BMW is now Australia's best selling premium car brand, but the company began by building engines for aircraft, not cars 4. Its path from a Munich engine works to a familiar name here took more than a century, and it nearly ended more than once.

The original version of this article was long on detail but carried a number of dates and figures that did not match BMW's own records. This refreshed history of BMW Australia, and of the company behind it, sticks to what BMW and other reliable sources confirm.

Aircraft engines and a blue and white badge

BMW's official founding date is 7 March 1916, the day Bayerische Flugzeugwerke, or BFW, was founded in Munich 1. The blue and white logo first appeared in 1917, and every BMW product has carried it since 1.

Close view of the round blue, white and black BMW badge on a glossy red bonnet
The round BMW badge, in blue, white and black, on the glossy red bonnet of a car. Image from the earlier cardomain.com.au site; original source not recorded.

Motorcycles came first among road vehicles. The R 32, BMW's first motorcycle, made its debut at the Berlin Motor Show in 1923 1. Cars followed when BMW took over the vehicle factory at Eisenach in 1928, and it built cars there from 1929 1.

The 328 sports car

The pre-war car most enthusiasts remember is the 328 roadster. Only 464 were built at Eisenach between 1936 and 1940 6. Its 1,971 cc straight-six produced 59 kW at 5,000 rpm, modest by modern standards but enough to make it a winner 6. The 328 won more than 100 class events in 1937, and a closed Touring Coupe version won the 1940 Mille Miglia outright at an average of 166.7 km/h 6. In 1999 a panel of motoring journalists named it one of 25 finalists for Car of the Century 6.

War, ruin and a near takeover

The Second World War left BMW in a dire position. Allied forces dismantled its Munich plant, and the company did not regain control of its assets until 1949 1. The post-war restart came on two wheels, with the R 24 motorcycle in 1948 1. Its first post-war car, the large 501 sedan, went into production in 1952 1.

By the end of the 1950s BMW was in trouble. In 1959 its shareholders and workforce rejected a takeover offer from Daimler-Benz, and Herbert Quandt increased his stake in the company 1. That decision kept BMW independent.

The cars that made the modern BMW

The turning point was the BMW 1500, unveiled at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 1961, which BMW itself describes as its breakthrough 1. It was the first of a family of sedans known as the New Class, or Neue Klasse in German.

The New Class saves the company

The 1500 went into regular production in October 1962 and was built until December 1964 8. Its four-cylinder M10 engine displaced 1,499 cc and produced 60 kW 8. A 1600 with a 1,573 cc engine replaced it in 1964 8.

The New Class did more than sell well. It ensured BMW's solvency after the financial crisis of the 1950s 8. In 1962 the company broke even, in 1963 its sales rose by 47 per cent, and it paid a dividend for the first time in 20 years 8. From 1966 a shortened version of the same platform underpinned the smaller 02 Series 8.

The 3 Series

The first 3 Series, the E21, replaced the 02 Series in 1975 5. New generations followed roughly every seven years: the E30 in 1982, the E36 in 1990, the E46 in 1998, the E90 in 2004, the F30 in 2011 and the G20 in 2018 5. An eighth generation is slated for production in 2027 5.

The 3 Series remains BMW's best selling model line, at around 30 per cent of the brand's annual car sales 5. Its most famous version, the M3, made its debut in 1986 on the E30 platform 5. That car started a run of high-performance M models that still matters here: BMW's M division sold a record 5,837 cars in Australia in 2025 4.

BMW also started to build cars outside Germany. In 1972 its plant at Rosslyn in South Africa became its first factory abroad 1. The company's headquarters building and the BMW Museum in Munich officially opened on 18 May 1973 1.

Where the history of BMW Australia starts

BMW Group has had a presence in Australia since 1979, with its national headquarters in Melbourne 2. The head office is at Mulgrave, in the city's south-east 2. From there it runs BMW, MINI, BMW Motorrad and BMW Financial Services 2.

A boxy 1980s European sports sedan parked in a city laneway beside red brick warehouses (AI-generated image)
AI-generated image

BMW on Australian race tracks

BMW quickly made a name on local circuits. In 1985 Jim Richards won the Australian Touring Car Championship in a BMW 635 CSi run by JPS Team BMW 3. It was the first of his four titles 3. The championship ran over ten rounds, from Winton in February to Oran Park in July 3.

