The company has significant motorsport history, especially in touring cars, Formula 1, sports cars and the Isle of Man TT. HistoryeditBMW Headquarters in Munich. The towers and museum are visible in the back right. BMW Isetta with a front opening door. Aircraft engine productioneditBMWs origins can be traced back to three separate German companies Rapp Motorenwerke, Bayerische Flugzeugwerke and Automobilwerk Eisenach. The history of the name itself begins with Rapp Motorenwerke, an aircraft engine manufacturer. In April 1. 91. 7, following the departure of the founder Karl Friedrich Rapp, the company was renamed Bayerische Motoren Werke BMW. BMWs first product was the BMW IIIa aircraft engine. The IIIa engine was known for good fuel economy and high altitude performance. The resulting orders for IIIa engines from the German military caused rapid expansion for BMW. After the end of World War I in 1. BMW was forced to cease aircraft engine production by the terms of the Versailles Armistice Treaty. To maintain in business, BMW produced farm equipment, household items and railway brakes. In 1. 92. 2, former major shareholder Camillo Castiglioni purchased the rights to the name BMW, which led to the company descended from Rapp Motorenwerke being renamed Sddeutsche Bremse AG known today as Knorr Bremse. Castiglioni was also an investor in another aircraft company, called Bayerische Flugzeugwerke, which he renamed BMW. The disused factory of Bayerische Flugzeugwerke was re opened to produce engines for busses, trucks, farm equipment and pumps, under the brand name BMW. BMWs corporate history considers the founding date of Bayerische Flugzeugwerke 7 March 1. Motorcycle and car productioneditAs the restrictions of the Armistice Treaty began to be lifted, BMW began production of motorcycles in 1. R3. 2 model. BMWs production of automobiles began in 1. Automobilwerk Eisenach car company. Automobilwerk Eisenachs current model was the Dixi 31. Austin 7 which had begun production in 1. Following the takeover, the Dixi 31. BMW 31. 5, BMWs first production car. In 1. 92. 0, the BMW 32. BMW automobile designed entirely by BMW. It was powered by a four cylinder engine, which BMW designed based on the Austin 7 engine. BMWs first automotive straight six engine was released in 1. BMW 3. 03. Throughout the 1. BMW expanded its model range to include sedans, coupes, convertibles and sports cars. World War IIeditWith German rearmament in the 1. Luftwaffe. The factory in Munich made ample use of forced labour foreign civilians, prisoners of war and inmates of the Dachau concentration camp. Among its successful World War II engine designs were the BMW 1. BMW 8. 01 air cooled radial engines, and the pioneering BMW 0. Heinkel He 1. 62. Spatz. The BMW 0. Messerschmitt Me 2. Me 2. 62 V1, but in 1. BMW prototype engines failed on takeoff with only the standby Junkers Jumo 2. The few Me 2. 62 A 1b test examples built used the more developed version of the 0. The first ever four engine jet aircraft ever flown were the sixth and eighth prototypes of the Arado Ar 2. BMW 0. 03 jets for power. Through 1. 94. 4 the 0. Jgernotprogramms light fighter production contract. Heinkel He 1. 62 Spatz design. The BMW 0. 03 aviation turbojet was also under consideration as the basic starting point for a pioneering turboshaft powerplant for German armored fighting vehicles in 1. GT 1. 01. 1. 4 Towards the end of the Third Reich, BMW developed some military aircraft projects for the Luftwaffe, the BMW Strahlbomber, the BMW Schnellbomber and the BMW Strahljger, but none of them were built. Post war rebuildingeditDuring World War II, many BMW production facilities had been heavily bombed. BMWs facilities in East Germany were seized by the Soviet Government and the remaining facilities were banned by the Allies from producing motorcycles or automobiles. During this ban, BMW used basic secondhand and salvaged equipment to make pots and pans, later expanding to other kitchen supplies and bicycles. In 1. 94. 7, BMW was granted permission to resume motorcycle production and its first post war motorcycle the R2. BMW was still forbidden from producing automobiles, however the Bristol Aeroplane Company BAC was producing cars in England based on BMWs pre war models, using plans that BAC had taken from BMWs German offices. Production of automobiles resumed in 1. BMW 5. 01 large sedan. Throughout the 1. BMW expanded their model range with sedans, coupes, convertibles and sports cars. In 1. 95. 4, the BMW 5. BMWs first to use a V8 engine. To provide an affordable model, BMW began production of the Isetta micro car under licence from Iso in 1. Two years later, the four seat BMW 6. Isetta design. In 1. BMW 6. 00 was replaced by the larger BMW 7. Near bankruptcy and New ClasseditBy 1. BMW was in debt and losing money. The Isetta was selling well but with small profit margins. Their 5. 01 based luxury sedans were not selling well enough to be profitable and were becoming increasingly outdated. Their 5. 03 coup and 5. Their 6. 00, a four seater based on the Isetta, was selling poorly. The motorcycle market imploded in the mid 1. Germans away from motorcycles and toward cars. BMW had sold their Allach plant to MAN in 1. American Motors and the Rootes Group had both tried to acquire BMW. At BMWs annual general meeting on 9 December 1. Dr. Hans Feith, chairman of BMWs supervisory board, proposed a merger with Daimler Benz. The dealers and small shareholders opposed this suggestion and rallied around a counter proposal by Dr. Friedrich Mathern, which gained enough support to stop the merger. At that time, the Quandt Group, led by half brothers Herbert and Harald Quandt, had recently increased their holdings in BMW and had become their largest shareholder. In 1. 96. 0, the development program began for a new range of models, called the Neue Klasse New Class project. The resulting New Class four door sedans, introduced in 1. Fable 2 Money Hack Xbox One Without Getting there. BMWs identity as a producer of leading sports sedans. In 1. 96. 5, the New Class range was expanded with the 2. C and 2. 00. 0 CS luxury coupes. The range was further expanded in 1. BMW 0. 2 Series compact coupes. BMW acquired the Hans Glas company based in Dingolfing, Germany, in 1. Glas vehicles were briefly badged as BMW until the company was fully absorbed. It was reputed that the acquisition was mainly to gain access to Glas development of the timing belt with an overhead camshaft in automotive applications,2. Glas Dingolfing plant as another incentive.