviation curator

at the Deutches Museum.

- [Translator] Well, the 132
was built from 1933 onwards

by BMW for the Junkers
Ju 52 transport aircraft,

and the Ju 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 of the war.

(airplane engine whirring)

(video narrator speaking foreign language)

- [Narrator] 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 could even triple their
production through to 1944.

- [Translator] Well, this
engine served as the power unit

primarily in the Focke-Wulf 190 fighter.

When war broke out, the
demand for aircraft engines

for 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.

- [Narrator] 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 NSKK,

or Nationalsozialistische
Kraftfahrkorps, 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.

- [Translator] 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,

put the valves a little
looser, and then the car

simply won't have the performance.

- [Narrator] As the work
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.

- [Translator] 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.

- [Narrator] Dr. Andreas
Heusler is co-author

of the standard work on
the use of forced labor

in German industry.

- [Translator] 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.

- [Narrator] 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.

- [Translator] 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.

The living conditions were catastrophic,

particularly the hygiene conditions,

and of course the work itself too.

- [Narrator] Max Mannheimer
was forced to experience

this physically exhausting work himself.

- [Translator] Certainly the work was such

that we had to undertake manual labor

like carrying metal
reinforcing rods by the bundle,

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.

It was heavy work, we unloaded cement,

so it was hard physical labor.

- [Narrator] Max Mannheimer
is just one of many people

who were 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.

(slow, noble music)

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 of 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.

- [Translator] Initially
it was emergency production

that was permitted by the Americans.

In Munich we saw the manufactured products

such as BMW saucepans and
dough-making machines,

everything imaginable.

They even manufactured bicycles there.

- [Narrator] But at that time,

BMW has two manufacturing sites;

Munich, which was under
American occupation,

and Eisenach in the east, which
is under Soviet occupation.

- [Translator] Well after
the war, the situation was

that Germany was divided,
and BMW's previous

automotive manufacturing operations

had been located in Eisenach.

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.

- [Narrator] Eisenach continues
to build pre-war car models.

Following many legal disputes,

the Eisenach plant is renamed,

and the blue and white BMWs
become red and white EMWs.

(light, upbeat music)

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 Witt recalls.

- [Translator] Growing up in East Germany,

cars were also in short
supply and accompanied 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 or so.

- [Narrator] The year 1948,
finally Munich is again allowed

to build production facilities.

(video narrator speaking foreign language)

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 reentry

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.

(upbeat music)

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.

- [Translator] So BMW comes
up with a design hybrid,

a car that actually could be modern,

but where the company
cannot forgo a design

featuring sweeping, romantic curves.

- [Narrator] 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.

- [Translator] The shape
of the radiator grill

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 slow lane.

- [Narrator] 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 wanna 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.

- [Narrator] In dire
straights, BMW buys up

the license for the Isetta,
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.

(video narrator speaking foreign language)

- [Translator] The Italians
didn't like the car at all.

For them it was ridiculous.

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 Isetta,

improving their chassis design

and producing a car which
was a Germany-wide success.

- [Narrator] It's hard to believe,

but the Isetta is even used in some races,

barely imaginable today

given it's 85-kilometers-an-hour top speed

delivered by the 250 CC motorbike engine.

(slow, noble 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.

- [Translator] The 507 is a unique car.

Unique because somehow
being born out of adversity,

it was intended to have
incredible symbolic value,

and it still does so today
because of the way it looks.

- [Narrator] Racing
driver Hans-Joachim Stuck

loves the 507 too.

His father owned one
of the few late models.

- [Translator] For me as a
young lad of eight or nine,

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,

though sadly we missed the opportunity.

- [Narrator] Elvis was
just as excited by the 507

as Strietzel was about Elvis.

He bought the car from
Strietzel's 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 it, the car.

- [Narrator] This vintage car looks

as if it's come from the
scrapyard, which is not surprising,

since it has a long history behind it.

It belonged to the racing
driver legend Hans Stuck,

and then Elvis Presley,
before being forgotten about.

- It's more special to me
that Hans Stuck drove the car

than that Elvis had his hands on it.

I have a lot of respect for Hans Stuck.

- [Narrator] 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 not to keep it,

but I wanna see this car restored,

and all of 'em really,

and I can't afford to do it.

And so I'm happy about that,

it's what's good for the
car, is very important.

- [Narrator] 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's collected

and taken to Germany for restoration.

(light Hawaiian guitar music)

(playful 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 glamor
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 its looks

are still delighting designers today.

- Imagining yourself with this car,

you suddenly imagine a totally
different way of living,

and I think this freedom
and this look and feel

is really what of course
everyone would aim for,

if they could afford it.

So I think that's a great, yeah,

a really new step ahead in car design.