BMW has also won the Bathurst 12 Hour, Mount Panorama's endurance race, three times 9. The first two wins came in production-based 335i sedans, in 2007 and 2010, with Australian driver line-ups 9. The race was opened to GT3 cars in 2011, and BMW won it again in 2025 with an M4 GT3 entered by Team WRT 9.

Rolls-Royce, Rover and MINI

In the 1990s BMW went shopping. It bought the Rover Group in 1994, then sold it in 2000, keeping only MINI 1. The new MINI was launched in 2001 1.

In 1998 BMW acquired the rights to the Rolls-Royce brand and name 1. It built a new Rolls-Royce plant at Goodwood in southern England, which opened in 2003 1. Every new Rolls-Royce since then has been built under BMW ownership.

Black Rolls-Royce Phantom sedan with a modified chrome front end parked on gravel beside a stone wall
A black Rolls-Royce Phantom with a modified front bumper and chrome grille, parked beside a low stone wall. Image from the earlier cardomain.com.au site; original source not recorded.

Going electric

BMW was early to electric cars among the big premium makers. The i3, launched in 2013, was the group's first series-production fully electric model 1. The small hatch was built until 2022, and buyers could choose a pure battery electric version or one with a range extender, a small petrol engine that charged the battery on longer trips 7. Used examples of both versions are now common, and a range extender model can be a gentle first step for a buyer who worries about running out of charge. The larger iX SUV arrived in 2021 1. In 2025 the first car of a new generation it calls the Neue Klasse, the iX3, made its debut at the IAA Mobility show in Munich 1.

White BMW iX electric SUV with a large black grille parked on gravel among other cars
A white BMW iX electric SUV parked on gravel among other cars, its charging flap open. Image from the earlier cardomain.com.au site; original source not recorded.

Australian buyers have followed. In 2025 BMW delivered 5,187 battery electric vehicles here, 19.3 per cent of its total, led by the iX1 small SUV with 1,888 4. The iX2 was next with 1,194 4. BMW also sold 1,824 plug-in hybrids, most of them the X3 30e 4. Across its range it offered 16 fully electric variants over seven models 4.

BMW in Australia today

In 2025 BMW delivered 26,842 vehicles in Australia, up 1.9 per cent on 2024, and it was the best selling premium brand for the third year in a row, ahead of Mercedes-Benz and Audi 4.

SUVs now make up about 70 per cent of its Australian sales 4. Its three best sellers in 2025 were all SUVs 4:

  • the X1, with 5,306 sales 4;
  • the new generation X3, with 4,909 4;
  • the X5, with 3,673 4.

Performance cars still matter too. BMW's M division sold a record 5,837 cars here in 2025 4. MINI had its best ever year in Australia, with a record 5,485 sales, up 38 per cent 4.

Buying a BMW in Australia

A BMW, new or used, is a premium purchase, and the running costs match. Before you buy, look up the exact model and year on the ANCAP website for independent crash test results 10. For a used car, ask for the full service history and check what major work is due soon. Our guide to why you should never skip a scheduled service explains why that matters.

If you are weighing an electric BMW, read our guides to how long an electric car takes to charge and whether electric cars are better for the environment. Comparing German brands? Our history of Mercedes-Benz in Australia covers BMW's oldest rival. When you are ready, browse cars for sale on Car Domain and use our car loan calculator to check repayments.

For more on the company's past, the BMW Group history has its official timeline, and the record of the 1985 Australian Touring Car Championship covers BMW's best season in local touring cars.

Sources

  1. BMW Group, History of the BMW Group, accessed 2 November 2026
  2. German-Australian Chamber of Industry and Commerce, BMW Group Australia, accessed 2 November 2026
  3. Wikipedia, 1985 Australian Touring Car Championship, accessed 2 November 2026
  4. GoAuto, BMW outsells premium rivals Down Under, accessed 2 November 2026
  5. Wikipedia, BMW 3 Series, accessed 2 November 2026
  6. Wikipedia, BMW 328, accessed 2 November 2026
  7. Wikipedia, BMW i3, accessed 2 November 2026
  8. Wikipedia, BMW New Class, accessed 2 November 2026
  9. Wikipedia, Bathurst 12 Hour, accessed 2 November 2026
  10. ANCAP, ANCAP Safety, accessed 2 November 2026