BMW fun facts are the best kind of car trivia: surprising, a little quirky and surprisingly artsy. Did you know the Bavarian automaker's story starts with airplanes, not cars?
We dug through BMW's own history pages and enthusiast archives to find the really unusual stuff.
BMW Fun Facts From the Beginning: Planes Before Cars
BMW's roots are in the sky. The company grew out of two aviation-related firms, and its official founding date is March 7, 1916, when Bayerische Flugzeugwerke was established, as BMW's own history explains.
After World War I, building aircraft engines was not permitted. So the company pivoted to railway brakes and other products before it found its footing on two wheels.
Two Companies, Two Founders
BMW's story begins with Karl Rapp and Gustav Otto. Otto ran an aircraft factory, while Rapp Motorenwerke built aero engines.
In 1916, Otto's firm was reorganized at the government's request and renamed Bayerische Flugzeugwerke (Bavarian Aircraft Factory). In 1917, Rapp's company became Bayerische Motorenwerke GmbH, the name we shorten to BMW.
BMW's Birthday Belongs to the Aircraft Maker
Here is the quirky part. BMW's official founding date, March 7, 1916, marks the founding of the aircraft company, not the engine maker whose name survived.
The paperwork got even more tangled. In 1920, the company was sold to Knorr-Bremse, but financier Camillo Castiglioni bought the BMW name and logo. In 1922, BMW AG transferred its engine production, name and brand to BFW, the aircraft company.
From Brakes to Bikes to Cars
With aircraft engines off the table, BMW built railway brakes and inboard engines. Motorcycles came next, in 1923.
Cars arrived later. In 1928, BMW took over the vehicle maker Fahrzeugfabrik Eisenach. From 1929, it built small models under license from the Austin Motor Company, and it launched its own models in 1932.
The First BMW Was a Motorcycle
The R 32 debuted at the 1923 Berlin Motor Show as BMW's first motorcycle. Designer Max Friz gave it a boxer engine with transversely mounted cylinders, a layout that remains a BMW trademark today.
The Roundel Propeller Myth: A 1929 Plot Twist
Most people assume the blue-and-white badge is a spinning propeller. It is not.
Reports on the logo's history say the roundel combined the black ring from predecessor Rapp Motorenwerke with the Bavarian state colors. The propeller idea came later, in a 1929 advertisement, more than a decade after the logo was registered.
The twist? Trademark rules reportedly kept BMW from copying the Bavarian flag exactly, so the color quadrants appear in a different order than the state's own pattern.
More BMW Fun Facts: Bubble Cars and Art Cars
BMW has always had a sense of humor and a taste for the dramatic. Two stories prove it.
The Isetta: A Car With a Front Door
In the 1950s, BMW licensed a tiny bubble car from the Italian firm Iso. A BMW press history says a BMW dealer spotted it at the 1954 Geneva Motor Show.
The entire front opened out, with the steering wheel and dashboard attached to the door. Passengers climbed in from the front.
The tax bill was just 44 marks, "less than a city dachshund." BMW built 161,728 Isettas before the last one rolled off the line in 1962, and the engine came from the R 25 motorcycle.
BMW Art Cars: Racing as Canvas
In 1975, French racing driver and auctioneer Hervé Poulain had an idea: race an artist-painted BMW at Le Mans. The first canvas was a BMW 3.0 CSL painted by sculptor Alexander Calder.
The car started the 24 Hours of Le Mans but retired after about seven hours with a damaged drive shaft. It never raced again.
The tradition grew into 20 Art Cars, according to BMW Group. Highlights include:
• Andy Warhol (1979): transformed a BMW M1 into a painted representation of speed in just 28 minutes.
• Roy Lichtenstein (1977): covered a BMW 320i in his signature dots.
• Julie Mehretu (2024): painted a BMW M Hybrid V8 that started Le Mans weeks after being completed.
BMW Fun Facts About the M Badge and Munich Landmarks
Some BMW trivia is built into the buildings and the badges.
The Smallest Team, the Most Powerful Letter
BMW Motorsport GmbH took over on May 1, 1972 with just 35 employees. It is now BMW M GmbH, and the company has described the M as the "most powerful letter in the world."
Its first model, the M1, was the company's first competition car not based on a regular production model.
A Headquarters Shaped Like an Engine
BMW's Munich headquarters has four cylindrical sections that symbolize a four-cylinder engine. BMW says the complex opened on May 18, 1973.
Next door, BMW Welt opened in October 2007, designed by Vienna's Coop Himmelb(l)au.
An American Roadster Factory
BMW's Spartanburg, South Carolina plant opened in 1994, designed specifically to build the Z3 roadster for export worldwide. Today, it makes the X3, X4, X5 and X6.
Curious what BMW is up to near you? Keep reading the ONYX Automotive blog for the latest from the dealership.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most surprising of all BMW fun facts?
For many people, it is that BMW began as an aviation-related company, with March 7, 1916 as its official founding date.
Is the BMW logo really a propeller?
No. The roundel uses the Bavarian state colors. The propeller idea came from a 1929 advertisement.
How many BMW Art Cars are there?
BMW lists 20 Art Cars, starting with the 1975 Alexander Calder BMW 3.0 CSL.
When was BMW M founded?
BMW Motorsport GmbH, now BMW M GmbH, took over on May 1, 1972.