- [Narrator] The 507 also
attracts the film industry.

In the film Gluck und Liebe in Monaco

at the end of the 1950s,

the car found its way onto the big screen,

magnetically drawing envious eyes to it.

(women speaking foreign language)

(light 50's rock music)

- [Translator] The 507 was
built to ride relatively high

on classic 50's 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 miniskirt

even before there were any miniskirts.

So you have the impression
you can catch a glimpse

of the underwear, and that makes the car

so incredibly sexy.

- [Narrator] And so cinema
superstar Alandra Lon,

motor racing legend John Surtees,

and Bond Girl Ursula Andress

are all found driving a 507.

- [Translator] When I was nine years old

my mother made me be an altar 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,

and that was the end
of being an altar boy,

and you could say that
our wishes were granted.

That's a memory I think I'll never forget.

(slow, mysterious music)

(slow, noble music)

- [Narrator] At the end of the 1950s,

BMW's lacking one thing;
above all, a mid-range car.

Because up until then, the
Isetta was only able to service

the bottom price segment,

with the Baroque Angel and
the 507 satisfying demand

from its wealthiest clientele.

Commercially, BMW was in deep trouble.

- [Translator] Well, the
crisis at BMW really starts

with the downturn in the motorbike market.

It signifies the last
of the key money-maker,

and the car division cannot
make up for the loss.

- [Narrator] That is also
the view taken in 1959,

there is criticism from all sides.

(speaking foreign language)

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.

(bell ringing)

(speaking foreign language)

- [Translator] I believe it's quite unique

in the history of the German
Stock Corporation Act,

and such a proposal did
not result in the sale.

The dealer representatives
and small shareholders

brazenly blocked it.

- [Narrator] The 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

Herbert Quandt that a solution appears.

He invests, and becomes
the main shareholder,

in the company.

It marks the definitive
end of the takeover.

(speaking foreign language)

But what would the automotive
world look like today

if these small shareholders
had not held out

and Quandt and not stepped in?

- [Translator] The automobile world

would have certainly been
much the poorer for it.

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,

has resulted in many innovations,
many new developments,

and better development overall.

- [Translator] 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.

- [Narrator] 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.

(video narrator speaking foreign language)

- [Translator] That's the
legendary BMW 700 Sport,

which my father became king
of the mountains in 1960.

It's not the original car,

but I do have Dad's
original steering wheel,

and I'm very proud to have it.

- [Narrator] 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.

- [Translator] 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 demand.

It was highly successful in motor sports,

and was used by per-fet-teers,

including many running
with special body work.

- [Translator] I did my
first laps in the Nurburgring

in the BMW 700, age 13 I should add,

while Dad was sitting next to me.

But of course he was terrified about it,

he was a dreadful passenger,
just as I am today.

- [Narrator] 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.

- [Translator] 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.

- [Narrator] 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 6%.

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 100,000th car
rolls off the production line.

(video narrator speaking foreign language)

But the BMW engineers develop
the New Class further,

giving birth to the 02 series.

Thanks to its favorable construction costs

and high sales figures, it is
probably the most important

car in the brand's survival.

(light, upbeat music)

- [Translator] Imagine, 47 years ago,

that was my first racing
car, how fabulous is that?

- [Narrator] A BMW tuner
discovers the talent

of the young Stuck and wants to see him

on the racing circuit.

- [Translator] 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 a Kaufen 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.

- [Narrator] As so often at BMW,

success on the racing circuit boosts sales

to private customers.

(slow, noble music)

In 1972, the Summer
Olympics come to Munich,

an event that turns the
whole city upside down.

- [Translator] 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.

- [Narrator] BMW too
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 it 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.

- [Translator] 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.

- [Narrator] 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 were however

concerned with quite different things.

In 1970 there are changes
on the executive board,

and the new chairman,
Eberhard von Kuenheim,

sees himself facing a
number of challenges.

- [Translator] 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.

- [Narrator] 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.

- [Translator] There was
always a clear orientation,

we know right from the beginning
where this car fits in.

On one hand in terms
of size, but naturally,

also in terms of price.

This system has therefore proved

to be highly future-proofed,
and as a result,

we have maintained very
clear positioning of our cars

through to today.

- [Narrator] The design language

that BMW has already
instilled with the New Class

now develops into a homogenous
cross-series concept,

and most elements can still be found today

in BMW's typical design.

- [Translator] 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.

- [Narrator] 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 3 Series follows.

- [Translator] The 3 Series

is really the heart of the brand.

It stands for a truly
compact sports saloon

with plenty of performance,
up to 125 horsepowers

packaged in such a small saloon.

It was extremely successful.

- [Narrator] BMW made the breakthrough

with the second model in the 3 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 cars 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.

