BMW 600
Encyclopedia
The BMW 600 is a four-seat microcar
Microcar
A microcar is the smallest automobile classification usually applied to standard small car . Such small cars were generally referred to as cyclecars until the 1940s. More recent models are also called bubblecars due to their egg-shaped appearance.-Definition:The definition of a microcar has varied...

 produced by BMW
BMW
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG is a German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company founded in 1916. It also owns and produces the Mini marque, and is the parent company of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. BMW produces motorcycles under BMW Motorrad and Husqvarna brands...

 from mid-1957 until November 1959. Partially based on the BMW Isetta
Isetta
The Isetta is an Italian-designed microcar built in a number of different countries, including Spain, Belgium, France, Brazil, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Produced in the post-World War II years, a time when cheap short-distance transportation was most needed, it became one of the most...

 two-seater, it was BMW's first postwar four seat economy car. It was not a sales success, but it began the design process for its more successful successor, the BMW 700
BMW 700
The BMW 700 was a small rear-engined car produced by BMW in various models from August 1959 to November 1965. It was the first BMW automobile with a monocoque structure. The 700 was a sales success at a time when BMW was close to financial ruin...

.

Concept, design, and engineering

BMW needed to expand its model range, but they did not have the resources to develop an all-new car with an all-new engine. Therefore, it used the Isetta as starting point for a new four seat economy car.

As a result, the 600 used the front suspension and front door of the Isetta. The need to carry four people required a longer frame, a different rear suspension, and a larger engine. A new perimeter frame was designed, using box section side members and straight tube crossmembers. The rear suspension was an independent semi trailing arm
Trailing arm
thumb|220px|Trailing arm rear suspension of [[Front-engine, front-wheel drive layout|FF]] carsA trailing-arm suspension is an automobile suspension design in which one or more arms are connected between the axle and the chassis. It is usually used on rear axles...

 design; this was the first time BMW had used this system. The chassis had a wheelbase of 1700 millimetres (66.9 in), a front track of 1220 millimetres (48 in), and a rear track of 1160 millimetres (45.7 in).

The 600 was powered by the 582 cc flat-twin engine from the R67 motorcycle/sidecar combination. This engine, which delivered 19.5 hp at 4,500 revolutions per minute, was mounted behind the rear wheels. A four-speed manual gearbox was standard, while a Saxomat semi-automatic transmission was available.

Access to the rear seats was by a conventional door on the right side of the vehicle.

Reception

The sales figures for the 600 did not meet BMW's expectations. During production from August 1957 to 1959, about 35,000 were built. This is attributed to competition with more conventional cars, including the Volkswagen Beetle
Volkswagen Beetle
The Volkswagen Type 1, widely known as the Volkswagen Beetle or Volkswagen Bug, is an economy car produced by the German auto maker Volkswagen from 1938 until 2003...

.

Legacy

The 600 played a direct role in the design of its successor, the BMW 700
BMW 700
The BMW 700 was a small rear-engined car produced by BMW in various models from August 1959 to November 1965. It was the first BMW automobile with a monocoque structure. The 700 was a sales success at a time when BMW was close to financial ruin...

. Wolfgang Denzel, the distributor of BMW cars in Austria, commissioned Giovanni Michelotti
Giovanni Michelotti
Giovanni Michelotti was one of the most prolific designers of sports cars in the 20th century. His notable contributions were for Triumph and BMW marques...

 to prepare concept sketches based on a lengthened BMW 600 chassis. Denzel presented the concept, a 2-door coupe with a slanted roof, to BMW's management. The concept was generally well received, but objections were raised about the limited passenger space. BMW decided to produce two versions, the coupe, and a 2-door sedan with a taller, longer roof.

Another legacy of the 600 was its independent semi-trailing arm rear suspension. This was BMW's first use of this suspension system and, with the exception of the BMW M1
BMW M1
The BMW M1 is a sports car that was produced by German automaker BMW from 1978 to 1981.In the late 1970s, Italian manufacturer Lamborghini entered into an agreement with BMW to build a production racing car in sufficient quantity for homologation. The result was sold to the public, from 1978 to...

, it was used on every BMW production automobile introduced afterward up to 1984. It was eventually supplanted by the "Z-axle" multi-link suspension
Multi-link suspension
A multi-link suspension is a type of vehicle suspension design typically used in independent suspensions, using three or more lateral arms, and one or more longitudinal arms....

 introduced with the BMW Z1
BMW Z1
The BMW Z1 was a two-seat roadster developed by BMW and produced from March 1989 to June 1991. The Z1 featured doors which dropped down into the door sills. A total of 8,000 cars were produced.-History:...

 in 1988. The last BMW cars with semi-trailing arm suspension were the BMW Compact
BMW Compact
The BMW Compact is a compact car / small family car, basically a truncated liftback version of the BMW 3 Series, produced by the German automaker BMW between 1993 and 2004. From 1994, it was based on the BMW E36 platform, switching to the BMW E46 platform in 2001...

 and the BMW Z3
BMW Z3
The BMW Z3 was the first modern mass-market roadster produced by BMW, as well as the first new BMW model assembled in the United States. The Z3 was introduced as a 1996 model year vehicle, shortly after being featured in the James Bond movie,...

.

External links

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