(grand, noble music)

With numerous triumphs during the 1930s,

BMW established its
reputation as a manufacturer

of sports vehicles.

The company re-engaged
with this reputation

in the mid-1960s, and
succeeded in breaking through

in touring car sports.

In 1972, BMW therefore brought
all motor sports activities

together into one operation.

The limited liability company,

BMW Motorsport GmbH, was formed,

and Jochen Neerpasch joined the company

as Head of Motor Sports.

- [Translator] Jochen Neerpasch
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 Saint Maurice 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 Jochen Neerpasch and by BMW.

- [Narrator] Under Jochen Neerpasch,

Motorsport BMW was organized
on a more professional footing,

and also with a more
international outlook.

At the same time, the 3.0
CSL was being developed.

The L stands for lightweight.

- [Translator] In the 1960s,
lightweight construction

was in principally, 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.

- [Narrator] 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?

- [Translator] I was 24 when
BMW decided to go to America

to show the people over there that BMW

was not British Motor Works,
but Bavarian Motor Works.

And setting off at 24
for a year in the U.S.

was a massive step into the wider world,

and what we experienced
during these two years

was legendary.

- [Narrator] Legendary is another idea

coming from Jochen Neerpasch.

BMW is the first team
to set up a junior team

for motorsports.

Young drivers like Manfred
Winkelhock, Marc Surer,

and Eddie Cheever helped to
build their cars themselves,

and are taught how to train.

This early support and
encouragement pays off;

they all become successful racing drivers.

(engines whirring)

In 1978 the first in the line
of M-models arrives, BM1,

a racing car that can also
be driven on regular roads.

With a futuristic design, somewhat unusual

for a company which is otherwise known

for its modest looks.

The shape is so different

that BMW is faced with a challenge.

- [Translator] The
question was where to put

the BMW emblem so that I could show off

its brand allegiance.

Maybe no one wanted to argue
with (speaks foreign language),

but 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 badge a vehicle.

- [Narrator] However, the
innovative concept of the M1

initially puts customers off,

and BMW attempts to create
an incentive to purchase.

The M1 Procar 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.

- [Translator] And these races,
just a car with its exhaust,

six exhausts roaring as one,
the sound in Monte Carlo,

you can't imagine it.

Even today it gives me goosebumps.

If I managed to defeat a Mr.
Lauder or a Mr. Regazzoni,

that was absolutely the
greatest thing ever,

beating those guys.

All that combined with good prize money

met in a one-time show which
hasn't been matched since.

(race car engines whirring)

I won the Procar Series once,
in the privity classification,

but I had to share the first prize,

which was a BMW M1, with the
team boss Manfred Cassani,

because I didn't have
the 50,000 Deutsch Marks

I would have needed to pay him,

but that was a serious
mistake, I still regret it.

- [Narrator] The M1 is followed by the M3.

With a two-liter, four-cylinder engine,

the M3 becomes the most
successful BMW touring car.

(video narrator speaking foreign language)

- [Translator] So the fan
out there in the stands

at the Nurburgring, he sees the bodywork,

he's M3, or he's M1, or he's Coupe,

putting your laps down on the track.

I believe it was very
important for the brand,

and that's why BMW is 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 brand.

- [Narrator] 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 Piquet drives it in Formula One

and wins the World Championship.

(grand, noble music)

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.

- [Translator] And that's
how you start to make plans,

where can we build?

Ultimately, it proves
to be in Spartanburg,

in South Carolina.

It's an incredibly important step for BMW.

- [Narrator] The U.S. plant opens in 1994.

It is the first plant outside Germany

where BMW manufactures the product itself,

from the first screw
through to the paint work.

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.

(loud, upbeat rock 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.

(upbeat music)

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.

- [Translator] 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.

- [Narrator] 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.

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 of 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 manufacture Brilliance,

and start car assembly
operations in China.

And the next challenge lies in wait,

progress is needed on
environmental protection.

- [Translator] If you want
to position yourself credibly

within the electric car project,

you have to show it a new car.

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 like taking a carriage 100 years ago,

ditching the horses, and
sticking an engine onto it.

So now a new design was needed.

- [Narrator] 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 in 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.

- [Translator] 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 it.

- [Narrator] Over its lifecycle, the i3

uses up to 50% less energy

than a comparable conventional car.

And the customer wants even
more change in mobility,

the answer lies in carsharing.

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.

- [Translator] Well,
people are often saying

that young people don't value ownership

of a vehicle these days,
but rather the use of it.

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.

- [Narrator] The i3 features

in the carsharing fleet DriveNow.

This is a hire 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.

- [Translator] The i8 was
developed at the same time.

This 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.

- [Narrator] 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.

(slow, rhythmic rock music)